This is one of Puglia's iconic red wines. The 2011 Graticciaia sees Negroamaro grapes dried on straw mats called "graticci" for more concentrated flavors and sweetness. The wine opens to an inky, midnight appearance and dark concentration. You can definitely taste that overt sweetness from the air-dried fruit, yet Graticciaia is also about balance and integration. Ironically, a wine like this shows more fine detailing and finesse in a hot vintage like 2011 (despite how counter-intuitive that may sound). The appassimento process overwhelms any jammy flavors that come out of the vineyard. It also allows for fine aromas of spice, cola and licorice to come through with crystalline sharpness.

The 2009 Graticcaia is one of the most distinctive wines to emerge from Puglia today. Fruit is sourced from ancient alberello or head-pruned vines and is air-dried on straw mats (called "graticci" in Italian) for up to three weeks. Stylistically, the wine shares many of the dried fruit characteristics of Amarone from Northern Italy. This expression of Negroamaro delivers dark fruit aromas of prune, raisin, scorched earth and burnt almond shell. It ages in Allier and Never barrique for one year. The charred notes are very strong and come in stark contrast to the very noticeable jammy sweetness that this wine delivers to the palate. The finish is chewy, soft and very ripe. It should drink well over the next five years.