The 2004 Pignacolusse is a wine of stark contrasts. On the positive side, the wine possesses notable elegance in its massive dark red fruit, with superior length and silky tannnins. However, the 2004 Pignacolusse also shows a level of volatile acidity (VA) I haven’t encountered in previous vintages. Although some of the VA recedes with air, it remains a part of this wine’s personality. In some ways this wine reminds me of a traditionally made Barolo or Brunello of years past, although the density and richness are clearly those of a wine from the modern school. Readers will want to taste this wine prior to making any significant purchases. Jermann bottles two wines from the indigenous Pignolo grape. This Pignacolusee is made from fruit grown on the plains and is given 30 months in French oak. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2014. Silvio Jermann has much more competition from his neighbors these days. One can’t help noticing that Jermann is increasingly being left behind by the area’s new generation of ambitious, quality-minded producers, something that was brought home to me quite clearly when I visited the region’s top estates a few months ago. Ironically for a producer famous for his whites, it is actually the reds that are now among the estate’s most interesting wines.Importer: Empson, USA, Alexandria, VA; tel. (703) 684-0900