Above: Sometimes less is more. The thing I liked the most about this well-priced wine was how straightforward and earnest it was. Photo by The Brad’s Adventures in Food.

When 1996 Langa wines first arrived in this country, the vintage was touted as one of the greatest in living memory. And indeed, it was a fantastic vintage. The wines have many, many more years of vibrant life ahead of them but I’ve also been surprised by how well some of the 96s are drinking this year.

I don’t know how the above bottle found its way into The Italian Wine Guy’s cellar, but I was psyched that he wanted to pop it last night at dinner in Dallas. I really can’t find much information on La Ca’ Növa winery but I can say that I really liked the wine. It was straightforward and earnest in the glass, not a super star, just a hard-worker who wanted to deliver an honest wine. It was all about mushroom and dirt. There doesn’t seem to be any 96 left on the market (or at least on WineSearcher) but the available bottlings of classic Barbaresco seem to weigh in under $40. Sometimes less is more…

In other news…

It’s been a year since I arrived permanently in Texas (after driving across country in the ol’ Volvo). It’s been such a wonderful and wonderfully crazy time and Tracie B and I have been having so much fun planning our wedding. We have so much to be thankful for. The love and support of both our families, our health, and a bright future together. I’ve made so many great friends here and we’ve been having a blast celebrating the holidays with friends and family, old and new. Thanks, everyone, for reading and for all the support over this last year and beyond. I really can’t tell you just how much it means to me… it means the world… :-)

@Tracie B I love you and I never knew I could find such happiness and such goodness within and all around me. I’m so glad for a lovely lady from a small town in East Texas, with an “appetite and a dream…” :-)

I’ll never forget the first time I read that tag line on your blog and I’m so happy that I did… it changed my life forever and in ways I could have never imagined… I love you…

Photo by The Nichols.