INSIDER'S PICK: 2021 MASSERIA CUTURI PRIMITIVO SALENTO 'TUMA' $21.99

In 1881, the owner of what is now Masseria Cuturi received cuttings of Primitivo vines as part of a dowry for his marriage to a countess from the town of Altamura. Though both towns are part of the region of Puglia, it marked the first time that Primitivo was recorded to have been planted this far South. Perhaps not coincidentally at about the same time in California, many immigrant families were arriving as part of the post-Gold Rush western expansion with their own vine cuttings. Primitivo was a hearty workhorse grape, and prospered in these family run vineyards, becoming what we now call Zinfandel and representing some of the oldest vineyards in North America. I bring up this connection because when we first tasted this wine, my first thought was this Puglian wine tastes like it could have been made by the hand of our favorite Zin producers, like Morgan Twain-Peterson of Bedrock or Tegan Passalacqua of Turley/Sandlands. This is meant as an extremely positive comparison, a blending of modern technology and technique with a respect for history and tradition. Rich blackberry fruit on the nose mixes with pepper and black spices, intense but not at the expense of savory complexity. The palate is round and lush, smoothing out much of the rougher rustic edges that have been a source of conflict for this region, but they haven't been erased. There is a definite grip to the finish, bringing some chew to the fruit and helping the savory tones linger. A great crossroads of Old School/New School, especially for the price.

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