Watkins Ruscello Sangiovese 2021

This wine is part of the Watkins ‘Mad Cousins’ Series, a range all about experimentation and gosh it’s a fun one. There’s ripe, seductive raspberries, black cherries and kirsch, mastic spice (think grown-up pink musk sticks) and figs in syrup. Very ripe and silky in the mouth, it’s boozy, at 14.9% alcohol, but this is cradled in loads of juicy fruit and so presents as just a buzz of warmth. The tannins are rounder and softer than you expect from Sangiovese but still perfectly varietal in the way they build on the back of the palate with a finish like chewing cacao nibs. Pair with mounds of pasta topped with the thick, rich, comfort-inducing ragu of your choice.