Brett happens

Lison Pramaggiore 2011, Refosco, Impronta del Fondatore, Santa Margherita ($19.05, 12208538)
100% Refosco. Macerated and fermented on the skins in stainless steel tanks for ten days at 28°C with regular pump-overs for about ten days. After malolactic fermentation, part of the wine is racked into French oak barriques, while the rest is matured in stainless steel. The two batches are blended just before bottling. 14% ABV.
Sweaty candied plum, slate, spice and hints of flowers (peony?), animale and sawed wood. Medium- to full-bodied. Dry but fruity with a sappy greenish overtone. The soft, lightly raspy tannins and relatively low acidity give the wine a velour-like texture that lasts well into the faintly bitter finish. Not bad but one-dimensional and a bit heavy. (Buy again? Nah.)

IGP Letrini 2009, Domaine Mercouri ($22.00, 11885537)
Located on the western coast of the Peloponnese peninsula near the village of Korakochori, the estate is the second oldest modern-day producer in Greece (after Boutari). This is a blend of sustainably farmed Refosco (80%) and Mavrodaphne (20%); the Refosco vines were first brought to the estate from Friuli in the 19th century. Fermented with neutral yeasts in stainless steel vats. Undergoes malolactic fermentation. Matured 10 to 12 months in French oak barrels, 40% new. 13.5% ABV.
Red and black fruit, cedar, graphite, tire. Silkier, brighter and fleeter than the Lison Pramaggiore. The fruit is ripe but restrained, structured by dark minerals and fine tannins and sweetened by a whisper of oak. The sustained finish has an appetizing bitter note. Fundamentally, a savoury wine though not at the expense of freshness. Elegant and digeste, far more so than its flightmate. Even better than the enjoyable 2008. (Buy again? Done!)

Before the bottles were unveiled, I pegged the chewy, unrefreshing wine as the Greek and the elegant, food-friendly wine as the Italian. Shows what I know. Preconceptions die hard.