Tua Rita
Date: Fri, Jun 6, 2008 Wine Tasting
Tua Rita
Tua Rita, named after Rita Tua who bought the vineyards in 1984 with partner Virgilio Bisti, have managed to do spectacular things to the Italian wine landscape in a remarkably short space of time. The world famous, always Tre Bicchiere, and 100 Parker point awarded Redigaffi (100% Merlot) is something of an institution here in Italy held in huge esteem and traded for the GDPs of old soviet satellites. The vineyards themselves are spooky neat and efficient and the whole operation is simply operatic perfection in wine making. 
Tua Rita occupies some of the best grape growing land in Suvereto, close to the coast where all the great Super Tuscan vineyards are located in Bolgheri (that's Tuscany, but you know that by now surely right? No? Tuscany Guide). This is a real small yield vineyard and top notch winemaker Stefano Chioccioli is overseeing and running the show in the fields for Tua Rita. So you got the land, and the know how in place, but Tua Rita have made critical decisions about which grapes to go with and in the space of 20 years have created wines that many Bordeaux producers, with 100's of years experience can't even touch.
Tua Ritas production isn't exactly huge, this isn't an Antinori kind of production, the wines have a cult status and are trading for €500+ in the Italian enotecas (and its not like many Italian enotecas are stocking the 100 point 2000 Redigaffi) if you are smart, you can pick them up much cheaper on Italian Ebay.
What wines do Tua Rita produce?
Redigaffi - Signature wine of Tua Rita. 100% Merlot, the best Merlot in Italy and a 100 Parker point bomb. 1997, 1999, 2000 and 2004 are generally considered to be the best vintages of this bottling, find one of these under €200 and you're doing well. Traditionally, this is a really rich, opulent Merlot, big tannins with big terroir driven aromas. The 2004 vintage is really a little under priced in places, something of a bargain/investment, I sourced it at €150 click here.
Giusto di Notri - The top Bordeaux-esque blend of Tua Rita. Merlot 25%, Cabernet Sauvignon 65%, Cabernet Franc 15%, 5% Petit Verdot. The wine achieved huge accolades across the board for three vintages in a row from 1999-2001. Traditionally this wine is very dark with licorice and graphite notes, very rich and fruity wine. Any readers from the Chicago area can pick this up for under $70 from Flickinger Wines (probably they deliver further than Chicago, check it out)
Perlato Del Bosco Rosso - A price accessible Tuscan blend. Sangiovese 65%, Cabernet Sauvignon 35%. This wine is improving year on year, with the last two vintage releases ('04 and '05) becoming serious QPR wines (can pick these up for €20). If you want to try something from Tua Rita but don't want to lay out the big money, this wine is a good option. Fruity and balanced this is a very approachable wine, perhaps drinking best young. The 2006 vintage is reportedly excellent too.
There are a further two white wines that I personally have no experience of so couldn't possibly comment (but you could, leave a comment!) the Perlato Del Bosco Bianco (Trebbiano 60%, Ansonica 20%, Clairette 20%) and the Lodano (50% Traminer Riesling and 50% Chardonnay).
Now, why am I talking about Tua Rita? It's a little left field right? Well, RIGHT. After "Nero Week" (which should be rechristened "Nero Fortnight"), I'm going to start exploring the rich and confusing world of Italian Merlot. So, Italian Merlot, Tua Rita, Redigaffi, see what I did? I will be splurging on an a bottle of the latest Redigaffi and choosing 5 other Merlots from around Italy to showcase for my kick into Italian Merlot and once more, I need assistance.
I may even make my way down to Tua Rita next weekend, if they allow me thru the doors, and if so, I'll bring back a full report and hopefully a lot of tasting notes. Ciao for Now.
Question of the Day
Recommend some Italian Merlots, besides the Redigaffi, for what will probably become "Merlot Month" on the blog as there are a ridiculous amount on the market. Please.. pretty please.
Italian Wine UK
Date: Thu, Jun 5, 2008 Wine Tasting
Italian Wine UK
Italian Wine UK - Italian wine, after a dramatic fall in the past decade, is once again picking up steam in the UK. Last year saw a 20% increase in the number of imports to the UK as the Brits find those old Chilean and Argentinian wines are shooting up in price. This is great news for our business, while we are based in Italy, the majority of our sales are to the UK Market, followed closely by Italy then Scandinavia. 
However, I have to make another very public plea to the blog readers and Cellar Door customers, please, experiment! There are so many quality wines being produced throughout Italy and these Tuscan wines, while some are very good, they are not exactly QPR. Life is about variety and in my humble opinion, these Brunello fruit bombs getting top marks from Wine Spectator are not always indicative of Italy's unique terroir. We have the wines split into regions for a very good reason, each region is bringing different soil, grapes, weather and I press you all to try wines from the length and breadth of Italy. Bruno Giacosa Spumante Extra Brut
Date: Thu, Jun 5, 2008 Wine Tasting
Bruno Giacosa Spumante Extra Brut
Bruno Giacosa Spumante Extra Brut is a Pinot Nero grape sparkling white from Bruno Giacosa. The grapes are actually bought in for this effort from Oltrepo Pavese but the Giacosa experience and vinification processes give added quality. I'm tasting this as part of "Nero Week", not an actual term but a personal made up one for my own little exploration of Italian Pinot Nero and so far, I am blown away by the quality of Italian Pinot Nero in all their guises. Ruffino Nero del Tondo
Date: Tue, Jun 3, 2008 Wine Tasting
Ruffino Nero del Tondo
Ruffino Nero del Tondo 1990, think about that for a minute, Ruffino Nero del Tondo 1990, in front of me I have an 18 year old bottle of wine. As Twin Peaks began its run, Italy won the World Cup, Russia becomes a Republic, Navratilova puffs her way to her last Wimbledon title, the first Gulf War begins, Germany unifies and the New Kids are Hangin Tough, somewhere in a corner of Tuscany, Ruffino are handling a 5 star vintage, Pinot Noir. Pinot Nero as we should say! 18 years on and you expect changes right? Especially in a wine. Ok, so Italy are still World Cup Champions, and oh yes, ok, Gulf War II (this time it's personal) and I wouldn't put down too many bills against Martina winning Wimbledon if she tried BUT things do change and evolve and this wine has changed, evolved and aged beautiful. It is a prom queen, it is the ugly duckling finally realising its potential, 18 years on the Ruffino Nero del Tondo is a stunner!
So what is next this week? I've been in contact with Big Yellow Storage about their new facility in Fulham so write that up for you. See the photo and take a note on how NOT to store your wines, mix up the Mr Muscle with the Merlot and it's a trip to the ospedale for you. This weekend I go to London and will be trying a wine flight at the 2 michelin star, 600 vino carrying, fancy pants restaurant, Pied a Terre which I am properly excited about. 10 wines, roughly half and half red/white from California, Italy, France, South Africa and Greece so a chance to broaden my palate with a little Gewurztraminer and Sherry. This restaurant really does look amazing and is on the same street, get this, the same street as my halls of residence where I used to go to University in London!Antinori Achelo
Date: Mon, Jun 2, 2008 Wine Tasting
Antinori Achelo
Antinori Achelo is the name of the blog post but Antinori Achelo is not act-chew-ally the name of the wine, for it's produced on the La Braccesca estate and doesn't even mention Antinori on the bottle. Originally I found this strange, Antinori has a stella name in the Italian wine biz so why are they playing coy? Cos it's muck, that's why! The wine comes from around Cortona, another station I whizzed past today on my way back to Venezia and I thought to myself, "you have that Achelo at home Newton, lets get it drunk". Another case of high hopes dashed. It says Syrah on the bottle, looks like Syrah in the glass but tastes and smells like garbage. I'm a fan of stinky wines, different wines, this is 1 dimensional and dull.Montefalco Umbria
Date: Sun, Jun 1, 2008 Wine Tasting
Montefalco Umbria
Montefalco itself is located between Foligno and Trevi in the central Umbria area. Montefalco is all about wine, the town itself is full of enotecas and wine specialising restaurants. Walking through the main streets and the central square you really get a feeling for what wine means to this area. Producing wine since pre roman times, this little visited Umbrian hilltop town is a real treasure find. The entire area around Montefalco is part of the Sagrantino wine trail called Strada del Sagrantino. A pleasure for all the senses I can think of no better holiday for an Italian wine geek, check out the link to see all the area has to offer. 29 Vineyards available to tour. 
What I was not expecting in Montefalco was the best wine bar I've come across in Umbria "Enoteca Federico II" named after the guy who sacked the city in the 13th century. This enoteca/restaurant sits in Montefalcos central square and offers Italy's most famous wines, as well as a good selection of local wines by the glass from a self service machine! I could not believe my eyes, you could simply take your glass, stick in your card and purchase a glass of Sassicaia 2001 for €7,00 or a Tignanello, a Pian della Vigne, Guado al Tasso, they were all there. This is a great place for someone who wants to try all the very best Italian wine has to offer without breaking the piggy bank. If you bought a bottle of the 8 on display in the photo you are looking at a €1000 outlay, to try a sample of magic machine works out around €55. Of course, you are not getting a full glass, but enough to experience the wines taste, colour and aroma.
Montefalco Umbria is all about the wine but also has some awe inspiring churches and architecture. If you are the type to take a wine holiday and want culture and scenery thrown into the mix then this area has to be a serious contender and, always a plus point, no one knows about it. The area is also superb for cyclists and foodies with 10 Gambero Rosso award winning restaurants in the local area. Check out especially Villa Zuccari, Redibis and Centro Acquarossa. Montefalco is far less crowded and easily more pleasant that your other wine hilltop towns, Montepulciano etc etc, in the area, go check it out.Arnaldo Caprai
Date: Sun, Jun 1, 2008 Wine Tasting
Arnaldo Caprai,
Arnaldo Caprai are the leading exponent of the Sagrantino grape bringing it to its fullest and most glorious expression in the award winning, poll topping, mouth puckering, 25 Anni Sagrantino di Montefalco. Arnaldo Caprai wines are low yield, attention to detail, terroir exploiting brilliant expressions of every grape under vine, no fillers, all killers, the entire range is outstanding. Yesterday I was fortunate enough to visit the vineyards of Arnaldo Caprai, 4kms outside of Montefalco and snoop around the nerve centre of the operation as well as partaking in a tasting of their best wines. Arnaldo Caprai are world famous for their top bottling, the 25 Anni Sagrantino di Montefalco, the best wine of the vineyard and, in my opinion, the best wine currently produced in all of Umbria. 
Arnaldo Caprai also produce a stunning blended wine, barely known outside Italy, called Rosso Outsider, a wine of wonderful aroma and mouth feel that really encapsulates the fabulous terroir the vineyard occupies. This area is not just about Sagrantino, the Rosso Outsider is a 50/50 Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon blend that holds a bunch of candles to your famous Super Tuscans. I am very serious when I say that the 2005 vintage I tried can be happily awarded 95 points, wonderfully smooth, and I´d wager the best blended Umbrian wine. At a price point of €30, this is the QPR wine of the vineyard. I see this wine gaining notoriety over the next 5-10 years in a major major way, so investors and serious wine enthusiasts are strongly advised to buy a case of the '04 or '05. 
The vineyards occupy a stunning position and you´ll see this blog entry is loaded with images, the entire area around Montefalco is part of a wine tour trail which I didn´t have time to embark on yesterday but will definately take a week to explore. The town of Montefalco is more geared towards wine than any other Italian town I´ve visited with a really shocking state of the art piece of wine kit in the central square and a super stocked wine bar which I will write about in the next blog entry. 
Arnaldo Caprai produce nine wines, a grappa and also a fine olive oil. The most impressive point of the visit for me, aside the the beautiful setting, state of the art buildings and jazzy displays is the fact that this vineyard has achieved excellence across several grape varietals. Arnaldo Caprai tend Sagrantino, Merlot, Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Grechetto, Ciligiolo and a really low yield but carefully tended Pinot Noir. So shocked was I to see a Pinot I agreed to buy a bottle on the spot, only later realising they came in magnum form and were not exactly price sensitive! The 2001 Pinot Noir ¨Nero Outsider¨ looks the biz but I´m running out of occasions for these mags! Arnaldo Caprai wines are quality throughout but it is the aromatic qualities that stand out the most and I can´t wait to stick my nose in this Pinot mag. 
Another happy shock was the quality of their only white, the Umbrian classic, Grechetto grape finds near perfect expression in the vineyards Grecante wine. Anyone who reads the blog will know I have a teeny tiny bias for reds and am no fan of the Grechetto grape yet the Caprai version is certainly the best Grechetto I´ve tasted. Coming in at under €10 a bottle, this is another sound offering that I happily scored at 89 points.
The star of the tasting was, no doubt, the 25 Anni Sagrantino, the 2004 vintage I could smell as the assistant was pouring the sample. A tremendous nose from a foot away giving off aromas of perfectly ripe fruit, vanilla and spices. This is the best nose I´ve sniffed all year. The wine was hugely tannic and after a 10 second swill around the palate speaking became an effort, really puckering wine but the tannins were soft and enjoyable. The colour of this wine was the darkest of all the samples and I´m scoring the 2004 vintage a whopping, thigh slapping 97 points. The highest of any wine I´ve scored in 2008. €55 a bottle?! Bargain.On the Lash
Date: Fri, May 30, 2008 Wine Tasting
On the Lash,
Yesterdays foray into the Mestre wine world was without rhyme or reason and without a real stand out wine. Myself and a friend took it upon ourselves to try out the various wine bars stumbling roughly between my red hot 35°c apartment and Piazza Ferretto, ending up, typically, at the Lupo Nero (that is WOLF, wolf, not rabbit!). The restaurant, as always, was fabulous and although we went thru a few wines earlier in the night it provided the best tasting, a sumptious Primitivo by small name producer "Peruini" and at €11 in a restaurant, I was suitably impressed. I was also incredibly drunk so my score of 88 points carries a beer goggle value! 
So, Tina and I started with an abysmal Barbera d'Alba from Castello di Verduno from a very limited choice in the local enoteca "Vite Rosse". The bar had probably 100 different wines on display, but only 6 were available to order by the glass. We found this at every bar we visited and have now exhausted Mestre's limited appeal and will hike into Venice real for our next tasting. After the Barbera, which really I can't get over how bad it was, we changed bars and changed regions, trying the Ruffino basic Il Ducale. Clearly a blended wine, it wasn't without some charms, but still, gotta give it a "meh".Pinot Nero
Date: Thu, May 29, 2008 Wine Tasting
Pinot Nero,
Pinot Nero, for those who don't know or couldn't guess is the Italian term for the Pinot Noir grape. Pinot Noir was the wine of choice for many, coming off the back of Sideways the wine became more popular and consequently, more expensive. In Italy, Pinot Nero has a fairly chequered reputation and is really only grown in the North, so the Alto Adige and here in the Veneto, Friuli Venezia region.
So what can Italian Pinot Nero bring to the table? Well, it is not particularly well marketed or reviewed, no real Parker or WineSpectator information available but Italian Pinot Noir is infact, reputedly, pretty good and getting better. There's even a very famous Pinot Nero out of Tuscany, with Ruffino (yes, Ruffino... am I sure there's only Pinot in there?... oh... oh... lawsuit) producing the excellent Nero al Tondo. Yet the critics also bypass this offering so I am sans scores! So, *deep sigh* I'll have to buy a bottle and review for Wine90.
Pinot Nero wines, at their best, can be incredibly long lasting and typically, in Italian terroir the grape is particularly tricky to cultivate and so excellence in an Italian Pinot Nero is really a super achievement. Today I have bought 5 Pinot Nero wines to try and will add the reviews to the bottom of this blog entry as soon as they've arrived! I have no experience of Italian Pinot Nero but apparently, and we shall soon see, the flavour profile is closely linked to the Burgundian Pinot Noirs (light, fruity, subtle).
Pinot Nero produces not only long lasting award winning reds, but can also produce whites and even sparkling wines. Produced mainly in the North and with Ruffino bringing in Tuscany I have gone for a cross section of years, producers, regions, colours and price points.
So which wines are up for review?
Ruffino Nero del Tondo 1990 - €40 - Tuscany Red
Bruno Giacosa Extra Brut Pinot Nero 2004 - €18.50 - Piemonte Sparkling White
Le Due Terre Pinot Nero 2005 - €27 - Friuli Venezia Red
Hoffstatter Pinot Nero Meczan Riserva - €19.50 - Alto Adige Red
Les Cretes Pinot Nero 2006 - €11 - Valle d'Aosta Red
I might know the names but having never tasted any of these wines it should be easy to be free from red eyed judging! I had to throw in a Bruno, I know, I know... but, BUT, the most interesting to me is the Les Cretes, Valle d'Aosta Pinot... I hope for good things especially at 11 euros.
So, no reviews, no questions of the day, no nothing! Tonight I head to my funky local wine bar so will have some more reviews to add. Tomorrow I'm away on my toes on the 4 o'clock train to Florence and then the 8 o'clock train to Perugia and making my way down to the Arnaldo Caprai vineyards for a Saturday morning appointment with Italy's most accomplished Sagrantino di Montefalco producer. It's a tough life guys, tough life. Ciao Ciao
Oh, and look out for the reviews of the wines to appear below on this blog post.
HERE!
Sagrantino di Montefalco
Date: Fri, May 23, 2008 Wine Tasting
Sagrantino di Montefalco
My past opinion of this wine was limited to, "sure this is the best red in Umbria, but really, that's not hard". I'd been served this wines a few times in some trattorias in Todi and Perugia but they must have been giving me the worst examples possible. Well, I have to take all that back and stand completely corrected because this is a serious red wine, a serious serious red wine that you absolutely need to try. The stand out characteristic of Sagrantino di Montefalco is the exceptional dryness you get, the grapes for this wine are dried in passito style and made from 100% Sagrantino grapes. This has been a DOCG wine since 1991. There are around 30 producers of this wine with the best examples of this wine selling for around €50-60 a bottle (these are 95-97 point wines so exceptional QPR). There are only about 300 acres of this grape currently planted so it's a wine that can be a little hard to find, an exclusive wine. The wine itself is very very tannic and drying and benefits hugely from aging, can be aged up to 40 years from the best vintages. 2000 and 2001 were great vintages for the grape but the 2004 is the latest release and is gathering lots of support as an outstanding vintage.
Dark, thick, brooding and inviting in the glass the aromas are hitting me before I even take a sniff. Huge, intense nose of plums, jam, coffee, fruit comes through so strongly here it really is exceptionally jammy, a real plum jam hit. On the palate the wine was so drying but the fruit in the mid palate carries it through but it's clear we could do with some extra aging here. The mouth feel is soft and caressing, not acidic with a lovely 30 second + finish. A fantastic surprise, delicious, great structure, an exceptional wine tasting experience. 96 Points
You can pay €200 for a 96 Point Gaja Barolo or a Casa di Neri Brunello, if you have a celebration that calls for a great bottle without the price tag, say your 2nd child's graduation or a 15 year wedding anniversary, and you don't want to splash the cash,this is the wine to buy! Top marks. Go get it. Now. Leave the blog, don't look at the question of the day. Brits, don't pay that price at F&R, we sell a 2004 Sagrantino di Montefalco for £13 at The Cellar Door. If you want the Caprai go to the European recommendation.
Where can I buy this wine?
Morellino di Scansano
Date: Thu, May 22, 2008 Wine Tasting
Morellino di Scansano
to this enoteca for drinks and "cichetti" (the Venetian dialect word for tapas) and, as per what passes for fun with my techie colleagues, I was handed a glass of red and challenged to name it. To their pleasure and my shame, I was wrong, but I wasn't far off! as it had the nose and taste of a young clean Chianti Classico but was none other than the neighbouring DOCG 85% Sangiovese wine Morellino di Scansano. 
Morellino di Scansano is usually cheaper than its famous neighbour and you can pick up the very best bottles from the top producers at bargain prices. So for those of you who don't know much about Morellino di Scansano, here is the QT!Borgogno Barolo
Date: Wed, May 21, 2008 Wine Tasting
Borgogno Barolo
Borgogno Barolo has been enjoyed in these parts since production began in 1761 making Borgogno one of the oldest winemakers in the region. Giacomo Borgogno e Figli, to give the company its full name, is a traditional style Barolo producer who were exceptionally trendy and revered in the 50's and 60's and their bottles, with or without the wine inside, are traded as artistic pieces here in Italy and even in the USA. Borgogno, despite real pressure from the new breed of Barolo producers have never veered from their traditional, Barolo crafting, routes although the new generation at the company, Cesare & Giorgio Borgogno, are taking the company forward in huge leaps and bringing the company back to the forefront of Barolo production with some exceptional recent vintages.
Borgogno is slap bang in the heart of Barolo land with vineyards in Cannubi, Liste, Rue, Fossati and San Pietro. Here the company are famous for keeping and releasing many older vintages from their huge cellars. Borgogno is the most traditional of all producers and perhaps the one the Italians themselves are most proud of. In March 1972 at an auction of vintage wines in Turin, a bottle of Borgogno Barolo 1886 was sold for 530,000 lire, a record high price for any bottle of Italian wine. The same vintage had been served many years earlier at a banquet honoring the state visit to Italy of Czar Nicholas 11 Romanov of Russia. There are many stories of historic events for Italy being marked with Borgogno Barolo, including the unification of Italy government celebration.
With this huge legacy to protect the new Borgogno wines are surpisingly fairly priced and actually pretty high quality. The traditional Barolo style is perhaps most obvious in Borgogno wines (even more so than Cavallotto) and the attention to detail in vinification is extreme. The main focus here is obviously Barolo and the company does not produce many different wines but in a good vintage you can pick up a very nice Barbaresco and acceptable Barberas, Langhes and Dolcettos.
Borgogno wine comes entwined with a beautiful history and a sense of bourgeois wonderment and if you were in such a mind, you could pretend to yourself that you are some notable noble of Italian parentage as you sip and contemplate over your ruby nectar. I like to gaze lovingly in the distance but am then sad to awake and find I have clearly fallen on harder times. *slaps self* Away from the whimsy, I've had the chance to try a couple of Borgogno Liste Barolos and here are my musings! (Tasting date - May 2008)
Giacomo Borgogno Barolo Liste 1997 - BUY - €100
A very attractive dark ruby red with huge powerful aromas of traditional Nebbiolo at its finest. Black Cherries, crushed forest fruits, a clear mineral element, a little soil like. The wine itself is huge, full bodied on the palate, very deep and hung on a complex structure. Super smooth and silky and an achievement within a wonderful vintage. I am lucky enough to be drinking this at a perfect age. Phenomenal. 96 Points
Giacomo Borgogno Barolo Liste 2001 - PASS - €60
Another dark ruby red effort that looks fantastic in the glass. This wine is a little hot and a little bigger than the 1997, a real fruit bomb lovers treat, dark fruits a plenty with cherries, plums and spices coming thru in spades on the nose. The palate is a little simpler than the 1997, rounded and packing more of a punch, nice length to the finish and a very pleasant taste and mouth feel but less finesse than I like from a Barolo. Needs a few more years. Not all that for the vintage. 92 Points
Where can I buy this wine?
The Liste cru only produces very small amounts of wine and it is seldom imported to the states, so I'm afraid unless you have some very very good friends, you might have trouble getting hold of this wine. Try wine auction website, Winebid. I also found a bottle of the '98 at a good price of $80 at Wine Access (94 point WS).
Cavallotto Barolo
Date: Tue, May 20, 2008 Wine Tasting
Cavallotto Barolo
Cavallotto Barolo is HOT at the moment. Never reaching the Gaja, Giacosa, Voerzio prices but scooping 90-95 points with Parker et al what we have here is fabulous value for your euro Barolo. Cavallotto Barolo reaches its finest expression with the Bricco Boschis Vigna San Giuseppe, the Riserva bottling that typically sells for around €60 a bottle. Cavalotto releases their Riserva Barolos later than other producers sparking great anticipation. This week I picked up a 6 pack of Cavallotto's flagship riserva 2001's for €180 on Italian Ebay, as these wines are fairly common on their home soil.
Thanks in part to a glowing review by Antonio Galloni (the young critic at the Parker fold) interest has steadily grown in the States, where it's becoming more and more common to find Cavallotto Barolo in the better Italian restaurants in New York. Those with a spare $600 can try the fabulous 1978 Cavallotto Barolo Bricco Boschis Vigna San Giuseppe or the '79 bottling in New Yorks' fantastic Babbo restaurant. As the 2001 is generally agreed to be the best Barolo ever produced by Cavallotto (both the standard bottling and the riserva), I shouldn't bother! Cavallotto was once a premier league Barolo brand, in the 1970's the company could be considered one of the best in the Piedmont producing the best quality Barolo's and was part of the force that really brought the wine to forefront of the international wine worlds attention. While the Gmen, Clerico and others brought huge improvements over the last 20 years Cavalotto stood still and the company got left behind not scooping the accolades of their rivals. With the 5 stellar vintages of '96 thru 2001Cavallotto managed to turn it around and theirs are some of the most sought after wines of this most recent golden period of Barolo, mostly because of the great QPR trade-off.
The Cavallotto vineyard in Castiglione Falletto is as beautiful and timeless as any in the Piedmont and is a favourite for those on the Barolo trail. Cavallotto produces 11 primary wines over 23 hectares of finely cultivated vineyards. Most famously Barolo, but also noteworthy are the fine Langhe, Barbera and Dolcettos as well a Pinot Nero and a pretty fine Chardonnay. For scale of production, variety and natural beauty I would highly recommend a visit. Cavallotto Barolo Riserva Bricco Boschis Vigna San Giuseppe 2001 - BUY - €60
Venice Wine
Date: Fri, May 16, 2008 Wine Tasting
Venice Wine
Apologies for the long gap, my internet connection is limited to a green flashing box provided by Vodafone Italia who will cut my access if I dare to download anything longer than the mondo convenienza jingle. Internet access in Italy is still a long way behind the deals you get in the US and UK but, this is a wine website and not a forum for the flailing fortunes of Italian telecoms. So, FYI, did you know... I have moved to Venice, well, to Mestre, but Venice sounds better. In these past two weeks it's sure to say that the wine scene here is very different to that of Rome. Venice wine is an important deal and they're sticking fiercely with what they know, that being Amarone and Valpolicella. The whites up here are definitely on another strata, trading filthy Frascati for some beautiful Soave's and Pinot Grigios is one of the highlights of Venice Wine. Venice Wine does run the gambit. The local supermarket stocks an abysmal selection of wines and I have walked up and down Corso del Popolo searching for an Enoteca but without luck. Underneath my apartment block is a wine bar, and it's terrible. The area certainly grows some fabulous wines, and in the very best restaurants you can find them but it seems the Venetians, for the most part, just won't let go of their Spritz. This can't be the whole story, there are some famous wine bars in Padova, so I'm going to ride the rails out of my Mestre Vino hell and hope the town is no more than an aberration in the Veneto, and then I'll move house!
However, I can recommend a fabulous little wine bar at Marco Polo airport giving a small but select group of great little reds and whites accompanied by some fine cheeses, just the ticket to kill some time. You will have no trouble spotting it, it's the only wine bar there.Castello di Ama Chianti Classico Bellavista 2004 - BUY - €100
Ripe, fruity, berries and cherry explosion. This is a killer offering, dark ruby red in the glass, inviting with a nose you're not going to tire of. Fantastic development, a really interesting wine that gets top marks at all stages of the tasting. Structure and class running throughout and a thick chocolate topped cappuccino note in the midpalate, it's something of a desert treat as much as a wine. Long finish and as clean as a whistle. Sumptuous, possibly the best Chianti Classico around, 2004 fantastic vintage. Am I really going to give a Chianti Classico... 94 Points
Nozzole Chianti Classico La Forra Riserva 2004 - BUY - €10
Really full bodied and leathery wine, making its way from dark red to an inky purple in the glass, good rounded tannins and a clean finish make for a satisfying Chianti. Would have expected a little better but still, for the price, its a nice effort. Wasn't giving much up on the nose so leave it a couple more years, what I did get, after a sound swirling was a meaty, raspberry tone. 90 Points
Fontodi Chianti Classico 2004 - BUY - €12
Really dark in the glass, this Chianti was made to be drunk young quickly giving up beautiful cherry notes, the wine is mid bodied and opulent, no aggression here, finely weighted tannins, and a fruity mid finish. It's not half bad for the price and is a typical Fontodi Classico that got a leg up from a beaut of a vintage. 90 Points
Riecine Chianti Classico 2004 - PASS - €22
There will be people who love this. It's powerful, tight and robust, chewy tannins, full bodied, it's a really big big effort. In my opinion, it's overpowering and not particularly tasty or interesting on the nose. Could be it is a stonking wine that needs time. To drink now? Rather dull. 87 Points
Where can I buy this Wine? (The Castello di Ama)
Europeans - Enoteca San Domenico - €100
Americans - Cabrini Wines - $170
Brits - Wine Direct - £106
Question of the Day
What was the last bottle of wine you bought?
