Tua Rita is a winery that has become very well known in wine-circles over the last decade or so mainly due to it's high-end Redigaffi Merlot (retail price: way more than anything I can afford), but I recently discovered that they also produce a reasonably priced IGT as well. The 2005 Rosso di Notri is a blend of predominately Sangiovese, along with Merlot, Cab, and Syrah. As 2005 is shaping up as a great vintage in Tuscany, I didn't hesitate to pick up a bottle when I found it recently, and I wasn't disappointed with the wine.
The Rosso di Notri is exactly what I'm looking for in a good mid-range Italian wine - it offers some nice forward fruit flavors with a little weight, but isn't a heavy, concentrated "international" style either. It went perfect with pasta and my homemade tomato and meat sauce (actually made with veal). I immediately made sure to go pick up another bottle over the weekend. It's about $20, but is worth it in my mind - it's similar to a good Rosso di Montalcino, and priced accordingly.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
2004 Ridge Nervo Zinfandel
Ok, so first let me say for anyone out there checking this out I haven't stopped blogging - I just went on a 2-week vacation to Austria for Euro 2008. I did not drink any wine on the trip either, as this was strictly a beer-drinking event (and there was a lot of it).
Anyway, back home now, and back to the wine. I went with BBQ chicken as my dinner choice to start the week, so that of course meant Zinfandel. I chose one of the Ridge bottles I got when my friend Loudoun and I were on their ATP mailing list (we've since stopped for now due to all the Zins we've accumulated), the 2004 Nervo Vineyard Zinfandel. I've rarely met a bottle of Ridge I didn't like, but this one really tested me. Coming in at 15.2% alcohol, this was one of those times where you weren't surprised at the high level. Over 2 nights, the wine never really seemed to settle and integrate fully, always carrying just a bit too much of the alcoholic heat on the palate. You could tell there was some nice fruit in there, but the wine just never fully came into balance. It was drinkable, but overall a disappointment for me compared to the levels I usually expect from Ridge. You always fear this with some of the Zins that creep up into the 15-16% range, and unfortunately this seems to be one time that the formula didn't work out.
Anyway, back home now, and back to the wine. I went with BBQ chicken as my dinner choice to start the week, so that of course meant Zinfandel. I chose one of the Ridge bottles I got when my friend Loudoun and I were on their ATP mailing list (we've since stopped for now due to all the Zins we've accumulated), the 2004 Nervo Vineyard Zinfandel. I've rarely met a bottle of Ridge I didn't like, but this one really tested me. Coming in at 15.2% alcohol, this was one of those times where you weren't surprised at the high level. Over 2 nights, the wine never really seemed to settle and integrate fully, always carrying just a bit too much of the alcoholic heat on the palate. You could tell there was some nice fruit in there, but the wine just never fully came into balance. It was drinkable, but overall a disappointment for me compared to the levels I usually expect from Ridge. You always fear this with some of the Zins that creep up into the 15-16% range, and unfortunately this seems to be one time that the formula didn't work out.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
2004 Feudi di San Gregorio Rubrato
Feudi di San Gregorio is probably one of the best-known wineries in Southern Italy, but mainly for their white and their Serpico red. Last summer in Amalfi, I discovered this lower-end Aglianico and have been pleased to find it some in the States. The 2004 Rubrato is really a great wine, certainly unique and showing what potential there is from the region and the Aglianico grape. The wine isn't a heavy, full-bodied fruit bomb, but it possesses more of an elegant flavor with just a bit of bite. I loved it even with the lighter pasta dishes of Campania, and drank it this week even with a light herb roasted chicken and penne with pesto. It can work with those dishes or something heftier. For anyone looking for something different from Italy, I highly recommend this wine, especially for the price (around $18).
Thursday, June 5, 2008
2004 Palazzone Rubbio
Over the weekend I opened up an Umbria IGT I had picked up for about $18, and was quite pleased with what I got from the 2004 Palazzone Rubbio. The Rubbio is a Sangiovese wine, but delivered a lot more body than what I was expecting for something that was priced like a decent Chianti. The color definitely showed a more serious presence, and there was lot more dark fruit than expected. Overall, this was the type of wine that I love to find becasue it certainly overdelivers on the price and is also somewhat unique (in a good way - it's not an international-styled wine). I've got one more bottle already that I'm going to let age a bit, but I'll probably search out more for current drinking as well.
Friday, May 30, 2008
2004 Bodegas Dos Victorias Elias Mora Toro
More illness kept the wine bottles corked at home until the middle of this week. When I finally was able to open something again, the choice was the 2004 Elias Mora, from the Spanish region of Toro. The wines of Toro are made from a Tempranillo clone, and usually are quite robust. This wine was no exception, though it didn't quite pack the fullness and fruit I've had from a couple of other Toros. Nonetheless, it did present a good amount of dark fruit with a little more elegance than others I've had. The wine costs about $22, so it's not cheap compared to some other Spanish wines, though it is a pretty good price for Toro. While I'm not running out to buy more, it's a producer I'd be willing to try out again.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
More from Vinitaly - Veneto
A rather nasty cold has curtailed my wine intake over the past week, so I'll use this time to try to catch up with more notes from Vinitaly. Today I'll tackle the Veneto. Rather than one massive day of tasting from the home region of Vinitaly, we spread these out over the full 5 days. Unfortunately, my Thursday notes were a bit incomplete, so I've not got much other than the producers for the first few.
Our initial tasting at Vinitaly was with the wines of Brig'aldara. From my recollection, we tasted their Valpolicella, Ripasso, and Amarone. All were solid if not spectacular, though I must also note here that we drank the Valpolicella with lunch one day on the trip (by the glass), and also the 2003 Amarone at dinner one night in Venice. The 03 Amarone especially was quite good.
Up next at Vinitaly was Speri. Here, we were lucky enough to have one of the members of the Speri family (son Luca) guide our tasting of the La Roverina Valpolicella, the Sant'Urbano Valpolicella, the Ripasso, and the Amarone. Luca was really great at giving us lots of info on the wines as well as the Speri philosophy - they are focused on a very traditional style, producing more elegant wines that will typically require some age. I have to admit that I was not high on Speri before this, but the tasting really opened my eyes, and I look forward to drinking more of their wines. In fact, we did actually drink a bottle of their Amarone Friday night at dinner. We had plenty of choices too, as that dinner was at the Bottega del Vino in Verona, one of the great restaurants for wine you will ever come across.
Our last producer on Day 1 was Giuseppe Campagnola. There we tasted a Valpolicella, followed by two Amarones, the Amarone Classico as well as the Amarone Caterina Zardini.
Saturday, we got another treat when we went to the booth of Tommaso Bussola. After some initial difficulty, we were seated and hosted by a woman who we would discover to be Daniella Bussola, wife of Tommaso. She proceeded to guide us through an extended tasting of several wines and vintages, beginning with the 2003 and 2004 L'Errante. This wine is an IGT made with a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc varietals, and is quite good, though atypical for a Veronese wine.
We followed that with all three of Bussola's 2004 Amarones, the Amarone Classico, the Amarone TB, and the Amarone Vigneto Alto. Each presented a different profile, with the TB probably my favorite (the Vigneto Alto came across just a little too sweet for me, almost like a Recioto).
Finally, our tasting finished with two Reciotos, the 2005 Recioto Classico and the 2003 Recioto TB. These were both amazingly good, sweet and thick, like a liquid dessert. They are special wines that anyone who wants a really great sweet wine should search out. Just a note to remember - don't try drinking any other regular wine afterward (we tried and unfortunately it ruined my taste buds for some quality stuff we had later).
Sunday, we finally made it to one of the big producers of the region with a stop at Allegrini. The tasting there started with their two basic IGT's from the 2005 vintage, Palazzo della Torre and La Grola. I have always loved the Palazzo della Torre as a favrorite regualr purchase, starting with the 1998 vintage. For 2005 through, this tasting definitely favored La Grola (perhaps it was the bit of Syrah in the blend). We then stepped up to the 2004 La Poja, another IGT blend, and finally the 2005 Amarone. Both of these were very good, though not at a higher level than many of the top Amarones we tasted.
Moving back to a smaller producer, we then tasted the wines of Stefano Accordini. Tiziano Accordini (Stefano's son) was our gracious host, and one of the friendliest people we met during the trip. We tasted the 2004 Amarone Acianatico, the 2001 Amarone Riserva (very good) and finally the 2005 Recioto. We enjoyed our visit so much that we ended up stopping in for a final taste of the Amarone on Monday before departing for Milan.
Monday, we once again went big and small. First up was Masi, probably the biggest of the Veneto producers. We started with the 2005 Ripasso Campofiorin, followed by the 2003 Serego Alighieri Valpolicella. Next up was the 2004 IGT Toar, an indigenous grape usually only blended in small quantities, which was different than most anything else tasted from the region. Finally, we had two Amarones, the 2003 Costasera Riserva and the 2001 Mazzano.
We concluded our Vinitaly extravaganza with a great tasting of the wines of Lorenzo Begali. His young son Giordano led us through this impressive lineup, beginning with their 2007 Valpolicella. Up next was the 2006 Ripasso, followed by the 2005 Tigiolo, an IGT blend. We then moved to the Amarones, with the 2004 Amarone Classico and the 2003 Amarone Monte Ca Bianca, before finishing with the 2005 Recioto. This was a great overall lineup, and a producer I definitely recommend to search out (I've seen a bit of their wine in Charlottesville, but that's it in the US).
I know there's a lot here, but it should be a pretty comprehensive listing of some of the best the Veneto has to offer (well, it excludes Dal Forno, but that visit will be in its own post sometime later). There's certainly other producers we missed, but all those visited offer a wide range of classical and modern wines from a region that many Americans may overlook, but Italians recognize as one of their real treasures.
Our initial tasting at Vinitaly was with the wines of Brig'aldara. From my recollection, we tasted their Valpolicella, Ripasso, and Amarone. All were solid if not spectacular, though I must also note here that we drank the Valpolicella with lunch one day on the trip (by the glass), and also the 2003 Amarone at dinner one night in Venice. The 03 Amarone especially was quite good.
Up next at Vinitaly was Speri. Here, we were lucky enough to have one of the members of the Speri family (son Luca) guide our tasting of the La Roverina Valpolicella, the Sant'Urbano Valpolicella, the Ripasso, and the Amarone. Luca was really great at giving us lots of info on the wines as well as the Speri philosophy - they are focused on a very traditional style, producing more elegant wines that will typically require some age. I have to admit that I was not high on Speri before this, but the tasting really opened my eyes, and I look forward to drinking more of their wines. In fact, we did actually drink a bottle of their Amarone Friday night at dinner. We had plenty of choices too, as that dinner was at the Bottega del Vino in Verona, one of the great restaurants for wine you will ever come across.
Our last producer on Day 1 was Giuseppe Campagnola. There we tasted a Valpolicella, followed by two Amarones, the Amarone Classico as well as the Amarone Caterina Zardini.
Saturday, we got another treat when we went to the booth of Tommaso Bussola. After some initial difficulty, we were seated and hosted by a woman who we would discover to be Daniella Bussola, wife of Tommaso. She proceeded to guide us through an extended tasting of several wines and vintages, beginning with the 2003 and 2004 L'Errante. This wine is an IGT made with a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc varietals, and is quite good, though atypical for a Veronese wine.
We followed that with all three of Bussola's 2004 Amarones, the Amarone Classico, the Amarone TB, and the Amarone Vigneto Alto. Each presented a different profile, with the TB probably my favorite (the Vigneto Alto came across just a little too sweet for me, almost like a Recioto).
Finally, our tasting finished with two Reciotos, the 2005 Recioto Classico and the 2003 Recioto TB. These were both amazingly good, sweet and thick, like a liquid dessert. They are special wines that anyone who wants a really great sweet wine should search out. Just a note to remember - don't try drinking any other regular wine afterward (we tried and unfortunately it ruined my taste buds for some quality stuff we had later).
Sunday, we finally made it to one of the big producers of the region with a stop at Allegrini. The tasting there started with their two basic IGT's from the 2005 vintage, Palazzo della Torre and La Grola. I have always loved the Palazzo della Torre as a favrorite regualr purchase, starting with the 1998 vintage. For 2005 through, this tasting definitely favored La Grola (perhaps it was the bit of Syrah in the blend). We then stepped up to the 2004 La Poja, another IGT blend, and finally the 2005 Amarone. Both of these were very good, though not at a higher level than many of the top Amarones we tasted.
Moving back to a smaller producer, we then tasted the wines of Stefano Accordini. Tiziano Accordini (Stefano's son) was our gracious host, and one of the friendliest people we met during the trip. We tasted the 2004 Amarone Acianatico, the 2001 Amarone Riserva (very good) and finally the 2005 Recioto. We enjoyed our visit so much that we ended up stopping in for a final taste of the Amarone on Monday before departing for Milan.
Monday, we once again went big and small. First up was Masi, probably the biggest of the Veneto producers. We started with the 2005 Ripasso Campofiorin, followed by the 2003 Serego Alighieri Valpolicella. Next up was the 2004 IGT Toar, an indigenous grape usually only blended in small quantities, which was different than most anything else tasted from the region. Finally, we had two Amarones, the 2003 Costasera Riserva and the 2001 Mazzano.
We concluded our Vinitaly extravaganza with a great tasting of the wines of Lorenzo Begali. His young son Giordano led us through this impressive lineup, beginning with their 2007 Valpolicella. Up next was the 2006 Ripasso, followed by the 2005 Tigiolo, an IGT blend. We then moved to the Amarones, with the 2004 Amarone Classico and the 2003 Amarone Monte Ca Bianca, before finishing with the 2005 Recioto. This was a great overall lineup, and a producer I definitely recommend to search out (I've seen a bit of their wine in Charlottesville, but that's it in the US).
I know there's a lot here, but it should be a pretty comprehensive listing of some of the best the Veneto has to offer (well, it excludes Dal Forno, but that visit will be in its own post sometime later). There's certainly other producers we missed, but all those visited offer a wide range of classical and modern wines from a region that many Americans may overlook, but Italians recognize as one of their real treasures.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
2004 Cesari Mara Ripasso
I've had wines from Cesari before, and while they've always made solid wines, none have ever really stood out to me as a star of the Veneto region. And at VinItaly, we never made it to their booth, or really talked about them much. This wine changed all that.
The 2004 Mara wowed me from the first sip. It was as good of a Ripasso as I've had in quite a while, full of dark fruit flavors with just a hint of sweetness. I drank this over 3 nights, and each night it was just as good, offering up an abundance of flavors and more complexity than one would expect. The last night I was even hit with a hint of chocolate.
I went back and checked to find where I got this, and how much I paid: $15. At that price, this is a wine I would highly recommend to anyone. I know I will certainly head out this weekend to buy a couple more bottles.
The 2004 Mara wowed me from the first sip. It was as good of a Ripasso as I've had in quite a while, full of dark fruit flavors with just a hint of sweetness. I drank this over 3 nights, and each night it was just as good, offering up an abundance of flavors and more complexity than one would expect. The last night I was even hit with a hint of chocolate.
I went back and checked to find where I got this, and how much I paid: $15. At that price, this is a wine I would highly recommend to anyone. I know I will certainly head out this weekend to buy a couple more bottles.
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