TN: Who needs Tuscany or Piedmont

Six winegeeks and 14 bottles gathered last night at ROC Restaurant in Tribeca. Our theme was "Who needs Tuscany or Piedmont?" , a fairly random sampling of wines from elsewhere in Italy. Good group, good food (in my case grilled octopus and elk ossobuco), good times.

My apologies if any of these are misidentified, we had a list with some details in advance, but we were in a dim corner.

2008 Casa D'Ambra Ischia
Cliff said this had been compared to a Muscadet, and I can see why - chalky minerality with a saline edge, a little hint of spritz, not very fruit driven (though there is some green apple and lime underneath). Bit softer acidity than most Muscadets, but good. B

2007 Lambruschi "Sarticola" Vermentino Colli di Luni
Considerably larger framed, sweet ripe fruit yet with an acidic core (at least one person disageed finding it soft). Very minerally, solid yellow fruits, a touch of herb. Very good with the octopus. I carried the remainder with me, intending to have tonight, then ran into Alex from my Dobbs wine group at train, we each had a glass on the 10:56. Held up well, very expressive, even if a tad warm. The only problem with this wine is the $47 pricetag- if it was in low $20s like the Bruna Pigato a definite buy again, at this price probably not. B+

Scott had brought a couple of matched pairs, Torrette and Fumin from 2 Valle d'Aoste producers. Fun to contrast and compare

2006 Les Cretes Torrette
Bright, lively, raspberry fruit punctuated with herb. I'd definitely buy this B+

2006 GrosJean Torrette
Softer, slightly plodding compared to the Les Cretes. Still nice, and showed better on a revisit. B/B-

2007 Occhipinti Frapatto
Pretty, fragrant, with a Loire-like freshness. Floral on revisit, lovely lighter styled wine. B+

2007 Occhipinti Nero d'Avola
Big dose of brett at first pour, it seemed to partially blow off. Others found no brett, go figure. But this is pleasant "cow pasture" brett, not a strain that bothers me. Quiet and closed, this needed time and food. Better later. B

2002 Passopisciaro Franchetti Mt Etna
(some discussion re cepage here, either Nerello Mascalese with petit verdot or cesanese with PV)
Slightly lifted nose, with a dill/green edge. Lots of oak, extracted fruit, I didn't love this, but it was certainly interesting after the other wines. Quite tannic, might show better with a thick steak. B-/C+

2000 Paolo Bea Sagrantino di Montefalco Secco
Thanks Ramon. Just a gorgeous wine, and I think consensus WOTN. Someone said "like a comfy couch" and I offered to buy that couch. Seamless, elegant, complex. I'm sure this can age well, but it's drinking amazingly well now (it showed best early on, though it was still lovely on revisit. A

1998 Emidio Pepe Montepulciano d'Abruzzo
Young, fairly tight. Showed better after a decant. Earth, dark fruit, forest floor. B++

2002 Nino Negri "5 Stele" Sfursat
Somewhat modern, quite ripe, a bit of Amarone meets Barolo. Quite dense. Maybe better with time, I didn't love. B-/C+

2005 Les Cretes Fumin
High acids, tight. B-
2006 GrosJean Fumin
No notes written (that time of night) C+
I have to say neither Fumin excited me, I liked less than either Torrette, but if I had to choose I'd take the Les Cretes over the GrosJean.

2005 Inama Carmenere
Dark fruit, smoke, but a bit empty on finish. B-

2001 Paolo Bea Sagrantino di Montefalco Passito
Moderate sweetness, raisins, caramel. VERY generous for Ramon to bring both Beas. I liked this, but dubious QPR, this is good while the dry wine was great. B

It was good to meet Scott and see everyone else again. Thanks to Oswaldo for coming all the way from Brazil and organizing restaurant, and to everyone for their company and vinuous contributions.


Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.  

The Inama was 2005.

thanks Oswaldo, added.

2007 Lambruschi "Sarticola" Vermentino Colli di Luni
Considerably larger framed, sweet ripe fruit yet with an acidic core (at least one person disageed finding it soft). Very minerally, solid yellow fruits, a touch of herb. Very good with the octopus. I carried the remainder with me, intending to have tonight, then ran into Alex from my Dobbs wine group at train, we each had a glass on the 10:56. Held up well, very expressive, even if a tad warm. The only problem with this wine is the $47 pricetag- if it was in low $20s like the Bruna Pigato a definite buy again, at this price probably not. B+

I liked this quite a bit, especially after the Casa d'Ambra. I agree about the acidic core and found a nice depth, with a solid bass note. There was also a fair whack of sulphur.

2006 Les Cretes Torrette
Bright, lively, raspberry fruit punctuated with herb. I'd definitely buy this B+

2006 GrosJean Torrette
Softer, slightly plodding compared to the Les Cretes. Still nice, and showed better on a revisit. B/B-

I normally get bright, red fruits from petit-rouge, but last night these shaded to black for me. Very weird. The weight and texture were familiar, but not the fruit profile. There was also an interesting -- but, for me, completely out of place -- chocolate note to the Les Cretes.

2007 Occhipinti Frapatto
Pretty, fragrant, with a Loire-like freshness. Floral on revisit, lovely lighter styled wine. B+

2007 Occhipinti Nero d'Avola
Big dose of brett at first pour, it seemed to partially blow off. Others found no brett, go figure. But this is pleasant "cow pasture" brett, not a strain that bothers me. Quiet and closed, this needed time and food. Better later. B

My first time with these, and I liked them very much, esp. the Nero, though I got the sense it needs some time to come together. It was pretty fierce.

2000 Paolo Bea Sagrantino di Montefalco Secco
Thanks Ramon. Just a gorgeous wine, and I think consensus WOTN. Someone said "like a comfy couch" and I offered to buy that couch. Seamless, elegant, complex. I'm sure this can age well, but it's drinking amazingly well now (it showed best early on, though it was still lovely on revisit. A

Agreed. Beautiful wine. I wish prices haven't gotten to what they've gotten to, but there's no denying this is beautiful. Thanks, Ramon!

1998 Emidio Pepe Montalcino d'Abruzzo
Young, fairly tight. Showed better after a decant. Earth, dark fruit, forest floor. B++

I loved this on release but found it impenetrable. Air helped a bit. I think it will be great.

2002 Nino Negri "5 Stele" Sfursat
Somewhat modern, quite ripe, a bit of Amarone meets Barolo. Quite dense. Maybe better with time, I didn't love. B-/C+

When I opened this at 5:30, the aromatics were beautiful but the palate tasted like a 2x4. So I double-decanted and hoped for the best. The wood eased up a bit by the time we got to it, but not much. I am cautiously optimistic the wine will ultimately handle the wood. The texture doesn't seem marred to me, and I think the underlying material is good. But for now, it's not a pleasure.

Too much wine, but a fun night! Special thanks to Dale for organizing and Ramon for sharing mementoes of his visit to Bea. It was great to see Scott Reiner again and really enjoyed the Torette and Fumin pairings. Joe, always a pleasure seeing you, and Cliff, it was really nice to meet you.

2008 Casa D'Ambra Ischia Bianco
Lemon, mineral, chalk. Good mouth weight, tangy and fresh thanks to residual CO2, but could use a touch more acidity.

2007 Ottaviano Lambruschi "Sarticola" Vermentino Colli di Luna
Mineral, chalk. Seemed to me less acidic than the preceding, so a little flabby, despite a pleasing bitter finish.

2006 Les Cretes Torrette Vallee d’Aosta 12.5%
Plump cherry aroma. Nice acidity, light bitterness, good structure, long finish. Interesting.

2006 GrosJean Torrette Superieur Vallee d’Aosta 13.0%
Cherry, bacon, spice aromas. Less vibrant than the Les Cretes, but more elegant. Short finish. Tastes somewhat generic, like a competent bistro wine. Improved with air.

2007 Occhipinti Frapatto Sicilia 12.5%
Tangy cherry, leather and spice. Fresh and lovely, great mouth feel, but short finish. Very enjoyable.

2007 Occhipinti Nero d'Avola Sicilia
Others found brett, I didn’t, interesting to note that I am not the sensitive type. Aromatically closed, light tannins, more acid than fruit. Wonder if a bad bottle because this should not be closed or fruit challenged.

2002 Passopisciaro Franchetti Mt Etna
Chocolate, oak vanilla, I would have sworn American, though that can’t possibly be. Dale mentions dill, usually the sign, but evidently not always. Creamy mouth feel, astringent tannins. Bit too modern.

2000 Paolo Bea Sagrantino di Montefalco Secco 14.6%
I was thrilled to taste this and found it elegant, dense and chewy. The kirsch aspect of the fruit bothered me a little bit because it seemed to suggest over-ripeness, but I haven’t had others to compare (Ramon says this is a typical Bea note).

1998 Emidio Pepe Montepulciano d'Abruzzo
Aromatically closed, even after decanting. Attractive sweetness, with gamey and rubbery notes. Obviously super wine at the wrong time.

2002 Nino Negri "5 Stele" Sfursat
Found this modern and supercharged, like a baby Port or Amarone. Not my cuppa right now, but could come together in time.

2005 Les Cretes Fumin Vallee d’Aosta
Lively cherry, tar, funk aromas. Good acidity, good acid/sweet balance. Riper than the Torette.

2006 GrosJean Fumin Vigne Merlette Vallee d’Aosta
Muted cherry and eucalyptus aromas. Greenish tannins, but quite lovely, with excellent balance and a pleasing bitter finish. Liked both Fumins more than others around the table.

2005 Inama Carmenere
Why the hell is Inama making a Carmenere? Aromatically closed, but good acidity, good balance, nice sweetness, and none of that green pepper found in many Chilean versions. Not bad at all, despite objections in principle.

2001 Paolo Bea Sagrantino di Montefalco Passito 15.0%
Reserved and austere, very good acid/sweet balance, not very sweet. At this point I was already beginning to tilt.

Wow, not enough sleep , the Pepe was obviously Montepulciano, edited to fix.

2007 Occhipinti Nero d'Avola Sicilia
Others found brett, I didn’t, interesting to note that I am not the sensitive type.

2 things before you conclude you are brett-insensitive
1) as noted, people vary in both sensitivity and reaction to individual strains. So you might not detect this strain, and be sensitive to another.
2) I wonder how much difference the small restaurant glasses you were using made, as opposed to my big Bordeaux stems?

2007 Occhipinti Nero d'Avola Sicilia
Others found brett, I didn’t, interesting to note that I am not the sensitive type.

2 things before you conclude you are brett-insensitive
1) as noted, people vary in both sensitivity and reaction to individual strains. So you might not detect this strain, and be sensitive to another.
2) I wonder how much difference the small restaurant glasses you were using made, as opposed to my big Bordeaux stems?

OK! Yes, my glasses were not conducive bowl-wise, and they had lips, oh horror of horrors...

1) as noted, people vary in both sensitivity and reaction to individual strains. So you might not detect this strain, and be sensitive to another.

It's the fermentation products of brett you taste rather than the brett itself. I may be wrong, but I always assumed the fermentation products depend quite heavily on what happens to be around at the time of fementation, but doubtless the strain plays a role too - as it does with "proper" yeasts.

I'm really glad to have had the opportunity to partake in this tasting. Admittedly, I've not had wines from most of the producers that we tasted, and I really like the breadth of wines that we had.

It was great to catch up with Oswaldo, again. Thank you for making the restaurant arrangement. I look forward to doing this again.
Big thanks to Dale for organizing and getting things to move along.
I enjoyed meeting up with Cliff, Joe and Scott (good to see the Daily News online write-up)
Thanks to everybody for the good wines, for the enlightenment on the Italian wines and for the enjoyable company.

Ramon