WTN: Mostly Italian at Caruso

Jojo called for lunch at Caruso to start this week off. It's been quite a while since the last time I was there so I was eager to go back for some good Italian food. Caruso seems to have brightened a bit and the food is still excellent. The pizza was particularly tasty.

We started with a white care of Miguel:

Duemilaotto La Villa Roero Arneis 2008 - Very nice, floral nose. Gentle sweetness and a touch of spice. Medium-bodied, quite round and very friendly. Firms up a bit on the finish. I thought this was very good.

Castelgiocondo Brunello di Montalcino 2000 - Roasted meat. Slightly burnt. Wood-burning oven scents. Black olives. Very dry, arid finish. Tannic as well. I thought this lacked fruit. Not for me.

Cordero di Montezemolo Barolo Bricco Gattera 1997 - One of my all time favorite wines and the wine that got me started on Barolo. Pencil shavings and mint. Cherry. Still got some tannic heft to it with a refreshing acidity married to sweet fruit. Lovely wine. Still needs some time to shed more tannin but good to see it's holding up well.

Mauro Sebaste Barolo Monvigliero 2005 - Very light color. Sweet, caramel nose. Rather tart but good fruit. Lots of tannin. Needs major ageing to open up. Leave it alone for another 5 years or so.

Gratti Poggio a la Lepre Chianti Rufina 2003 - Very acidic with faded fruit. Perhaps a bad bottle.

Berberana Gran Reserva 1973 - a friend of ours was disposing his stock of this wine and so Greg decided to try one to see if he should order more. Orange rim. Good nose of caramel. Tobacco, leather and prune. The fruit is faded which, to me, gives the wine a rather hollow quality. The finish is surprisingly firm, though. Given its age, not bad but I wouldn't wait to drink it.

Fattoria di Felsina Berardenga Chianti Classico Riserva 1997 - Deep nose of sweet tobacco leaf. Good fruit. Rather meaty. Dry. Not quite ready. Needs a bit more time but should be very good.

There were 2 other wines opened, a Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay 2004 and another Tuscan but I was already having dessert and coffee so I felt I wouldn't be able to do the wines justice. We did finish with a rather lightish Dr. Loosen Beerenauslese 2006.

[David M. Bueker]

Looks like another lovely lunch.

Unfortunately I have drunk through all of my 1997 Felsina bottles. They were great while they lasted. I'm holding some '99s, and I think I like their structure even more than the '97s.

Monday, 22nd February 2010: I arrived at a favorite Italian restaurant a little before 4pm from the office, catching the tail-end of an Italian wine lunch of the Usual Suspects and was lucky enough to have a few glasses of wine with the stragglers.

After a starter glass of 2004 Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay (the roero Arneis was all gone by then)...



1997 Fattoria di Fèlsina Berardenga Chianti Classico Riserva - Admirably firm structure and typicity. Leanish with great backbone. Earthy, cherry, leather, hint of tobacco leaf, violets, cedar, slight anise nuance and a hint of roast meat. Clean lines all the way to the finish. Very nice indeed. Wish I had some food to go with it.

2003 Tenute Silvio Nardi Brunello di Montalcino Vigneto Manachiara - Rene's bottle I believe. I do not think this was decanted. Young, vigorous and stylish, showing the vintage heat. The fruit is rich and deeply-veined; probably this saw a bit more (new?) oak because of that. Full-bodied, plush, concentrated, black cherry, dark plum, spicy wood notes, hint of underlying black coffee. Heady stuff, especially since I didn't have lunch that day.

Gentlemen,

Thanks for the notes. Count me as a fan of the Felsina CCR. The 1997 version was one fine effort by the producer.

Cheers.