This tasting at Luciano's restaurant was organized by Lester Harvey of Zen Asia to try some Italian samples he had. Among the tasters were Greg, Johnny, Othmar and Freddie P. There happened to be a violin and opera concert as well as a Venice Carnival Fashion Show at the Plaza in front of the restaurant that same evening so, aside from the wine and food, it was pretty fun.
We started with an excellent Piper Heidsieck Cuvee Rare NV Champagne to get everyone in the mood before tackling the Italian wines.
Cirulli Eliana 2009 - Freddie's wine. A white from Umbria made from Grechetto and Malvasia. Johnny detected bubblegum and that was pretty much spot-on. Silky mouthfeel with good fruit but a crisp finish. Good aperitif.
We then proceeded to try Lester's two Chiantis.
Poggiotondo Cierro del Masso 2008 - A little hot. Fruity, juicy strawberry. Easy and not too interesting. A quaffer but there are many other quaffers that are better and cheaper.
Poggiotondo Chianti Superiore 2007 - Nice nose but hollow then very grippy on the finish. No good.
With that business out of the way, we tried wines brought by others at the table.
Dievolino Chianti 2007 - Spicy nose with the spiciness carried on to the palate. Fruity and soft. Cherry and strawberry. Quite charming and easy. Some bitterness on the finish. Very good value.
Morellino di Scansano Le Pupille 2008 - Quite sweet and ripe. That's the only note I have on it for some reason. I guess it didn't make much of an impression.
Greenstone Heathcote Sangiovese 2007 - Reputed to be Australia's top Sangiovese and made by the same winemaker as the wines of Poggiotondo. Powerful, hot nose. Chocolate, rubber, sour cherry and a little woody. Weak finish, though. Rather expensive.
Renato Ratti Barbera Torriglione 2008 - I've never had a bad bottle of this Barbera and this didn't disappoint. Strong coffee on the nose. Lots of dried berries on the palate. Soft, ready and very friendly. Good length.
Guado al Tasso Il Bruciato Bolgheri Rosso 2008 - Full bodied. Big wine in a modern style. Bitterness on the finish but good length.
Michele Chiarlo Barolo 1993 - Tar and rubber but no roses. Asphalt and cherry liqueur. Sweet fruit but very dry finish. Perhaps just a little past peak but still very good.
No Italian dessert wines this night but we did end with a very good half-bottle of de Bortoli The Noble One 2006.