Several Italian wines from over the past month that I never posted on before, including some that I tried at various local events.
2009 Institut Agricole Régional d’Aoste Premetta Valle d’Aosta DOC
Premetta is a grape that is indigenous to the Valle d’Aosta region. This red wine was served lightly chilled. Light in weight, and nicely balanced, with light tannins and good underlying acidity. Notes of red berries, mountain air, and wildflowers. Has some similarities to a lighter Pinot Noir or Gamay. Very good, and a nice QPR for $15.
2008 Tenuta dell’Ornellaia Le Volte IGT Toscana
A blend of 50% Sangiovese, 40% Merlot, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Moderate and weight and acidity, rather round, balanced, with notes of mixed berries, crème de cassis, earth, minerals, and coconut. Good/very good. An improvement over some previous vintages in my opinion.
2007 Tenuta dell’Ornellaia Le Serre Nuove dell’Ornellaia Bolgheri DOC
A blend of 40% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot. Medium-bodied, round, with moderate acidity. Has a surprisingly vegetal profile (bell pepper), and a little more oak than the fruit can really handle. Also shows notes of mixed berries, plums, and spices.
2007 Cà de Noci Bianco Frizzante Vino di Tavola Querciole
From Reggio in Emilia-Romagna, this is 100% Spergola – a grape once thought to be the same as Sauvignon Blanc, but recently proven by DNA analysis to be a distinct variety. This frizzante wine has naturally refermented in the bottle.
Odd, somewhat cloudy old gold/maize color; some mousse/medium-sized bubbles. Hay/herbal/ginger/freshly earthy nose. Full-bodied, broad, and riper than expected (late harvest?), albeit balanced - though with less obvious acidity than most sparkling wines have, and a tad clumsy as a result. Bone dry, with slightly oxidative honey, apple, nut, and stone notes. Not the most graceful, but the aromatics are quite attractive.
2007 Azienda Agricola Cianfagna Tintilia del Molise DOC “Sator”
Tintilia del Molise is a native red grape from Molise. I had never heard of this grape before, and was interested to try this wine because of it.
Odd nose of dirt and fruitcake. Full-bodied, a bit high on the alcohol, quite tannic, with notes of dark fruits, currants, spices, and tar. I don’t know much about Tintilia del Molise, so perhaps it tends to produce very ripe wines, but this wine was riper than I would have liked.
2006 Azienda Agricola Massa Vecchia Passito IGT Maremma Toscana
100% Aleatico; from 375 ml bottle. Lightly viscous, and surprisingly graceful, with good underlying acidity. Moderately sweet, with pure, layered aromas and flavors of mixed cherries, raisins, plums, and molasses. Good length on the finish. Excellent.
2006 Masi Agricola S.p.A. Amarone Classico Costasera
70% Corvina, 25% Rondinella, and 5% Molinara. A very dry Amarone, full and nicely balanced, with moderate acidity and somewhat firm tannins. Shows notes of dried fruits, cherries, crème de cassis, tar, cocoa, and baking spices. Excellent.
2005 Tomasso Bussola Valpolicella Superiore Ripasso Ca’ del Laito
A blend of approximately 40% total Corvina and Corvinone; 45% Rondinella, and 15% other varieties, including Molinara. The high percentage of Rondinella is unusual, and I wonder if it has any impact on the less full-bodied style of this Ripasso wine.
Medium-bodied, nicely balanced, bone dry, with moderate tannin and good underlying acidity. Shows aromas/flavors of cherries, dark berries, gravel, and baking spices, along with hints of licorice and raisins. Very good/excellent; definitely worth trying if you don’t think that Valpolicella Ripasso can be a food-friendly wine.
2005 Marchesi de Frescobaldi Castelgiocondo Brunello di Montalcino
Full, well balanced, with good underlying acidity and moderate tannin; not as structured as some other Brunellos. Shows aromas/flavors of dark berries, plums, spices, earth, and coffee. Very good, but not at the top level.
2004 Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino
The standard Banfi Brunello bottling. Moderately full, rather tightly wound, with smooth tannins and good underlying acidity. Displays a mix of dark berry, spice, tobacco, and toasted bread aromas/flavors. Very good.