A little while back, I joined a group of 8 or 9 guys at a nice Italian restaurant in town, where we took over the back room and opened some very nice bottles with dinner. There was really interesting diversity (no pre-planning or flights were discussed at all—just a free for all) and the white wines were some of the very best of the night.
Whites:
2005 Marchesi Fumanelli Terso Veneto IGT. This equal blend of Trebbiano and Garganega has a bright but rich bouquet of honey, wildflowers, chalk, lemon and butterscotch that is full, fleshy and engaging. It has a weighty character in the mouth, with a slightly waxy texture allied to a good streak of underlying acidity giving it a solid sense of drive. The flavors of honey and citrus are luscious and sort of leesy, but the finish is nice and clean. It is a very good wine with its own unique character, but at the end of the day is simply outshone by some of the wines it is paired up against.
1999 Azienda Agricola Valentini Trebbiano d’Abruzzo. This wine is quite simply amazing, with a completely unique bouquet that is nearly impossible to describe in any coherent way. Every time I take a sniff, I write down another descriptor or two and when I look back at my notes, these things make absolutely no sense on their own but work together in amazing harmony. I start out by noticing a strong sweaty funk tone to the bouquet, which quickly gets mixed up with scents of skunky fern, root cellar, dried seafoam, fermented black beans, chicken broth and cigar ash. Later, I come back and find aromas of peeled apple skins, chalk, graphite, leather and kindergarten paste—but again it all works beautifully despite sounding bizarre when broken down into its component elements like that. Just suffice it to say it is mesmerizing and totally individualistic. In the mouth, it is medium-weighted, with a gently vinyl or waxy texture to it. Layered flavors of green earth, herbs, pears and all sorts of citrus skins are supported by a fine tingle of acidity and it all ends with a vibrancy and length that are outstanding. The wine feels totally alive and I suspect it probably speaks to each taster in its own unique way. Great stuff.
2008 Monastero Suore Cistercensi VdT Bianco Coenobium. Aromas of orange blossom, nectarine, honey, dried peach, candy cigarettes and very light funk are kind of airy and pretty on this bottle of orange wine. I have to say I like it a lot and find it to be kind of lighthearted and gently sweet in nature. It isn’t quite as dynamic as the 2007 version—which I found to be a bit more oxidatively complex and grounded, but still, it has its own fascinating thing going on and it is really pleasing to sit and sniff. It has a lovely creaminess on the palate, with a solid bolt of acidity in there and again a lot of lively hijinx going on. Dusty flavors of nectarines, peaches, orange pixie sticks, lemon pith and fine earth are dynamic but gently sweet and again a whole lot of fun to drink.
2005 Zidarich Vitovska Carso. This wine is very cloudy in appearance and presents a slightly lifted yet sweet-smelling bouquet full of orange blossom, red grapefruit, peach, tangerine and dark cider aromas that are quite interesting and represent a darker, richer combination of scents than the previous wine. Although I enjoy smelling the wine a great deal, it is more difficult to immediately appreciate on the palate, where I struggle for a while to find a cohesive personality to the wine. Eventually, though, it sort of comes into focus as I get used to its unique character and ever-changing moods. It tastes zingy and titillating—with juicy grapefruit, tangelo and maraschino cherry flavors on top, but also a much richer and darker underbelly beneath. My notes just summarize by saying this is kind of crazy but seriously interesting.
2002 Azienda Agricola Radikon Ribolla Gialla Venezia Giulia IGT. This is truly dark orange in color—looking a bit like iced tea to me. I love the bouquet here—it is luscious and sweet, but at the same time edgy and lifted. At the core are beautiful aromas of nectarine, burnished apricot, oranges, crème brulee and toast that are really enticing. It has full-on flavors and body in the mouth and for some reason has me thinking about late harvest Alsatian tastes of apricot, bergamot, white currants, cherry, nectarine and granite. Although sweetly-flavored, it has a dry acidic character running beneath it all the way and a rock-solid structure to it. Indeed, the finish is a touch austere, though on day 2 that sorts itself out pretty nicely. I like the balance the wine manages with all of this going on and really enjoy drinking it.
First wave of reds:
1990 Il Poggione Brunello di Montalcino. The nose here is rich and warm with slightly volatile aromas of cherry paste and raspberry compote riding atop distracting touches of over-ripe vegetables and stewed fruit notes beneath. I want to like it, but it is just too stewy for me when all is said and done. A lot of that character thankfully settles down on the palate, which is rich, plush and full-bodied—full of warm cherry and raspberry fruit galore. It delivers a lot of fruit but doesn’t seem particularly overdone, especially with the plethora of dry but fine-grained tannins still hanging around.
1997 Campogiovanni (San Felice) Brunello di Montalcino. I like this a lot, starting with the lovely nose of cherries, raspberries, black earth, leather, tobacco, toasted stems and exotic spices. In the mouth, it is solidly stuffed with rich and delicious warm fruit and fine earthy counterbalances. It shows fine structure and just works in an effortless way to deliver a whole lot of drinking pleasure right now.
1998 Podere Brizio Brunello di Montalcino. Here one finds aromas of black cherry, fig, fruitcake and persimmon to go with notes of earth, tobacco leaf, green pepper and soft wood on the nose. In the mouth, it is the richest and thickest of the Brunello trio—with the most obviously modern feeling to it. It has tons and tons of fig, black cherry and black raspberry fruit in the mouth, with a fleshy texture and sweet edge through the luscious mid-palate. The ripeness leaves a warm and lasting impression, though I really could see giving this a few more years.
1983 Emidio Pepe Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. Wow, this is a whole different kind of wine, and like so many wines in this line-up, is totally individualistic and inimitable. It has a fascinating and decidedly old-fashioned bouquet to it—full of aromas of old leather, figs, iced tea, root vegetables, sweet cherry paste, exotic mace and allspice that just pull the taster right in. In the mouth, it is both sweet and savory, with lovely aged flavors of rustic cherry, leather, chalk, earth and classy spices that have incredible length and presence on the palate. It is medium-weighted, deeply-flavored and luscious, yet tangy and savory. This is quite simply a treat to drink.
2003 Paolo Bea Montefalco Rosso Riserva Vigna Pipparello. Just when I think it can’t get any better, it does. Man, I absolutely love this wine—I really can’t get enough of it! It starts out with a fascinating bouquet of tea leaves, bergamot, black cherry, white flowers, fruitcake, peach pit, apple blossom and leafy undergrowth that is exotic, sexy, fun and engaging. It’s a wine I could sit and sniff all night. In the mouth, it is full of luscious and exotic fruit flavors that show a ton of character, length and balance. It is a complete wine drinking in a great zone right now where it is packed with delicious and persistent fruit flavors but also showing plenty of exotic complexity. My WOTN (with the Valentini and Pepe just behind).
Piedmont reds:
1982 Azienda Bricco Rocche (Ceretto) Barolo Prapo. I missed this one, but all reports were that it was a very good bottle—probably similar to one I had a chance to drink a few weeks earlier.
1996 Paitin di Pasquero-Elia Barbaresco Sori Paitin. This is a decidedly Old World bouquet of leather, dark earth, grape stem, mushroom and cool cherry aromas. In the mouth, it is full of cherry, raspberry and mushroom flavor on a medium to full-bodied frame. It is tangy and dry, with old-fashioned and classically-structured elements all the way through. To me, it is a tad austere still, more so from the dry acidic qualities than the mostly-resolved tannins, so I might prefer to sit on this a while longer before trying again.
1996 Domenico Clerico Barolo Ciabot Mentin Ginestra. This wine has a substantial and full-blown bouquet that smells of cigar wrapper, mint leaf, grilled pepper skin, raw leather, funky sweat, rich black cherry, spiced plums and fine incense. In the mouth, it delivers a lot of chewy, plush, rich and extracted fruit on a big frame and with a whole lot of drying tannins in support. It is very good stuff, but needs to rest in the cellar 5 to 7 years, in my opinion.
1996 La Spinetta (Rivetti) Barbaresco Vursu Vigneto Gallina. If there was a progression toward a more modern style going from the Paitin to the Clerico, this was a leap into the abyss. Here we find a super-ripe, totally exotic and full-blown bouquet redolent of fudgy chocolate, figs, dates, Christmas fruitcake and sour cherries. On the palate, it is darkly-fruited but warm and exotically-spiced in tone. It is highly-polished, but with a fairly even-keeled finish and no heat or anything. There are some dry tannins at the very end, too, so while this forward Barbaresco is probably more immediately accessible than the Barolos, it might still be best to cellar this one, as well. Perhaps not surprisingly, the leftovers of this were a big hit with my non-geek guests at dinner a few nights later.
1997 Marcarini Barolo Brunate. I think this was showing very tight, with the aromas of licorice rope, light strawberries, leather, minerals and foresty undergrowth coming across as cool and reserved. It is similar on the palate—feeling cool, dark and aggressively acidic. It is also pretty tannic, especially on the very dry finish. I really like the fresh berry and savory earth flavor elements and the old-fashioned structure, but right now it seems rather taut, introspective and tough. I have a few bottles of my own in the cellar and will hold off for some time before dipping in again.
Sweet wines:
1990 Domaine des Baumard Quarts de Chaume. Nobody was complaining that this French interloper found its way into the tasting at the end of the evening. Indeed, for pure pleasure, this had to be one of my top wines of the tasting. To begin, the bouquet is immensely broad, rich and beautiful—filling the nostrils with massive doses of caramel, honey, butterscotch, vanilla, apricot, biscotti, green apple and citrus aromas that are completely compelling and inviting. The same is true on the palate, where the wine is loaded with butterscotch, rock candy, caramel and chalky limestone flavors supported brilliantly by tangy and lively acidity. It offers rich and rewarding drinking right now.
2000 Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben Riesling Urziger Wurzgarten Auslese ***. This wine features a rather pretty nose of caramel, citrus and apricot. In the mouth, it is unctuous and beautifully flavored with grapefruit, pineapple, melon and other sweet fruit flavors. It is a lot of fun to drink, but probably a bit heavily-done in the end, perhaps needing a bit more acidic cut to make it truly remarkable. Still, it is lovely and relaxing.
1997 Badia a Coltibuono Vin Santo del Chianti Classico. I missed this one.
2001 Castello della Paneretta Vin Santo del Chianti Classico. Beautiful scents of vanilla, caramel and toasted walnuts lead to a rich and luscious palate of toasted nuts, praline, toffee and date fruit flavors that are nicely balanced and free-flowing across the palate. Just like the last time I had this, it is a lovely Vin Santo.
-Michael