WTN: Two At Oenotri...(short/boring)

Tried these last Monday night at Oenotri in Napa:
1. Conte D'Attimis-Maniago Tazzalenghe (14%) Buttrio/Colli Orientali del Friuli Siena Imports 2006: Med.dark color; bit earthy/bing cherry/spicy/boysenberry/cinammon interesting fairly complex nose; fairly tart/acid somewhat hard/tannic strong boysenberry/spicy/bing cherry slight oaked bit earthy/stony flavor; med.long dusty/earthy fairly strong bing cherry/boysenberry/spicy somewhat tart/tannic/angular finish; can use a bit more age.
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2. Mumelter Georg Weinberg Dolomiten Schiava Passito Isarcus IGT (14.5%) OliverMcCrum 2008: Dark color; somewhat earthy/stony/mineral rather plummy/boysenberry quite perfumed/perfumed talc aromatic very interesting nose; soft earthy/gout de terroir bit tannic/bitey some plummy/boysenberry flavor; very long fairly plummy/boysenberry some earthy/stony/mineral fairly soft/lush bit tannic/hard finish; pretty much dry and classic AltaAdige terroir; quite a nice red that needs a bit of age.
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. Tazzalenghe: Friulian dialect for "tongue ripper" to describe its fierce acids and tannins it can oft show. Of the 6-8 Tazzalenghes I've tried, this was much more balanced than most, perhaps a Tazzalenghe Lite. Though not a light wine in any sense, this showed a lot more tannin management than any I've seen before.
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2. Schiava: I was looking for a dessert wine and I spied this passito on the list. Never done did see'd a passito from the AltoAdige, so I simply couldn't resist, even though it was a full btl. Thought it would go well w/ my espresso pot de creme. It did not...way to dry. But it was an absolutely delicious red.
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3. Oenotri: www.oenotri.com I had met their Somm, Sur Lucero, at the FriuliFest the month before and was impressed by his knowledge. Alas, I couldn't work in a trip to Oenotri on that trip, but I was determined to try it as I'd heard so many good things about. So, on this NAP#2 trip, I eschewed a dinner w/ some friends in the Bay area specifically so I could give it a try. Alas, Sur was not there on a Monday night, but his assistant, Daniel, filled his shoes very well. He was very knowledgeable about the wine list and filled me in with info on a lot of the wines. Neither of these two he had tried, so the staff got a fair amount of each bottle.
Though I had a pretty simple meal (salami plate, Zucca soup, pizza, espresso pot de creme); I was mightly impressed by their food. They make their own charcuterie and I thought theirs was as good as any I've had in the USofA, including my benchmark of Chad's at Adesso/Dopo in Oakland. The wood-fired pizza was perfectly done.
But it was the wine list that most impressed me. Sur has done an incredible job of putting together a list, reasonably priced, of very interesting stuff. How many restaurants outside of Friuli can you find a Tazzalenghe on the list. Danged few in the USofA. Frasca is the only one I've seen. It took me quite a while to figure out what I wanted to drink there was so much I wanted to try.
Anyway, my next trip to Napa will definitely find room for another meal at Oenotri. Any restaurents that has two...count 'em..two Berkels, one ca. 1930's, is pretty exceptional.
Tom

Tom, if you had contacted me I would have been happy to join you at Oenotri. My wife and I are very fond of their food. Now of course two older guys might be directed to the local old folks home.

Great looking menu there Tom. Pity wine list is not on-line eh.
What is a Berkel?

Hi Tom -

Thank you for the notes. I'm still trying to locate a Tazzelenghe over here.

As for the Schiava Passito, that would be one of the last grapes that I would expect to see made into a dried grape wine. Go figure. Mumelter's regular St. Magdalener is quite nice, however - and very reasonably priced.

The Mumelter 'Isarcus' is made from Schiava grapes from the Santa Magdalener hill that have been concentrated somewhat by drying. Passito refers to this drying process, which takes place on the vine (the canes are cut, but the bunches left hanging, for about 2 weeks, I believe). The wine is then fermented to dryness. There's an amarone-ish hint of dried fruit character, and more weight and alcohol than you would find in the straight Santa Magdalena.

The Mumelter 'Isarcus' is made from Schiava grapes from the Santa Magdalener hill that have been concentrated somewhat by drying. Passito refers to this drying process, which takes place on the vine (the canes are cut, but the bunches left hanging, for about 2 weeks, I believe). The wine is then fermented to dryness. There's an amarone-ish hint of dried fruit character, and more weight and alcohol than you would find in the straight Santa Magdalena.

Thanks, Oliver...exactly what I wanted to know. I got a bit of an amaronish character in it, but was surprised when it was totally dry.
Not what I expected, but glad I tried it.
Tom

What is a Berkel?

Bob,
The Berkel is the Roll-Royce of meat/salami slicers. Any Italian restaurant that does anything w/ charcuterie
at a high level has one. They are precision machines and a thing of beauty. Polished steel, often finished
w/ red enamel. You can spend upwards of $25,000 on one. Many restaurants with them feature them
front&center. After I chose my meal & wine, I started eyeing the place and saw a vintage Berkel sitting up there at
the counter, so had to go take a look-see. Then saw their operating modern one in back. One of the chefs noticed me
drooling over the two Berkels and came over to explain the provenance of the vintage model. Incredible craftsmanship
goes into them. Google will show you.
Tom

Thanks Tom, about to google.