WTN: Three Italians Walk Into A Dining Room...(short/boring)

We had this weekend at dinner:
1. Vignalta AgnoCasto PinotBianco DOC: ColliEuganei (14%; www.Vignalta.It/) Lucio Gomiero/ArquaPetrarca 2007: Med.gold color; Med.gold color; rather stony/chalky/mineral/earthy light appley/fruity light oak slight spicy/melony/metallic interesting nose; soft bit overripe/rotted apples some stony/chalky/earthy slight nutty/toasted hazelnuts/oxidized some candied/melony/appley/fennel light oak flavor; med.long metallic/earthy/stony/chalky soft some overripe/rotted apples some nutty/oxidized slight oaked bit apple/fennel finish; a rather interesting rendition of PinotBlanc but seems a bit on the overripe side. $20.00 (CB)
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2. Vignalta AgnoTinto IGT: Rosso del Veneto (14%; Syrah + Marzemino) 2006: Very dark color; rather pungent/reduced/WWII beacon/ozone earthy plummy/blackberry/boysenberry rather ripe almost Mourvedre-like nose; soft very strong plummy/grapey/blackberry/ripe bit bretty/unclean somewhat tannic/rough/rustic/iodine light toasty/oak fairly earthy flavor; med.long earthy/rustic/tannic rather ripe/plummy/grapey/blackberry slight unclean/bretty light oak finish; no Marzemino character that I can pick up; rather earthy/rough/rustic red that speaks softly of Syrah. $26.50 (CB)
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3. Sottimano Mate RW (12.5%; 20 yr old Brachetto) 2010: Med.light color; rather earthy/dusty some Brachetto/floral/lilacs/dried cherries slight licorice/tarry rather ethereal/perfumed/fragrant nose; very tart lean/astringent/tannic quite earthy/dusty light floral/perfumed/Brachetto/dried cherries interesting flavor; med.long hard/tannic/astringent some floral/lilacs/dried cherries/perfumed/black cherry Nehi soda pop rather earthy/dusty finish; some lovely/ethereal aromatics like Nebbiolo but pretty hard/tannic on the palate. $18.00 (LCSWS)
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. Vignalta: Founded in 1980 in the ColliEuganei/Veneto. LucioGomeiro is an interesting character:
(www.gourmet.com/magazine/2000s/2000/09/wildflower)
Known as the King of Radichio. On his farm in Salinas/CA; he grows something like 80% of the world's Radichio. Supposedly starting another ranch in the Philippines to supply growing demand in SEAsia. The Vignalta Apineae is one of the worlds best OrangeMescats (Fiore d'Arancia) made as a passito wine like a Recioto, dried in the attics.
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2. Mate: Brachetto is one of my favorite grapes. They should be planting this all over Calif...it'd be the next Merlot craze. Alas...not available from FPS/Davis.
Most Brachetto is made slightly sweet and frizzante. It's a wonderful. The dry versions are pretty rare. Thos Sottimano has that hard/tannic bite on the palate that makes Piedmonte Nebbiolo so abominable. Not nearly as good as the Scarpa I had yrs ago from DarrellCorti. Buut interesting wine this is.
Tom

Hi Tom -

Thank you for the notes. Interesting to read about a still/dry Brachetto, which I haven't had. One of my local retailers is having a Sottimano tasting this fall, so I will have to inquire about it then.

No comment on Italian Syrah, though - in my admittedly quite strong opinion, please leave that grape to the Rhone, California, Washington, Australia, and South Africa, where it is already successful and well established. Italy has too great a diversity of local/heritage varieties worth preserving. That also goes for Cortona supposedly being Tuscany's Syrah region - why bother?

Hi Tom -

Thank you for the notes. Interesting to read about a still/dry Brachetto, which I haven't had. One of my local retailers is having a Sottimano tasting this fall, so I will have to inquire about it then.

No comment on Italian Syrah, though - in my admittedly quite strong opinion, please leave that grape to the Rhone, California, Washington, Australia, and South Africa, where it is already successful and well established. Italy has too great a diversity of local/heritage varieties worth preserving. That also goes for Cortona supposedly being Tuscany's Syrah region - why bother?

Ohhhh, Andrew.....AuContraire. I've been pretty underwhelmed by the Syrahs coming out of most of Italy. Except one...the LesCretes Syrah from the Val d'Aosta.
As good as any from Switzerland, France, Calif, WashState. Very NorthernRhone in style.

Back in the late '70's, DarrellCorti/Sacramento, the person responsible for my excitement about Italian wines, brought in a bunch of wines
from Scarpa. In those (Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbera, etc) were both Freisa and Brachetto. Both dry wines. Their perfumes were incredible.
They should be planting Brachetto and Freisa all over Calif. It'll be the next Merlot craze!!!

Tom