I had my first LaCrima di Morro d'Alba/LeMarche wine last Fall in a Prima IlConsorzio shipment. Never done did heer'd of that grape before then, but was pleasantly surprised...no..blown away...by how good the wine was. Lots of intense blackberry character, much like a Refosco, but more high-toned notes that reminded me of Zinfandel somewhat (of course...the ultimate accolade for any wine).
And then....about a month ago... I discovered Visciola (via K&L), the LeMarche cherry wine that is sometimes/sometimes not blended in with LaCrima di Morro d'Alba wine. I shared a btl w/ MattRorick at my ForlornHope visit on Tues and he was mightly impressed by it...a "forlorn hope" wine if there ever were one.
When I was out in Calif/Bay area this last week for RhoneRangers and shopping around for new wines to try (ohhh..I am such a weakling); I saw a handful of new (to me) LaCrima di Morro d'Alba wines, one even a Passito (at Oenotria); and a couple of other Viscioli.
So...WTF??? Where have these wines been all my life? Why am I just now discovering these gems?? And I'm usually "au courant" on weird Italian stuff. Why is LaCrima di Morro d'Alba and Visciola suddenly all over the place, at least in the Bay Area??
Tom