This is the final piece in the Barkan Assemblage trio that I tasted this month, and potentially the most interesting one due to it's weird varietal blend of grapes grown mostly nowhere else: predominantly Marselan (WTF?) and Caladoc (say what?) with touches of Carignan and Pinotage.
Barkan, Assemblage, Tzafit, 2009
Right of the bat, the sheer idiosyncracy of the blend is patently there on the nose. If someone had told me Tibetian monks made it from grapes from Mars grown on the slopes of the Himalayas, I wouldn't bat an eye.There's a a fairly complex, dusty concoction of spices that reminds me of Barolo, but without the diesel-powered hum of Nebbiolo, plus a few quirks of its own. The palate is not quite as complex as that, nor very intense, but its warmth and friendliness carry a similarly unique stamp of character. Sometimes personality goes a long way and the fact that the fruit is so firmly red toned doesn't hurt. Nor the fact that it the finish displays my numero uno litmus test: s-a-v-o-r-i-n-e-s-s!( Apr. 8, 2012)
About 90 NIS. I can go back to reading the Claremont/Byrne X-Men run now.