2010 Azienda Agricola COS Frappato IGT Sicilia
Chilled lightly. Grapey nose, with floral and red berry aromas. Light in weight, well balanced, delicate, quite earthy, with red berry and cherry notes. Very good.
2007 Poderi Sanguineto I e II Vino Nobile di Montepulciano
Prugnolo Gentile, with some Canaiolo and Mammolo. Lightly meaty nose. Full, nicely balanced and structured, poised, still a bit tight in fact. Shows cherry, dark berry, and spice notes. Needs more time. Very good/excellent.
2005 Casa Vinicola Aldo Rainoldi Brut Rosé
92% Nebbiolo, with 4% each of Pignola (not the same as Pignolo) and Rossola. Non-DOC/IGT wine from Valtellina. Medium-bodied, crisp, well balanced, with moderate acidity/mousse. Floral, with red berry/red plum/ spicy/lightly bready notes. Very good – really better than I was expecting.
2003 Azienda Agricola Giovanni Viberti Barolo Riserva Bricco delle Viole
Somewhat gamey, spicy, berry nose. Full-bodied, ripe, moderately acidic, quite meaty, with notes of cherries, earth, spices, minerals, and roses, with a bit of leather showing through. Seemingly more on the traditional side, it manages to carry the ripeness of the vintage without approaching heat or clumsiness. Excellent.
2000 Azienda Agricola Fratelli Brovia Dolcetto d’Alba “Solatio Brovia”
Double-decanted for 4+ hours. Starts out with a nose of crème de cassis, blueberries, and roses. Full-bodied, rich, nicely balanced, with good underlying acidity, and some dusty tannins; just a bit of sweet fruit. Texturally, it reminds me a lot of a nice Amarone. Tastes of cherries, blackberries, dried dark fruits, and tar, with definite floral and mineral notes. Nice length on the finish, too. Still has a long life ahead. Excellent/outstanding for the variety.
2010 Bodegas Dinastía Vivanco Rioja Blanco
70% Macabeo (Viura), 20% Malvasia, and 10% Tempranillo Blanco. Medium-bodied, ripe, bone dry, broad, balanced, with lemon, floral, and some mineral notes. Good. I have no idea what Tempranillo Blanco adds to this or any other wine, but would be interested if anyone has any information on this variety.
2002 Maison Trimbach Pinot Gris Réserve Personnelle
From 375 ml bottle. Pleasant nose of apples, candied fruits and spices. Full-bodied, dry, oily, and well balanced. Smoky, spicy, lightly mineral, with apple, orange, and honey notes. Very good; probably won’t improve in this format, though.
2002 Domaine Joseph Roty Bourgogne Blanc
Not that I oftensee 10 year old Bourgogne Blanc for sale, but this was bought earlier this year. Actually, I really have no idea what grape(s) this is made out of. Some websites are saying that Roty’s Bourgogne Blanc is made from Chardonnay, others claim it’s Pinot Blanc; one says that it is a blend of both. Not that it is easy to tell these two grapes apart.
Nose of honey and toasted marshmallows. Full-bodied, ripe, well balanced, with moderate acidity; mature, with honey, mineral, bottled apple juice, and toasty vanilla flavors. The oak is quite generous here. What you think of this wine will come down on how you feel about the amount of oak here, and I would have preferred less.