This is a wine I brought to dinner at NEB#6 last Fri night:
1. Caves Cooperatives de Donnas DOC: Vallee d'Aoste (13%; L.14/011; 90% Picotendro/5% Freisa/5% Neyret) Donnas PortoVino/Buffalo 2011: Med.light color; lovely floral/Nebb/perfumed/lilacs rather dusty/earthy lavender bit bretty/tobaccoy quite interesting nose; slight leathery/bretty bright fragrant/lilacs/floral/violets rather earthy/dusty interesting flavor w/ light dusty tannins; med.long slight bretty/leathery/horsecollar some cherry/lilacs/floral/Nebb some earthy/dusty/loamy interesting finish w/ light gritty tannins; quite an interesting expression of Nebb but a bit on the bretty side. $29.00 (BB)
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. Picotendro is, of course, the local name for Nebbiolo in the Val d'Aosta. Neyret is a Vd'A indigenous grape that is a cross between Mayolet X Roussin.
There were a bunch of other Nebbs at the table that night. My favorite was the IlPodere Parabola Nebb '90 that JimClendenen brought a magnum of. Very oldGattinara like.
I'm finding I like a lot of the wines coming from the Val d'Aosta. The LesCretes Syrah is world class/cold-climate Syrah. I just wish the Vd'A wines were more widely imported.
Tom
