We tasted these four reds fromDranch&Granger last night at Pig+Fig:
1. Monastery Tvrdo Vranac Herzegovina (15.00%; D&G) Monastery Tvrdos/PopovoField/Trebinje/Herzegovina/Bosnia 2018: Very dark/near black color; some earthy intense blackberry/boysenberry/chocolaty/licorice some Refosk-like some dusty/OV somewhat complex bit rustic nose; bit soft very intense bit boysenberry/chocolaty/Refosk-like/blackberry/licorice some dusty/OV very rich/lush bit alcoholic mouthfilling bit ripe/overripe slight earthy flavor w/ ample ripe tannins; very long/lingering rich/lush/mouthfilling intense ripe/boysenberry/licorice/chocolatey some dusty/OV bit complex finish w/ ample ripe tannins; a bit on the overripe side but resemples a Refosk quite a lot; very good/ripe red. $ (VB)
________________
2. Bott-Frigyes Kekfrankos MuzslaHill/Slovakia (13%; www.BottFrigyes.Sk; D&G) Komarno/Nova Straz/Slovakia 2021: Very dark/near black color; very fragrant floral/violets/blackberry/very aromatic slight earthy/BF lovely nose; lightly tart intense BF/floral/blackberry/licorice some earthy/dusty/OV complex flavor w/ ample gritty tannins; very long/lingering very floral/violets/blackberry slight earthy/BF/loamy finish w/ somewhat gritty tannins; very floral in character and not as earthy as most Burgenland BF; a beautiful example of BF. $ (VB)
__________________
3. Piquentum Refosk Vrh D.O.O: Buzet Berba/Istria/Croatia (13.5%; www.Piquentum.com; D&G) Hrvatska/Buzet/Croatia 2019: Very dark/near black color; intense beautiful Refosco/chocolaty/licorice/boysenberry some earthy/dusty/OV somewhat ripe very classic Refosk nose; rather tart/tangy very strong Refosk/blackberry/licorice/bit pungent very rich/lush slight earthy some complex flavor w/ some ripe tannins; very long/lingering classic Refosk/licorice/blackberry/bit spicy some dusty/OV some complex finish; probably the best Croatian Refosk I've had. $ (VB)
__________________
4. Stoka Izbrani Teran Kras/Slovenia (12.3%; www.Stoka.Si; D&G) Primoz & Tadej Stoka/Krajna/Slovenia 2020: Very dark/near black color; rather earthy/dusty/OV very spicy intense blackberry/boysenberry/Refosk-like bit pungent/licorice rather complex nose; rather tart/tangy some earthy/dusty/OV very structured/rather rugged intense blackberry/Teran/Refosk/licorice rather complex flavor w/ ample chewey tannins; very long/lingering intense blackberry/boysenberry/bit ripe/licorice/pungent some dusty/OV quite structured some complex finish w/ ample tannins; needs age (but see below) it would seem; an outstanding expression of Refosco. $ (VB)
_______________________________________________
More rojospurt from TheBloodyPulpit:
1. Vranac is a black-skinned grape originating in Montenegro and found in surrounding area. It may be a parent or off-spring of Primitivo according to DNA studies. This was my first Vranac & I was impressed. Should be being planted all up&down the coast of Calif. Alas, not available from FPS.
Kekfrankos is the name in Slovakia & other countries for Blau Frankisch. I don't see many Slovakian wines & this was my first experience w/ this producer. I was impressed.
Teran is a variety found mostly on the Kras plateau of Slovenia/Istyrian penninsula. It is a member of the Refosk/Refosco family but recognized as a distinct variety in its own right. In the Italian Carso, the variety is known as Terrano. There is a move afoot to limit the varietal name to only Teran/Terrano grown only in the Slovene Kras, which would prohibit its use on Carso Terrano.
Teran typical makes a pretty dark/rugged wine. Yet it is not regarded as a graceful ager and should be drunk in its youth. The content of bivalent iron diminishes rapidly after its first two yrs and the wine loses its vitality. I have no idea what that statement means. Stoka is a producer I've never had before but I was impressed by this Teran.
__________________
2. The Danch & Granger Web Site (https://danchandgranger.com/) is very interesting to explore. It contains a ton of information on their producers, lots of pics of their families, etc. Definitely worth the time to browse thru it.
These wines are from a 2-case order from D&G that I put together from their WebSite and then placed the order thru Dan at Vintage Berkeley. I was impressed, across the board, with these first 12 wines we tasted. Their portfolio is most impressive. And I haven't even yet touched their extensive Hungarian collection.
Tom