Ken Zinns & Alan Garretson were in town to visit LosAlamos & see the sights. We got together Mon night at Pig+Fig for dinner & taste some wines:
1. Idlewild Timorasso (11.5%) 2020: Med.gold color; quite attractive Timo/floral/gardenias slight stony/chalky lovely fragrant nose; rather tart/tangy bit lean/restrained/understated slight savory/saline fairly floral/Timo/gardenias bit stony quite perfumed flavor; very long finish that mimics flavor; a lovely restrained expression of Timo but a bit simpler but speaks strongly of Timo w/ greater purity of Timo fruit.
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2. Madirola Timorasso Dd'OC: Colli Tortonesi Derthona (13.5%; ThePiedmontGuy/Shafer/MN) 2022: Light gold color; very strong fragrant Timo/spicy/floral/gardenias fairly mineral/chalky bit herbal rather aromatic lovely perfumed some complex nose; lightly tart/tangy/metallic strong floral/gardenias/Timo/spicy bit richer/lusher some complex flavor; very long/lingering floral/Timo finish that follows flavor; a bit more intense floral complex more mineral more structured interesting expression of Timo.
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3. Cesconi Nosiola IGT: Vigneti delle Dolomiti (12%; ShiverickImprts/LosAngles) Cesconi/Pressano 2020: Med.dark gold color; strong very floral/carnations/melony slight herbal/Kansas haymow bit buttery light pencilly/oak some complex almost ripe/SB-like some complex nose; fairly tart/tangy strong Nosiolo/floral/carnations/melony slight herbal/SB-like slight tangy/citrusy/grapefruity bit complex/Kansas haymow flavor; very long/lingering slightly ripe/herbal finish that tracks flavor; quite an attractive expression of Niosola.
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4. BrocCllrs Amore Blendo FoxHillVnyd/Mendo (12%; Coferment RW; Grignolino/Erbaluce/Nebbiolo/DolcettoFreisa) Berkeley 2023: Light red color; fragrant cherry/strawberry/Brachetto-like quite perfumed high-toned aromatic nose; slightly tart bright/zippy cherry/straberry/Grignolino-like flavor w/ little tannins; med.light finish w/ an unpleasant mousey/wet-dog-fur aftertaste that very much detracts from the wine; quite an attractive Vin de Soif/glou-glou wine until the aftertaste kiks in far in the backtaste.
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5. Rodaro Schioppettino Dd'OP: Friuli Colli Orientali (13.2%; www.RodaroPaolo.It; BotiqueWineCollection/Philadelphia) Cividale del Friuli 2017: Med.dark color; strong very spicy/peppery/Schio bit plummy/licorice slight smokey/oak fairly complex some evolved lovely Schio nose; fairly tart/tangy quite peppery/spicy/plummy/licorice/Schio slight earthy/dusty slight oak fairly complex flavor w/ light brisk tannins; very long/lingering classic peppery/Schio finish that tracks flavor; a very lovely expression of Friuli Schio that shows some evolution and not as structured/bracing/peppery as younger versions.
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6. Harrington Angelica Calif Dessert Wine (17.6%; Aged & allowed to oxidize in neutral Fr.oak barrels) HarringtonWines/SanFrancisco) 2017: Med.red rather brown color; fairly alcoholic strong Mission/plummy/grapey some oxididative/Madeira-like bit chocolatey quite complex nose; rather fumey/alcoholic some oxidative/maderized/Madeira-like off-dry/slightly sweet strong grapey/plummy/Mission/raisened/bit pruney/late hrvesty very complex flavor w/ slight tannins; a beautiful light-handed expression of Angelica and not as raisened/pruney as many show.
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More zinnalbrock from TheBloodyPulpit:
1. Both of the Timos showed very well. The Idlewild has put on a bit more weight & perfume since I first tasted it several weeks ago. It's quite a lovely expression of Timo. I slightly preferred the Madirola for its greater complexity, greater intensity character.
The Nosiola was Ken's contribution to the evening. It was not a producer I'd ever tried. I like Nosiola quite a lot, especially as expressed by Elizabetta Foradori. It think this Casconi was probably a purer expression of Nosiola but not as interesting as the Foradori, which is made w/ skin-contact in clay Amphora of Jose Padilla.
The Broc was also brought by Ken, one that he had recently helped bottle. At dinner, it was quite an attractive glou-glou wine that we drank w/ gusto. The next day when I tried the remains at home, this had developed an unpleasant mousey/wet-dog-fur aftertaste that was very unpleasant. When you belched (a behavior character we LosAlamos-type specialize in), that unpleasant taste would well up in the back of your mouth. This is a natural wine, so maybe not too surprising. Best advice is just crack that sucker open, down it was gusto, and enjoy as a vin de soif.
The Harrington Angelica that Ken brought in was one I had not tried. It supposedly came from Lodi Mission vines & Marco Capelli advised them on making it. I was rather impressed by it. It showed a lighter hand in its making than most Calif Angelicas and more complexity. Quite a lovely Calif Angelica.
These are wines we had w/ our lovely dinner at Pig+Fig. Joining us was Linda Deck. a knowledegable member of my wine group w/ a great palate. She was the former director of the Bardbury Science Museum, one of the top 10 Science Museums in The Nation. The next day, we did a walking tour of downtown LosAlamos and a walk-thru of Fuller Lodge afore I gave them a personal tour of the Bradbury Museum. A good time was had by all I believe.
Tom