Posts Tagged ‘Piedmont’
Striking gold at Orange Rouge
The parallels were eerie. Dinner at a new-to-me restaurant. Spotting a vintageless Langhe Nebbiolo on the short wine list. Inquiring whether it might be the just-arrived Produttori del Barbaresco bottling and being met with incomprehension from the server, who offers to fetch a bottle and see. A eureka moment when the bottle is brought to the table. And a revelation when the wine is drunk with the food.
It first happened in March of 2012 at the now-defunct Jane. And it happened again the other night at Orange Rouge.
At a tasting a little more than a year ago, the Produttori’s general manager Aldo Vacca mentioned that after the “light” 2010s and “extremely ripe” 2011s, the low-yielding 2012 vintage was “ideal.” So I was stoked when I saw that the cooperative’s 2012 Langhe Nebbiolo had shown up at the SAQ ($23.70, 11383617). I’d reserved a couple of bottles but hadn’t tasted it.
Meanwhile back at Orange Rouge, we were having a hard time deciding what to order. Among the big dishes, both the roast duck and the three-ways arctic char beckoned. But discovering the wine clinched it: we were going for the quacker. “Be aware the duck requires about 30 minutes to prepare,” the server said. “You might want to order a few small dishes to eat while you wait.”
That we did, along with a 750 ml bottle of Ferran Adrià’s Estrella Damm Inedit ($8.30 at the SAQ, 11276336). The sriracha peanuts came in a small bowl and were crunchy-caramelized, mildly salty/spicy/sweet and compulsively edible. The popcorn shrimp, well breaded and deep-fried to a crispy brown, tasted of the sea and, if they didn’t exactly pop, they definitely snapped. A salad of fresh mint sprigs in a light, savoury, subtly spiced vinaigrette was delicious on its own and a quantum leap better with the garnish of crumbled fresh goat cheese. The beer more than held its own with everything: softly fragrant and effervescent, clean and light enough to refresh the palate and, with its delicate white spice and orange peel notes, complex enough to play off the spices in the food. In other contexts it has left me unconvinced, but here it was ideal.
Just after the wine was opened and poured, the duck made a spectacular entrance: a bed of stir-fried (?) napa cabbage, ringed by thin, overlapping slices of duck breast, crowned with mahogany-skinned thighs, wings and drumsticks and bed-headed with a shock of julienned carrot and zucchini. On a separate platter came a fan of largish half-moon steamed buns, a soy-based dipping sauce and cilantro leaves. The duck’s breast and extremities may have been cooked separately, as each was done to moist, rosy perfection; the pieces we savoured on their own, the breast slices with the buns. The cabbage, which required time and some digging to get at, had no wok hai but duck juice mojo in spades. The dish was a lot for three people, easily enough for four or, with an added side or two, six; still, there was never a question of our not polishing it off. It was, in a word, glorious, the best duck any of us has encountered in a restaurant or maybe anywhere. And it puts the “Peking” duck at places like Mon Nan and Cristal Chinois to shame.
The only side we ordered was a small dish of burned eggplant, the silken flesh garnished with bonito shavings and plated with a smear of mild green chile sauce. Delectable.
The Langhe proved an absolute delight, fully deserving of its advance billing. Redolent of cherry and blackberry with hints of tar, rose and anise, despite being served in small Duralex tumblers. Supple and fluid yet intensely flavoured at its core, the acidity illuminating, the tannins ripe and rasping, the sweet fruit lilting over a ground bass of slate, wood and earth. Delicious on its own, it sang with the duck and did bel canto duets with the eggplant. In short, a wine to buy by the case.
Stuffed to the gills, we could find room only for a small bowl of house-made orange ice cream served with three spoons. Smooth and silky, not very sweet and haunted more than flavoured by the citrus, it had a soft peppery kick from a scattering of slivered candied ginger.
The damage? With one bottle of beer and two bottles of the Langhe (the resto’s markup on alcohol appears to be the standard 110%, alas), $250 for three or $85 a person, including taxes but before tip. The food alone came to less than $50 per. A bit pricey compared with other Chinatown eateries, perhaps. Then again, other Chinatown eateries aren’t really comparable.
The Langhe’s distribution appears to be spotty. Some stores are currently showing inventories approaching and even exceeding 100 bottles. Others have received only a fraction of that number and are quickly blowing through their stock. A second shipment is slated to arrive in a month or so. Still, to be on the safe side, you should act fast. You simply will not find a more beguling Old World red at the regular price. And if you reserve your bottles now and pick them up on Valentine’s Day weekend, you’ll get 10% off (if part of a total purchase of $100 or more), which has to make this the QPR winner of the year.
Failing that, put together a party of food and wine lovers and make a beeline for Orange Rouge.
Bodacious Barbera
While I normally shy away from oaked Barberas, The Gazette‘s Bill Zacharkiw recently waxed so positive about Braida’s 2011 Montebruna that when I ran across a bottle marked down 15% at the Marché Jean-Talon SAQ store, I put it in my basket. It wasn’t until I got home that I noticed my bottle was from the 2010 vintage.
Barbera d’Asti 2010, Montebruna, Braida ($26.05 before markdown, 11863311)
100% Barbera from the Montebruna vineyard in Rocchetta Tanaro. Fermented in stainless steel tanks for two weeks. Matured 12 months in large (up to 55 hl) oak barrels. 14.5% ABV. On the label, the letters of the cuvée’s name aren’t solid but rather composed of the names of the various parcels acquired by the estate to form the vineyard.
Cherry, fruit and pit, hints of tobacco, spice, slate, faint vanilla. Rich texture. Soft, plush tannins. Buoyant acidity. The spotlit fruit is ripe, fresh and juicy, with an appealing sour edge. Oak is held in check, adding a layer, if not depth, but not weighing the wine down. Good follow-through and lingering earth and spice flavours. In that select group of wines that capture the soul of the Barbera grape. I’d love to try an unoaked version. (Buy again? Yes but…)
I drank half the bottle and transferred the rest into a clean half-bottle, which I corked and refrigerated. The next day, the wine was much less interesting. The fruit had lost some of its vibrancy and the sweet vanilla oak was much more present. So buy again? You’ll probably have a hard time finding a bottle of the 2010. The 2011 appears to be widely available, however. But how will it compare? On the one hand, it’s Zacharkiw-approved; on the other, according to SAQ.com it clocks in at a hair-raising 15.5% ABV (2011 was a very hot vintage in Piedmont). You pays your money and you takes your chances.
oenopole workshop: charcuteries + uve italiane (2/3)
The workshop’s raison d’être was the second flight and its centrepiece, a long board covered with an impressive array of charcuterie made by Ségué Lepage of Le Comptoir charcuteries et vins: buttery pork liver mousse, dried sausages flavoured with fennel seed or cumin, coppa, soppressata, porchetta di testa (slices of a large rolled sausage, the Italian take on headcheese), pâté de campagne, chorizo and a couple I’m forgetting. Accompaniments included cornichons, pickled fennel and Le Comptoir’s irresistible cumin “mustard,” though the quality of the salumi was so high they seemed unnecessary, like gilt for a lily.
Sangiovese di Romagna 2011, Scabi, San Valentino ($18.00, 11019831)
The 28-hectare estate is located just inland from Rimini on Italy’s Adriatic coast. 100% Sangiovese from decade-old vines. Manually harvested, destemmed, macerated at low temperature for eight days then fermented with indigenous yeasts in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. Half the wine is matured in stainless steel and half in second-fill oak barrels for six months. Sulphur is added only at bottling. 14% ABV.
Dired cherry, spice, background leather, turned earth and terracotta and a kirschy high note. Velevty texture. Fruit forward but not a bomb, thanks in part to the coursing acidity. Dark minerals and just a hint of oak add depth. Fine tannins lend an astringent edge to the finish. The best vintage of this wine to date and a definite QPR winner. (Buy again? Yep.)
> Handled the crazy delicious pork liver mousse better than any other wine in the flight. Ditto the chile-spiced sausages, probably due to its juicy fruit. Still, this food-friendly wine is arguably even better suited to fare like grilled meats and vegetables and savoury, tomato-based pasta dishes (spaghetti with meat ragu or pesto rosso, for example).
Langhe 2011, Nebbiolo, Produttori del Barbaresco ($23.10, 11383617)
100% Nebbiolo from young vines, all of which are located within the Barbaresco DOC. Fermented with selected “Barolo” yeasts at 28ºC in stainless steel tanks. Macerated on the skins for 24 days. Matured six months in very large oak barrels. No fining, light filtering, minimal sulphur dioxide. 14.5% ABV according to the label; 13.5% ABV according to the SAQ (I suspect the label is closer to the truth).
Cherry, underbrush, slate, old wood, hints of truffle and kirsch. Smooth and silky, with clean fruit, bright acidity and fine, supple tannins. Underlying minerals give depth. Good length and beautiful balance. As predicted, this has come together in the months since it first appeared on the SAQ’s shelves. Unbeatable QPR. (Buy again? Of course.)
> Best with the very fresh-tasting pâté de campagne and coppa. It also played interestingly with the spice in the cumin saucisson, whose saltiness brought out the wine’s fruit.
Cerasuolo di Vittoria 2010, Classico, Azienda Agricola COS ($33.75, 11577391)
Biodynamically farmed Nero d’Avola (60%) and Frappato (40%) from 25-year-old vines. Temperature-controlled fermentation with indigenous yeasts in concrete vats. Aged in barrels for 18 to 24 months. Bottled unfiltered. 13% ABV.
Beautiful wafting nose: dried cherry and cranberry, garrigue, sun-baked earth, air-dried beef. Medium-bodied with a silky, almost Burgundian texture. The fruit, as savoury as sweet, glows with a soft acidity. Slatey minerals and fine but lightly raspy tannins add texture and interest. Long and, above all, remarkably fresh. (Buy again? Yes, despite the 15% price increase from last year’s 2009.)
> Probably the most versatile wine of the bunch. Didn’t clash with anything, was relatively unfazed by the chile-flavoured sausages but went especially well with the fennel sausage.
Barolo 2009, Serralunga, Principiano Ferdinando ($39.75, 11387301)
Principiano’s entry-level Barolo. 100% Nebbiolo grapes from 3.5 hectares of young vines. The hand-picked, crushed grapes ferment with indigenous yeasts and no added sulfur for about a month. Matured 24 months in 20- and 40-hectolitre barrels and then in bottle. Bottled unfiltered and unfined. Vegan-compatible. Annual production: about 20,000 bottles. 14% ABV.
Cherry, a bit candied (PEZ if you must know), mowed field, old wood, iron dust, hint of vanilla and violet. Medium-bodied. Richly flavoured but fresh, a mouthful of satiny fruit with soft spicy overtones, lacy if drying tannins and sleek acidity. Elegant, complete, a pleasure to drink. A second bottle opened two days later came across as a little less special (bottle variation? different context?) but still attention-worthy. Not a long ager though it won’t suffer – and may well benefit – from a year or two in the cellar. Another QPR winner. (Buy again? Yes.)
> Achieved synergy with the superb prochetta di testa. Surprisingly good with the liver pâté. Handled the cumin and fennel sausages with aplomb though the coppa let more of the wine come through.
Barolo 2008, Fratelli Alessandria ($41.25, 11797094)
100% Nebbiolo from six vineyards. Manually harvested. Fermented and macerated from 12 to 15 days in temperature-controlled tanks. Matured 32 to 34 months in large Slavonian and French oak casks, two months in stainless steel tanks and six or more months in the bottle. 14% ABV.
A nose more tertiary than the Principiano’s: coffee and cherry with hints of chocolate, licorice, raw meat, truffle, fresh herbs, tomato. The richest and roundest of the Nebbiolos though still medium-bodied. Savoury fruit, plush, firm tannins, chugging acidity and a long, vaporous finish. In contrast to the nose, still a bit primary on the palate, though far from inaccessible. (Buy again? Yes.)
> Worked best with the mildly flavoured dried sausages, the porchetta di testa and the cured meats. The chile-spiced sausages brought out the tannins and the liver mousse give it a faintly metallic taste. Would probably be more at home with a rabbit and mushroom ragu served over pappardelle and showered with Parmesan.
The wines’ lively acidity and savoury character meant they all paired well with these fatty, salty foods. For me, the most unexpected aspect of the tasting was seeing how the different Nebbiolos worked – or didn’t – with a given charcuterie, in particular the pork liver mousse. That said, I couldn’t shake the feeling that the higher-end wines were a bit out of place, that, however convincingly, they were slumming a little. A fascinating exercise, then, but one I’d love to repeat with more rustic wines, like certain Barberas, Dolcettos, Pelavergas and Ruchès.
The grape that came back from the dead
Langhe 2012, Anas-Cëtta, Elvio Cogno ($24.15, 12034591)
100% Nascetta (Anas-Cëtta is an archaic form of the name) from the Novello commune. Langhe’s only native white grape variety, Nascetta was nearly lost after the phylloxera plague (for the back story, see Christy Canterbury’s post “What in the world is Nascetta?“). Recently revived, Nascetta has been eligible for the Langhe DOC designation only since 2010 and, even today, a mere handful of estates make a version. First produced in 1994 on a limited-run basis, Elvio Cogno’s take on the grape is fermented in stainless steel tanks (70%) and oak barrels (30%). Matured six months in stainless steel and another six months in French barriques. Total time on the lees: 180 days. Aged three months in bottle before release. 13.5% ABV.
Subtle, complex nose: apple, white apricot, dried hay, dried lemon peel and a faint medicinal ping. Viscous mouthfeel, like in some Vermintinos – rich in extract but not fruit. Very dry and quite broad, with soft but sufficient acidity. A bitter thread runs throughout. The long finish is redolent of dried herbs and ends on a salt and white pepper note. Food-friendly: handled a broccoli risotto and a salad of mackerel and lightly pickled beets with aplomb. Said to be a good ager (up to a decade). More than a curiosity, this is a very fine wine. (Buy again? Yep.)
MWG October 3rd tasting (6/7): Mamma Saffirio meets Mâmârutá
Langhe 2011, Nebbiolo, Josetta Saffirio ($34.50, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
Nebbiolo with 10% Merlot. The estate’s five hectares of vineyards are organically farmed but not certified as such. As the two grape varieties ripen at different times, they are picked (manually) and vinified separately: pressed, destemmed and macerated eight to ten days, after which point the juice is drawn off and fermented (using selected Barolo yeasts) in temperature-controlled tanks. At the end of malolactic fermentation, the wines are barrel-aged for 12 months, then blended and bottled. 13.5% ABV.
The expected cherry is joined by unexpected bramble as well as tree bark, cinnamon and a hint of tar and rose. Medium-bodied but rich with a plush mouthfeel, lacy tannins, balanced acidity and some oak on the finish. In a tasting populated by so many eccentrics, this relatively conventional wine may have been overshadowed and probably merits another visit. (Buy again? Sure.)
Fitou 2012, Coupe Soif, Domaine Mâmârutá ($25.00, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
Young Marc Castan began making wine on his 13-hectare organically farmed estate in La Palme in 2009. This “thirst cutter” is a blend of Carignan (80%) and Grenache (20%). The grapes are manually harvested and co-fermented in concrete vats and large barrels. Only indigenous yeasts are used and maceration and fermentation times are kept short. Minimal intervention and minimal added sulphur. 14% ABV.
Another funky, natural wine nose – “slate-eating donkey turd” was my initial descriptor – that eventually segued into red fruit (cherry?), spice, turned earth and a hint of leather. It’s a different story in the mouth: thirst-quenching indeed, fluid and bright, straightforward and pure, with a clean, lip-smacking finish. Aérien was how Cyril described it. Delicious was the last word I wrote. (Buy again? Yes.)
MWG October 3rd tasting (3/7): Three eccentric whites
Vin de Sologne 2011, Quartz, Domaine Claude Courtois ($34.50, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
For background on the estate and winemaker, see my note for the 2009 Quartz. Sauvignon Blanc from organically farmed (though uncertified as such) vines, some of which are ungrafted. Manually harvested, destemmed and gently pressed. Fermented (with indigenous yeasts) and matured in oak barrels for 12 to 24 months. 11.8% ABV.
Courtois’s wines can vary significantly from vintage to vintage, and this is one of the most radical Quartzes yet. The resinous note that sometimes marks the wine’s bouquet here dominates, putting one in mind more of turpentine than pine needles, though not to the exclusion of apple, pear, distant greenery and quartz dust. In the mouth, the wine is intense but not fruity, packed with minerals and rife with acid yet somehow smooth and fluid. The finish is clean and long. A wine that makes you sit up and take notice. Weird? Yes. But also loveable in its oddball way. Would like to see how this evolves. (Buy again? The contrarian in me says yes.)
Penedès 2012, Capficat, Xarel·lo, Celler Credo ($45.75, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
100% organically and biodynamically farmed Xarel·lo, a grape variety normally used to make cava, from an eight-hectare vineyard planted in 1940. Manually harvested. Fermented (with indigenous yeasts) and matured for one month in oak barrels. Unfiltered, unfined and with no added sulphur. 660 bottles made. 13% ABV. In Catalan, a cap ficat is “a branch that’s burled – without being cut from the stump it grows from – and gives life to a new vine.”
Astounding nose: animale, chalk and rotting peach against a backdrop of honey and brown sugar with a grinding of white pepper. Lighter than expected in the mouth: fresh and minerally, layered and long, with sweet but unheavy fruit and an underlying sourness. Long. Pricey but fascinating. (Buy again? The curiosity lover in me says yes.)
Colli Tortonesi bianco 2010, Montesoro, Valli Unite ($27.75, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
A blend of Timorasso, Favorita and Chasselas (though one site claims it’s 100% Timorasso). Manually harvested. Fermented with selected yeasts. Matured on the fine lees for one year. Sees only stainless steel. A minimal amount (3 g/hl) of sulphur dioxide is used and only post-fermentation. 3,000 bottles made. 14% ABV.
The nose’s crushed seashells are joined by faintly oxidized and candied yellow fruit, hints of meadow and an anise note. Rich and layered in the mouth, evocative of browning sour apple. Not thirst-quenching but with sufficient acidity, not to mention crunchy minerals, and a long, bitter-edged finish. (Buy again? The gastronome in me says yes.)
MWG October 3rd tasting (2/7): Cortese leggermente frizzante
Vino da Tavola 2011, Il Brut and the Beast, Valli Unite ($21.75, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
Based in Costa Vescovato in southern Piedmont, Valli Unite is a 30-year-old organic cooperative whose members grow local grape varieties as well as grains, fruits, vegetables and livestock. This semi-sparkler is made from Cortese and, depending on whom you believe, may contain some Favorita. The biodynamically farmed grapes are manually harvested, fermented with indigenous yeasts and bottled unfiltered and unfined. No sulphur is added during the wine-making process. The fizz is the result of natural, in-bottle fermentation and the wine is vegan-compatible. 12.5% ABV. Cool label. The name is a play on the title of a spaghetti western, The Brute and the Beast.
Straw, quartz, faint yellow pear and herbs. Intense yet fresh in the mouth, lifted by soft fizz and glowing acidity. The fruity attack gives way to beeswax, rocky minerals, iodine and sea salt (“like licking a seashell” quipped one taster) and a long, bitter-edged finish. Not for wimps but lots of fun and, for most tasters, one of the wines of the night. (Buy again? Definitely.)
Socks-on Barbera
Barbera d’Alba 2011, Punset ($21.80, 10985747)
100% organically farmed Barbera. Manually harvested. Destemmed, gently pressed and fermented on the skins. Matured in stainless steel tanks for several months. 14% ABV.
Thin and hollow on opening, this benefits enormously from an hour in the carafe. Cherry, terracotta, slate, fresh stripped tree bark on the nose and in the mouth. Fluid and, despite the 14%, medium-bodied. The ripe if bone-dry fruit is textured by lightly raspy tannins and piquant acidity. Finishes on a tangy, cedary/tobaccoy note. The alcohol isn’t at all apparent until the end. Not a knock-your-socks-off Barbera, but honest, well made and ultimately enjoyable. (Buy again? Sure.)
Pora! Pora! Pora!
Barbaresco 2008, Pora, Riserva, Produttori del Barbaresco ($50.50, 11214469)
(For background information on the Produttori and their wines, see last December’s Tasting with Aldo Vacca report.) 100% Nebbiolo from the Pora vineyard. Fermented with cultivated “Barolo” yeasts in temperature-controlled (30ºC) concrete and stainless steel vats. Fermentation and maceration – with regular punch-downs and pump-overs – last 28 days. Matured 36 months in large Slavonian oak barrels (though reportedly smaller than those used in earlier vintages). Bottled unfiltered and with a small dose of sulphur dioxide. Matured another eight months in bottle before release. 14% ABV.
Primary nose: sour cherry, tarry slate and faint notes of rose and sandalwood. Perhaps a shade lighter weight than the 2007 Pora yet if anything more balanced and complete. With its silky ripe fruit, it retains Pora’s typical accessibility. But chew the wine and you’ll get a different picture, one etched – albeit finely – in tannins and minerals and hinting at hidden depths. The wine’s airframe structure, tense acidity, ideal proportions, focus and purity make it a sure bet for aging (at least a decade, probably two), not that anyone will complain if you open a bottle now. (Buy again? Absolutely.)
The wine’s already high bang for the buck is off the charts this weekend with the SAQ’s “10% off every purchase of $100 or more” promotion: two bottles will put you just over the $100 threshold and cost you $90.90, or $45.45 each. For a wine that could be the dictionary definition of a Riserva Barbaresco. For a wine that’s more classically proportioned and eminently drinkable than big name Barbarescos costing twice as much or more. That constitutes an unbeatable bargain. A QPR winner if ever there were one.
We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming…
…to bring you the following public service announcement.
This arrived at the SAQ during the week of April 15th. There’s still quite a bit around but, barring a restocking, several outlets have already sold out.
Langhe 2011, Nebbiolo, Produttori del Barbaresco ($22.55, 11383617)
100% Nebbiolo from young vines, all of which are located within the Barbaresco DOC. Fermented with selected “Barolo” yeasts at 28ºC in stainless steel tanks. Macerated on the skins for 24 days. Matured six months in very large oak barrels. No fining, light filtering, minimal sulphur dioxide. 14.5% ABV according to the label; 13.5% ABV according to the SAQ (I suspect the label is closer to the truth).
The expected ripe fruit is there but less upfront than usual, on equal footing with a set of savoury aromas that include spice box, autumn leaves, brick dust, dried herbs, slate and earth. In December, the cooperative’s managing director Aldo Vacca described the 2011 vintage as “extremely ripe,” and that’s immediately apparent in the wine’s texture: while as medium-bodied and silky as ever, it also has a liqueur-like feel that finds an echo in the intense core of sour cherry fruit. Yet the wine is very dry, with racy acidity and fine if astringent tannins. A mineral vein runs throughout and is joined by an old wood note on the long finish. More potent and less charming than the 2010 but every bit as balanced and satisfying. Tasted the next day, the tail end of the bottle was more integrated and quite Barbaresco-like in its power if not depth. Will probably be even better in six months or a year and probably has the potential to keep for a few years beyond that. Serve at cool room temperature and carafe if drinking now. (Buy again? Of course.)
Brett happens 