Posts Tagged ‘Tuscany’
Greybeard or bore?
In Italian, grigio means grey or, of a person, grizzled. Figuratively, it also means dull, drab, dreary.
Chianti Classico Riserva 2008, Il Grigio, San Felice ($26.35, 00703363)
Also available in half bottles ($14.80, 00702100). 100% Sangiovese from various estate-owned vineyards. Fermented on the skins at 28-30ºC for close to three weeks followed by malolactic fermentation, all in stainless steel tanks. Transferred to a mix of Slavonian oak botti and fewer French oak barriques for 24 months’ maturation. 13% ABV per SAQ.com for the 750 ml bottle; 13.5% ABV per the label; 14% ABV per SAQ.com for the 375 ml bottle.
Dark nose: black cherry, plum, slate, terracotta, a whiff of fresh cut hay and overtones of cedar and kirsch. Medium-bodied. The lean fruit nearly gets lost among the other flavours, especially the tobacco, wood (as distinct from oak) and spice. The acidity is piquant, the fine tannins unresolved enough to leave a mouth-coating astringency. Chocolate, dried blood and nutmeg mingle on the drying finish. Decent enough but also earthbound, lacking dazzle, excitement. (Buy again? Meh.)
Cabernet Franc di Bolgheri
IGP Costa Toscana 2011, CiFRA, Azienda vitivinicola Duemani ($27.70, 11838415)
The estate’s entry-level wine, recently created in response to restaurateurs’ request for a less expensive wine from the estate. Biodynamically farmed Cabernet Franc, fermented (with indigenous yeasts) and matured in concrete vats. Lightly dosed with sulphur dioxide at bottling. 14% ABV.
Appealing nose of red berries, spice and faint incense. Medium-bodied with a fluid texture not unlike some of Thierry Germain‘s wines from warm years. The fruit – cherry mainly – is pure and ripe if leaner, firmer and less sweet than the Duemani’s but devoid of Loire-ish herbaceousness (there is some dried herb action going on though). The fine, astringent tannins have a ripeness and roundness that speaks of a warm climate while the refreshing acidity seems more in line with what you expect in a cool-climate wine. A bottle that might make believers out of Cab Franc skeptics. (Buy again? Sure.)
IGT Toscana 2007, Duemani, Azienda vitivinicola Duemani ($85.75, 11794310)
Biodynamically farmed Cabernet Franc. Fermented with indigenous yeasts in temperature-controlled 30- to 40-litre oak vats with frequent punch-downs. Fermentation/maceration lasts about two weeks.. Matured at least 12 months in French barrels and tonneaux (50% new, 50% second vintage). Lightly dosed with sulphur dioxide at bottling. 14.5% ABV.
Candied fruit and umami (dried mushroom, soy sauce) on the nose along with a touch of vanilla. Full-bodied, rich and round. The mouth-filling fruit may be sweet but it’s buoyed by high acidity and firmed by a tannic framework that doesn’t really reveal itself until you chew the wine. The oak is just about resolved. The finish could be more sustained and emphatic, though tertiary flavours linger long. While there’s no denying the wine’s quality and breeding, it’s a little too over-groomed, overripe and New Worldish for me. And then there’s the price… (Buy again? No, but well-heeled fans of California reds should check it out.)
MWG April 18th tasting (7/9): Sangiovese shoot-out
IGT Toscana 2010, It’s a game!, Bibi Graetz ($31.50, 11906140)
Formerly a Sangiovese-dominated blend known as Grilli del Testamatta (Testamatta being one of superstar Graetz’s flagship bottlings), this is now a 100% Sangiovese from 25-year-old vines planted in the hills of Fiesole. Fermentation took place in stainless steel tanks and lasted about ten days. The wine was matured in French oak barriques (35% new) for 18 months. 14% ABV.
Initial nose of banana bread gives way to red berries, ink and dried dill. Despite the alcoholic strength, comes across as medium-bodied with intense, clear fruit upfront. Bright acidity and round tannins provide some textural interest. Long with a light, drying astringency. Impressive in its fruit-driven way but short on depth and ultimately a meh. (Buy again? Not when you can get excellent Chiantis for less.)
Vino da Tavola 2011, Rosso, Le Coste ($33.00, oenopole, 6 bottles/case)
A blend of Greghetto Rosso (a local Sangiovese clone) with 5% Colorino, Cannaiolo, Ciliegiolo and Vaiano l’altro from organically farmed vines averaging 40 years old and planted in various parcels in Gradoli. Manually harvested. Fermented with indigenous yeasts. Matured 12 months in 18-hl Slavonian oak botti and a few used barriques. Unfiltered, unfined and unsulphured. 13.5% ABV.
Forewarned that the wine was in a reductive phase, we double-carafe it well in advance. Yet two hours later, the nose is still dominated by struck matchstick and burned popcorn aromas. Push through them and you’ll find an array of red fruit (cassis, black cherry, plum) and a little kirsch. In the mouth, the wine is medium-bodied and satiny. The fruit is ripe, juicy and tart, structured by light if taut and drying tannins and shot through with minerals. A leesy note emerges on the long finish. Give this savoury, food-friendly wine a few months to deal with the reduction and it should be its usual loveable self. (Buy again? Yes.)
MWG April 18th tasting (2/9): Vernacchia pure and simple
Vernacchia di San Gimignano 2011, Solo, Mattia Barzaghi ($25.53, Agence PF, 6 bottles/case)
100% organically farmed Vernacchia. Manually harvested. Gently pressed then fermented in stainless steel tanks with indigenous yeasts at 16-18ºC. Matured on the lees for five months with frequent stirring. 12.5% ABV. This is Barzaghi’s entry-level Vernacchia. Following a divorce, he has “reset” his branding (whence the reZet on the labels, the Z a vestige of the former line), renamed the cuvées and changed the label illustration to a photograph of him playing chess in the snow with his dog.
Subdued nose: wax, straw and a suggestion of flowers and nuts. Minerally and bright with an appealing leesy quality. High acidity but no shrillness due to the compensating extract. Long finish with a hint of salinity and a telltale bitter note. Clean and fresh: not the old-style Vernacchia some of us are on a quest for but lovely in its own right and light years better than the insipid-by-comparison Rocca delle Macìe. (Buy again? Yes.)
Hi-yo, Silver! It’s the lone Vernaccia!
Vernaccia di San Gimignano 2011, Rocca delle Macìe ($14.30, 00731570)
100% Vernaccia. The winemaker’s tech sheet (PDF file) appears to have been written by the marketing department and so provides no useful technical information. Likely fermented with commercial yeasts and matured in neutral containers. 13% ABV.
Engaging nose: lemon fruity and surprisingly floral. Light and fresh on the palate. What fruit there is – besides the obligatory citrus – is of the pear/quince variety. Lively acidity. Little depth and a rainwatery finish with only the faintest hint of bitter almond (often a marker for the variety). Yes, it’s industrial and, yes, you can find Vernaccias with more personality and follow-through*. Then again, it’s $14. Best as an aperitif or with light, vegetable-based first courses like fried zucchini flowers stuffed with fresh ricotta. (Buy again? If in search of an inexpensive, innocuous, dry Italian white, sure.)
*Not at the SAQ these days, though. For the time being, the Rocca delle Macìe is it. Yet Vernaccia is one of Italy’s oldest and most storied white wines. “Old-style Vernaccia was made as powerful as possible, fermented on its (golden) skins and aged in barrels for gently oxidized flavours to emerge. This was the wine Michelangelo loved. It can still be found like this, or in a modernized, pale version,” writes Hugh Johnson. Leave it to the beloved monopoly to stock only the modernized, pale version. It’s yet another reason to turn to the private import channel. This, for example, looks like it could be interesting.
MWG March 21st tasting (5/6): Quartetto Sangiovese
Sangiovese di Romagna Superiore Riserva 2008, Il Moro, Tenuta Villa Trentola ($26.75, 11735766)
100% Sangiovese. Manually harvested and sorted. Crushed and destemmed, then fermented and macerated in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks for two weeks. Matured in oak barrels for 12 months. 14.5% ABV.
Classic Sagiovese nose of black cherry, tobacco. terracotta and cedar. The impressively pure, ripe fruit is firmed by sturdy tannins and keen acidity. Background minerals linger through the finish. The oak and alcohol are discreet. The best QPR of the bunch. (Buy again? Sure.)
Sangiovese di Romagna Superiore Riserva 2008, Pruno, Drei Donà (Tenuta La Palazza) ($39, 11295473)
100% Sangiovese from the estate’s best vineyards. Manually harvested and sorted. Fermented in stainless steel tanks at 28–30ºC for 12 to 18 days with pumping over several times a day. After malolactic fermentation, transferred to French oak barrels for 15 to 18 months. Bottled unfiltered. 14.5% ABV.
Black cherry, cedar shakes, slate and a whiff of new sneakers. Sweet, velvety fruit, integrated tannins, bright acidity and an oak-sweetened if bitter-edged finish. Not particularly complex or deep but tasty and suave. (Buy again? Maybe, though the QPR seems low, at least at this stage in its development.)
Sangiovese di Romagna 2008, Il Prugnolo, Tenuta Villa Trentola ($19.20, 11875890)
100% Sangiovese. Manually harvested, crushed, destemmed. Fermentation in stainless steel tanks with twice daily pump-overs lasts at least two weeks. Matured in stainless steel tanks. 14.5% ABV.
Powdered slate, wet ashtray, meat, plastic and a combination of cocoa, cream and coffee that one taster pegged as “tiramisu.” As ashy as fruity on the palate (odd since it isn’t barrel-aged). On the lighter side of medium-bodied. Without compensating fruit, the grape variety’s natural acidity and tannins leave an impression of sourness and astringency and the wine’s alcohol one of heat. (Buy again? No.)
Chianti Classico Riserva 2009, Tenuta di Nozzole ($24.55, 11881878)
The estate is part of the Folonari stable. 100% Sanvgiovese. Fermented in stainless steel tanks at 28ºC. Macerated for 12 days. After malolactic fermentation, transferred to large Slavonian oak barrels for 12 months’ maturation. 14.5% ABV.
Floral and sweet on the nose. Oaky in the mouth, the wood for now dominating the rich fruit. Moderate tannins and acidity and decent length. Needs more time? (Buy again? Unlikely.)
MWG March 8th tasting (5/5): Jove’s blood
Located a few kilometres east-northeast of Siena, Fattoria di Fèlsina straddles the border between the Chanti Colli Senesi and southern Chianti Classico appellations. The estate is experimenting with biodyanism but has not sought certification. Castello di Fonterutoli, which is part of the Mazzei group, is located entirely in the southern Chianti Classico appellation, a few kilometres more distant from Siena and in a north-northwesterly direction. Besides their proximity, the estates share other similarities: both are around 600 ha in size, have around 100 ha given over to grape cultivation, also produce olive oil and are widely viewed as being among Chianti’s elite producers.
IGT Toscana 2007, Fontalloro, Fattoria di Fèlsina ($55.75, 11269419)
100% Sangiovese from the Fontalloro or Poggio al Sole vineyard in Chianti Classico (rocky limestone and clay with some shale) and the Casalino and Arcidossino vineyards in Chianti Colli Senesi (sandy, loamy and silty). The manually harvested grapes are rigorously sorted, destemmed and pressed. Fermentation is temperature controlled (c. 29ºC) and followed by 16 to 20 days’ maceration, with daily punch-downs and pump-overs. Malolactic fermentation takes place in stainless steel vats. The wine is matured 18 to 22 months in new and second-vintage oak barrels, then blended and bottled. Bottle-aged eight to 12 months before release. 14.5% ABV.
Cherry, terracotta, sun-baked earth, graphite, sawed wood, tobacco, sandalwood, cedar. Rich, complex, elegant. Intense and substantial yet so balanced, the high alcohol not at all apparent. Perfectly structured. Savoury. The finish is long and deep. A flawless wine. Delicious now and for years to come. (Buy again? If you can scrape together the bucks, yes.)
Chianti Classico 2008, Castello Fonterutoli, Marchesi Mazzei ($46.75, 11494481)
The estate’s flagship wine, introduced in the 1995 vintage. Technically a riserva, though there’s noting on the label to that effect. Sangiovese (85%) with 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot sourced from 50 different parcels. The hand-picked grapes are fermented at c. 29ºC, then macerated for 5 to 18 days. Matured 16 months in French oak barrels, 60% new. Bottle-aged 18 months before release. 14% ABV.
Similar to the Fontalloro but more leathery and plummier, more Chianti-like. Gained dried herb and wood notes as it breathed. Rich and smooth, the fruit both elegant and earthy. Layered and beautifully delineated, not too mention well proportioned. Long, woody (not oaky) finish. Impressive. (Buy again? Yes.)
Chianti Classico Riserva 2007, Rancia, Fattoria di Fèlsina ($38.25, 10268529)
100% Sangiovese from the 6.25 ha Rancia vineyard located entirely in the Chianti Classico DOC. The manually harvested grapes are rigorously sorted, destemmed and pressed. Fermentation is temperature controlled (c. 29ºC) and followed by 16 to 20 days maceration, with daily punch-downs and pump-overs. Malolactic fermentation takes place in stainless steel vats. The wine is matured 16 to 18 months in new and second-vintage oak barrels, then blended and bottled. Bottle-aged six to eight months before release. 13.5% ABV.
Cherry, plum, slate/graphite dust, Asian spice, blond tobacco. Smooth, suave and impeccably balanced. Shot through with tannins and acidity, a lode of savoury fruit and minerals runs from the attack through the long finish. Remarkably pure. (Buy again? Unhesitatingly.)
Chianti Classico 2010, Fonterutoli, Marchesi Mazzei ($25.70, 00856484)
Nine-tenths Sangiovese with Malvasia Nera, Colorino and Merlot making up the balance. The fruit is sourced from five estate-owned vineyards. The hand-picked grapes are fermented at c. 29ºC, then macerated for 16 to 18 days. Matured 12 months in French oak barrels, 40% new. 12.5% ABV.
Surprisingly profound nose dominated by leather, minerals and black cherry. Smooth, dapper and pure in the mouth. Sweet fruity for a Chianti, though not in a New World way, thanks largely to the bright acidity, sharp-edged tannins and lingering bitter minerals. Solid. (Buy again? Yes.)
Tuscan Sangioveses often come across as austere and unsmiling at tastings; conventional wisdom is that they need food to show their mettle. But these four wines had the entire table mmming from the get-go. Yes, with their French oak and Merlot and up-front fruit, they’re modern. Yet they also succeed in being true to their roots, in being about much more than just fruit, in maintaining a sense of proportion and a sense of place.
Another interesting thing about the flight was how clearly the wines’ prices – around $25, $35, $45 and $55 – reflected their absolute quality, with each $10 seeming to bring an extra layer of depth or an added dimension.
Seaside Sangiovese
IGT Maremma Toscana 2011, Carandelle, Podere San Cristoforo ($25.85, 11546922)
100% biodynamically farmed Sangiovese from the eight-year-old Carandelle vineyard. Spontaneous fermentation and maceration for seven days in stainless steel tanks followed by ten months’ maturation in old French oak barrels. Bottled unfiltered. 13% ABV.
Pleasing nose of cherry, terracotta, dried herbs and oak with hints of spice and pepper. Medium bodied, fluid, smooth. The juicy fruit is held in check by bright acidity and shaped by silky tannins that dry a little on the finish, where they’re joined by a typically Italian bitter note. A dapper wine that’s ready to go. Those in the market for a Sangiovese with a sunny disposition need look no further; others may find the aloof austerity of some similarly priced Chiantis has even more appeal.
MWG January 10th tasting (6/7): Two Italian reds
IGT Veneto 2011, Rosso Giaroni, Davide Spillare ($26.40, La QV, 12 bottles/case)
Natural. 100% organically farmed Merlot. Spontaneous fermentation in open vats for two weeks with regular punching down. Matured in 500-litre barrels for about a year. Unfiltered, unfined. No added sulphur. Vegan-compatible.
Umami nose: beef bouillon cubes, dark soy sauce, sweet spice, sawed wood. Supple, medium-bodied. The sweet red fruit has a fresh, herbaceous streak, enough acidity and light, velvety tannins. Seemed anonymous at first but developed in interesting ways over the course of an hour or two, gaining complexity, depth, breadth, personality and even allure. (Buy again? Yes.)
IGT Toscana 2007, Jassarte, Podere Guado al Melo ($35.70, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
A crazy blend of 30-odd Mediterranean and Trans-Caucasian varieties from a sustainably farmed vineyard planted in 1999 and located in the Bolgheri DOC. Manually harvested, fermented in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats, matured 24 months on the lees in small oak barrels (10% new) and at least 24 months in the bottle.
Unlike the bottle tasted at the private import show, ours initially had a skunky smell that Cyril associated with mercaptan. That quickly blew off leaving an unfathomably complex nose (plum, wood, fresh herbs, graphite, smoke, nuts, chocolate and more). Smooth and fluid in the mouth with a silky texture. Dry though the fruit is sweetly ripe in the manner of warm-climate reds. There’s a Bordeaux-like balance between extract, tannins and acidity. Not particularly deep or Italian-tasting but broad, long and dapper. (Buy again? Possibly.)
Unsmiling Sangiovese
Rosso di Montalcino 2010, Argiano ($22.60, 10252869)
100% Sangiovese. Manually harvested. Fermented on the skins in stainless steel vats for two to three weeks. After malolactic fermentation, transferred to second vintage French oak barrels and Slovenian oak botti for maturation. Botttled the following fall. 14.0% ABV per the SAQ, 14.5% per the label.
Dusty cherry and terracotta with hints of baled hay, sage/bay, cinnamon, alcohol. Medium bodied. Silky on the attack. The foreground is occupied by fine but very firm tannins and bright acidity, the background by fruit that’s more kirschy than fresh. Not much depth, not much to chew on. Initially so dry that arid might be a better descriptor, so astringent that I wanted to go brush my teeth, it sweetened and softened a little as it breathed. Fair finish with some tobacco joining the cherry and alcohol.
Definitely a food wine but not now or probably ever a very beguiling one. Next time I’ll look a little further north to Chianti for my Sangiovese hit.
Brett happens 