Two things struck me in this tasting. On the one hand, I found it worrying that these current Montecucco releases taste so mature. On the other, if one is looking for a mature wine without having to age it, wines like the Scarafone bottling deliver very nicely. I do think, however, that these are very careful hand-sells.
Read MoreBallet slipper pink, this newly minted Prosecco Rosé DOC comes with a label featuring photographer Giò Martorana's 20-foot shot of the wall leading to Juliet's house in Verona that features love notes. The bottle is as striking as the love graffiti on the label - rather squat with low shoulders. The Famiglia Pasqua certainly knows how to differentiate its wines on shelves. They have a knack for cutting-edge packaging.
Read MoreThere’s nothing better than the glimpse of sunshine through a nice glass of wine, especially when it comes from the beautiful landscape of Abruzzo. An area replete with historical vineyards yet thriving with new ideas, these wines offer a window into the region’s diversity, despite the predominance of just a few varieties.
Read MoreSorry, Pasqua. I don’t get the name or the concept of this wine. The French can’t make it (they aren’t in Italy, much less the Veneto) and the French don’t grow Garganega. Additionally, except in Champagne, the French - like almost all other still wine producers - don't regularly make multi-vintage cuvées that are labeled as such.
Read MoreTenuta di Arceno 2016 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Strada al Sasso: This wine's nose immediately absorbs my attention. It is hedonistic but not over the top. It is beautifully balanced, but it commands enough weight and girth to be head-turning for a Chianti Classico. Clearly, that is why it is a Gran Selezione, the highest of the Chianti Classico DOCG levels. (Previously, this single vineyard micro cru was labeled as their Riserva wine before the Gran Selezione designation came into play with the 2010 vintage.)
Read MoreA few weeks back I had the chance to speak with Sabrina Tedeschi on climate change, some history of her family estate (she with siblings Antonietta and Riccardo are the fifth generation) and the current releases of Tedeschi wines. How I miss those one-on-one connections! I learned a lot and got to taste the wines while we were speaking, even though we were thousands of miles apart. Here is a summary of the most interesting points of our conversation as well as my wine notes.
Read MoreAlta Mora means "tall black". That's exactly what the vineyards' home territory, Mount Etna, looks like. So, black is also the color of the soil. And, the soil on Mount Etna is very unusual. Walking through the soft, silky depths of the vineyards can give you the impression that you're about to sink right through the mountainside and into the inferno below.
Read MoreI have always found the precise and pure Cusumano wines incredibly juicy and approachable. This trio serves to reinforce my many prior experiences.
Brothers Diego and Alberto source the estate-grown fruit for their Cusumano wines from four different areas of Sicily covering over 500 hectares / 1235 acres. (Etna is a fifth region that they use for their other label, Alta Mora.) Focusing on local and international grapes in varietal and blended wines, the wines are a comfortable fusion of modern winemaking and Sicilian soul.
Read MoreTenuta di Arcano 2013 Arcanum Toscana: This very attractive and fragrant wine composed of predominantly Cabernet Franc (73% - from 16 different blocks of vines, along with 17% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon) needs some time to open, despite the fact that it is showing decidedly tertiary aromas.
Read MoreThis tasting was exercise for sure. And, it was an unusual one. They don't taste at all of Sangiovese and less yet of Sangiovese di Romagna. At least, they are ambitious; they are concentrated with decent finishes and taste of (very) new oak. They both need a vigorous decanting (I used my WinePrO2) to even consider approaching now. These wines need food.
Read MoreTwenty years of study have flown by since the inception of Mandrarossa. This project is a study of the best combinations of grape varieties and terroirs in Sicily. The idea is that it is a modern day story akin to the Benedictine monks in Burgundy fast-forwarded a few hundred years and speeded up thanks to technology and global research. Based in the Menfi area, on the island's southwestern coast - almost directly across from Palermo on the north coast, the Mandrarossa project is a study of "micro-terroirs".
Read MoreOne hundred years passed between the Giuntini family's last two purchases of land for vineyards, 1897 and 1997. So, the 19-year wait to produce the first single vineyard wine, Vigneto Erchi, from that new plot was relatively quick. (The family planted the vineyard in 1999.)
In the same year that Selvapiana welcomed this new wine to its stable, the winery also celebrated the 300th harvest since Pomino's first quality decree, or bando, by Grand Duke Cosimo III de’ Medici in 1716. The duke defined this area to protect the quality of wines being shipped to England (in place of French claret during the various wars of those days) for increasingly higher prices and volumes.
Read MoreTwo beautifully and imaginatively packaged Romagna DOC Spumante wines that sell under the new Novebolle brand should be set to hit the US market soon (COVID-19 & new tariffs notwithstanding). Not only do the bottles look smashing, there is an incredible amount of subtle history applied in their design, too.
Read MoreFor the wine geeks: while made in the Nino Franco cellars in Valdobbiadene, this blended spumante (80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc) technically is not a Prosecco for several reasons. The differences add up to make the Faìve Rosé Brut a more intense and concentrated sparkling with with a definitively dry edge and focused finish
Read MoreThis new collaboration between Donnafugata and Dolce & Gabbana is a study in classy restraint. It's a blend of Nerello Mascalese from Etna's northern slopes and Nocera from Contessa Entellina, hills that sit almost equally inland from Palmero and Marsala.
Read MoreI have a fondness for the Pecorino from La Valentina (and, admittedly, Pecorino in general), so I was excited to receive these wines again this year. (Here are my 2019 and 2018 write-ups.) The trio of di Properzio brothers, Sabatino, Andrea and Roberto, do excellent work in particular in crafting the Pecorino and the Spelt Montepulciano that deliver value beyond their price points.
Read MoreThe San Leonardo winery poses poses two contradictions to Trentino conventions. First, it is family-owned and family-run in a region known for its (very high quality) cooperatives. In fact, about 75% of Trentino grapes are processed by coops. Second, San Leonardo's production focuses on reds rather than whites. Though Trentino used to make more reds, the popularity of Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay and the region's top-notch sparkling wines have led to an increase in white and sparkling wine production. What is the same is that, like its neighbors, San Leonardo makes finessed wines of distinguished quality from vineyards perched in the Dolomites.
Read MoreThe Inama family understood early on the distinctiveness of individual vineyard expressions, even within the small Soave Classico zone. Inama bottles three wines from two Soave Crus: Carbonare, Foscarino and Vigneto du Lot, which hails from a western-facing, Foscarino plot that changes on an annual basis.
Read MoreThis quartet, indeed, sings with harmony. Each wine overdelivers for its price point. The Il Ghizzano Rosso, Venerosso 2016 and Nambrot drink the most easily now, and each offers a distinctly different drinking experience. I fell head-over-heels for the Il Ghizzano Rosso!
Read MorePerricone Guarnaccio Sicilia DOC 2017: I have been excited knowing this unusual red was waiting in my wine cellar to be tasted. (I thoroughly enjoyed tasting the 2016.) There's not a lot of Perricone out there, and there is even less of it bottled solo. A victim of phylloxera, it's remained mostly the mainstay grape of Ruby Marsala and the blending partner of varietally labeled Nero d'Avola. However, this bottling shows just how much we're missing when it's not showcased on its own.
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