Dal Forno Amarone with Patricia, in Verona ...

Arrived from Venice and spent the afternoon sipping Campari with girlfriends in Piazza Bra and then dear friend  Patricia Guy’s lure me to her house for a sublime surprise ... (www.patriciaguy.com)

1996 Amarone Dal Forno Romano

One of the great’s. Alcohol quite evident on the initial nose, but quickly followed by black ink, lead and mineral tones…tastes like a thick, heavy purple velvet throw on a golden bed made high with downy feather mattresses…sinking into ripe huge fat scented plums …wrapping me in black silk sheets…its corpulent, fleshy palate was still fresh and led to a long, clean finish. I nearly had to light up a cigarette…

Ristorante Messner, Dorsoduro, Venice

Corte Viola,  Soave DOC 2010 (Garganega and Trebbiano di Soave)

Very bone dry and acidic and salty with perfectly balanced fruit. Had this with home-made filled tortellini in butter and fresh sage.

Sansovino, Refosco dal Penduncato Rosso IGT 2010

Love refosco ... a particular grape. This was fresh and well-balanced (12.5% alcohol), perfect with my grilled lamb chops with herbs.

Al Bocon, Campo Santa Margherita, Venice

Another trip to Vodafone … where my key works. So, it must be the bad reception at the flat. So I have to work in cafes, where my batteries die, and I drink too much. Al Bocon in Campo Santa Margherita is now my spot. I went in at 11am for a spritzer. I have learned that 11am is the absolute earliest one can ask for a cocktail in Venice, and even then I seem to drinking alone with some pretty local-looking locals. The owner is busy getting her selection of delicacies out. The smells from the kitchen are divine. She offers me a frittata …a loose sort of round ball with the consistency of gratin dauphinois. Then I try the tuna balls and the chicken balls and the mozzarella balls. Now, I know that all of these have names …and I will look them up and add them later. The winner, the dish that will keep me up tonight with cravings, was her mozzarella in carrozza (again, will check spelling later). This is a sandwich of mozzarella and sometimes prosciutto which is then dipped into egg batter and fried. I know, it sounds a bit like the thing Elvis Presley used to do with peanut butter and bananas. But this is divine. And hers are perfect. this is one of my favourites at  home, but when I make it, it is heavy and greasy. So I ask: “Come si fa a renderlo cosi leggero?” And she tells me that she adds either beer or sparkling water to her egg batter. Aha.  So of course I need to try another, accompanied by a glass of chilled Pinot Grigio by Giovanni Bellia, to better understand how she makes this magic.

Costera, Argiolas 2008, L'Incontro, Dorsoduro

Another stunning, sunny, crisp autumn day. Make my way to Campo Santa Margherita for my daily newspaper, intending to go back home to work, but get distracted, as usual. Just too beautiful here. End up in Ca’ Rezzonico, again, go every few days…my favourite museum because it has most of the original furniture and décor. Then decide to work in a café and so sit in the rio terra canal, between Campo San Banarba and Campo Santa Margherita, in this little restaurant (L’Incontro) I like. I am about to order a nero d’avola when the owner asks me to try one of his favourites…and I do, and it is lovely, especially with my lamb chops …it is

Argiolas’ 2008 Costera issued from Cannonau di Sardegne.

It was 33 euros on the list and when I asked him where I could buy it, he said he gets it from the Auchun in Mestre, so you know that there one can probably get it for under 10 euros. It was gorgeous and a grape I do not know. I didn’t know that the French hyper-market had found its way to Italy. Anyway, I get a text from Mary…she is museumed-out and can she join me? She soon shows up and helps me polish off the bottle before I drag her to Ca’ Rezzonico. She loves all of the modern marble sculptures that have been added for the Biannale. I think that they are grotesque, apart from the hermaphrodite in black marble, done in a very classical style, reclining on a modern leather sofa, also in black marble. It was fascinating…all contradictions. We catch the traghetto to Guideca and accidentally walk in on Sunday evening mass in La Rendentore, so stay a bit…hoping to atone for our vinous sins.

2005 "Le Bessole" Amarone, Accordini and Pantagruelica deli, Venice

I have invited the girls to dinner tonight and so make my way to the fish market in Campo Santa Margherita right after morning coffee and writing session. Dinner is grilled aubergines, onions, red peppers…burrata and San Daniele … gambas and garlic butter … spinach gnocchi with pumpkin, courgettes and parmesan … scallops in their shell with a mushroom and cream sauce and breadcrumbs, grilled ….veal scaloppini with wine sauce…and ricotta cake.

Wine: picked up this bottle in Pantagruelica, a gorgeous deli in Campo San Barnaba, next to Ca’ Rezzonico. When I chose it, the shop owner said “now that’s a nice bottle” and I agreed and believe it or not, he said, “Now, be sure not to serve it too warm.” I died! Finally, a normal person. I needed no further encouragement and dove into the story of the night before and the abruti of a restaurant owner who yelled and me and chased me out of his restaurant because I did not want to drink his Amarone at 22-effin degrees. He agrees and says, 16-18 if warm out and a bit more if it is cold out. As I as telling my story, a few of the locals listened and joined in the discussion. They all offered to go back to the restaurant with me and tell the man off. Pantagruelica owner said that most people just do not know about wine and think that because they are Italian, they know more than anyone else. Feeling very vindicated, I carried my 2005 Amarone Classico “le Bessole” from Accordini home with me ….to the delight of my friends…it was nectar.

I also served a few wines from this wine shop around the corner …. The place where the locals buy their wine for 2 euros a litre and the wine is kept in baskets and siphoned out into used water bottles. Wanting to see if any of it was any good…I bought the Prosecco and the Refosco and the Pinot Nero. The Prosecco was light and fruity and that’s it. The Pinot Nero was way too sweet. When I asked why the Pinot Nero from Treviso is so sweet, the Rastafarian-cum- rabbi youth cheerily running the shop assured me that it was simply down to the soil type.  I am not at all convinced. I think they just piss the vines and then add a lot of sugar. You could not even tell that it was Pinot Noir. I know the Pinot Neros from further north, in Alto Adige and they are stunning – they rival Burgundy’s Volnays: very feminine, floral yet strongly-structured wines with great acidity. I am also a fan of Refosco…but again, this version was palatable  at best. So, have come to the conclusion that most Italians drink dreadful wines and don’t even know it. 

Anyway, having fed our bodies, it was time to feed our souls and so we made our way to the Scuola de Carmini to attend a concert of Operettas and ballet.

Trattoria do Forni, San Marco, Venice

Got my highlights done in the salon in Campo Santa Margherita this morning. A wonderful time-warp…yellowed posters taped to the wall…grey-haired clientele getting their weekly wash … hairdryers from circa 1950 … potions and creams in all sorts of pink bottles with fancy script writing on the labels. The older owner and her younger assistant both went to work… said my hair was too thick for one person and it would take too long. As the younger one kept asking the older one what to do next…”blonde here or dark here”? I was petrified that I would come out with two different heads. We chat and gossip and laugh. I learned so many new Italian words this morning (bleached-blonde, bimbo, full-head, half-head, foil ….)

Run errands. Walk and sightsee until I can no longer walk. Have lunch in the corner Osteria near San Basilio.  Big mistake. Bad food. Hard, green, unripe tomatoes, sliced with dry slabs of packaged mozzarella. Decided to not risk the wine list and had a spritzer. A team of men in orange suits started digging up the pavement stone right in front of my table, releasing all sort of toxins. The table to my left had too older American couples…and I hear one say “you won’t get real tiramisu here. I can tell. With a real tiramisu, they take a lady finger and soak it in liqueur, not coffee. Let’s go back to that place we ate in last night. It was better.”

It is too bright and hot to work on my laptop, and the stink is really getting to me, so I head home to work. Then I get bored, and head up to the Rialto to the cinema and see “This Must be the Place” …no subtitles, so I struggled. Got the gist of the plot…and could tell that Sean Penn had excelled himself, as usual.

At 10pm I meet my old Paris friend, Mary Gallagher and her sister Michele, for dinner. Mary and I met when we worked for Time Out’s Paris Passion Magazine. They just flew in from Milano for the weekend. We find what we think looks like a charming place – granted we are in the heart of tourist-land (San Marco) and it is late. They don’t look very happy. Mary, married to an Italian artist and so speaking good Italian, asks for a table and we are grunted towards one and told to hurry up and order. I spy a good Amarone on the list from Montresor, 2007. But I see him get it for us from on top of a high armoire, under lights near this hot kitchen … and Venice is having a heat wave this week…I ask (politely) for an ice bucket to cool the bottle down – as it is warm to the touch. He flies into a rage. Ranting, literally… “This is my house, our house, we do things our way here, you do not drink red wine cold, it should be served ambiente”. I try to explain to him that it should be served between 16-18, especially in the summer, or this heat – and maybe 19-20 in winter. And that his restaurant, this “room”, is hot and stuffy and he keeps his wine up high under lights, standing upright. He just won’t listen to me. His mother joins in …screaming at us…. “Why don’t you just go to Harry’s Bar, you tourist, you’d be much happier there!” (This from a woman whose Menu is in ten different languages). They are so rude that Mary and Michele say “that’s it” and get up…I call him a “pig” and a “plouc” and flounce out.

We are breathless with rage and still starving…and this is poor Michele’s first time in Venice, so I am feeling pretty awful. We wander into a few more places but they all say, it is late…our kitchen wants to close, so you can eat if you hurry up. Finally, Mary spies a tucked-away place…Do Forni. They welcome us and are received like goddesses and are led through a maze of long rooms with cosy, fabric-filled side rooms, like a luxury railway car, until we reach a back room with red velvet walls and dim lighting ….packed full with Italians.. no rushing…all smiles…they act as if they are happy we are there. Meal is good, wine is good, ambiance and service are excellent…we have a great evening and are allowed to stay until well after 1am…and we are not the last.

Ripasso Valpolicella Superiore, 2009, Sartori

Took the train to Venice and spent the day unpacking and cleaning and shopping for my rented flat in Dorsoduro. I love it here. It has a private, quiet garden and is tucked behind the hustle and bustle. I come as often as I can…and I try to write, but I end up walking the streets. The owner always leaves a few bottles of wine in his drinks cupboard and you are allowed to help yourself as long as you replace it for the next person. So I made myself a dinner of burrata and plum tomatoes, steamed artichoke hearts in vinaigrette and  a veal chop with a mushroom and cream sauce and opened a 2009 Ripasso Valpolicella Superiore from Sartori. It was boring and lacking any personality, but it kept me company well enough. Little body or texture for a Ripasso, and the short finish was light, dusty and dry. I went for a walk to St Mark’s Square to say my “hello” to the city and had a spritz while watching the tourists dance to the orchestras.

Osteria Al Carroarmato, Verona, Italy

Arrive in Verona late…meet my friend Patricia Guy for dinner at her local Osteria, Al Carroarmato. This is the place that she and her husband Michael call "home" ... their daily watering hole. the owner was a witness t their wedding.  I met Patricia when judging at Vinitaly last year. I was hobbling to the bus in high heeels and she was amused...until I pulled out and slipped on my super slick black leather shoes from Venice: perfect walking shoes. She had a very similar pair and we bonded over footwear...as real women do. Later, when I caught her name ... I realised that  we’d both contributed to a book together (Wine Tours of the World ...available on Amazon ..wink wink nudge nudge).  Patricia is my authority on Italian wines, period. The meal began with a refreshing Spritzer of white wine and Campari – it is boiling hot today…

Then, antipasti of artichokes and courgettes and aubergine …then the house’s home-made tortellini …so thin they were translucent … with a sprinkling of fresh sage and a drizzle of butter. And although it is not quite appropriate to drink a heavy Amarone with this…Patricia allowed me to ….and chose for me…Zanoni’s Amarone. Perfect.

Masi's Costasera Amarone 2006 Veneto, Italy

My sister and I drank this while dining at the Azurea at One Ocean Resort in Atlantic Beach, Jacksonville, Florida. One Ocean is the dreamiest Art Deco revival-style hotel. So stylish - not at all contrived. And the dinner was near perfection. After a week of eating huge portions of bland, flavourless meals that were taken from my dining table and put into styrofoam containers (never have I more wished that I actually did travel with my dog), I was wowed into submission. I had the Hudson Valley Duck Two-Ways. This was seared foie gras with a dusting of sea salt with a French toast of brioche, also with a spring roll with confit of duck with a shallot jam, that had some sweet chilli sauce, I think. This was followed by the Tenderloin with a white truffle herb dauphinoise. My sister had the Porcini Mushroom Raviolis with raosted garlic and confit of fennel and baby tomatoes in a sherry cream sauce ... simply to die for.

The Wine List was very extensive and obviously chosen by a well-travelled eye: a strong representation of the Old World. But I wish that better European wines got into mainstream US distribution. Masi was the only Amarone I could find. I have nothing against Masi, but it is the starting point: the reliable, basic, the homogenous version of this great wine. Drinking it, my sister was in rapture, and when I explained to her that it was probably a 5/10 of what Amarone can be, she thought that was not possible.

The 2007 Costasera (70% Corvina, 25% Rondinella, 5% Molinara) was drinking well: dark opaque robe, a nose of spice, dried herbs, stewed cherries and cinnamon and violets ... and even after being vinified "appassimento", drying the grapes on straw or bamboo racks to concentrate the sugars, the alcohol was 14.5% ...which preserves its freshness and complexity - unlike the dry reds from Napa that have 15.5% + ...pure alcohol.

Lewis Cellars Reserve 2008 Napa Valley

My brother-in-law, the most switched-on wine lover I know,  opened this for me while I was visiting them in Florida. I asked him to show me some California wines, which I don't get on with too well, wishing to be proved wrong. Well, this wine did not do that. The nose was very forward with a lot of fresh fruit ... nice, but also there was a worrying amount of new oak. The mouth was way too oak-dominated and the alcohol (15.5%) stripped the palate of any fruit, finesse or texture and erasing any  varietal character or definition. Is this an American thing? When I got home, I checked out the Lewis web-site and they write that they liken this wine to a fresh new Ferrari. Well, that's just my point. Why would you want to do that? Where is the elegance, the restraint or the subtlety? I tell you, it didn't get MY engine started.

Negro "Sudisfa" Roero Docg 2004

Negro “Sudisfa”, Roero D.o.c.g. 2004

Dinign at the Hotel du Vin in Henley-on-Thames. Served with rib-eye and bearnaise sauce and frites…. This is a Nebbiolo from a good family estate in Piedmont. I wanted a Barolo, but they were all over £100 +. This was £61, which I find outrageous. It presented well, with its garnet, ruby robe. The nose was intensely perfumed and inticing and the first attack was decisive and forward. But then it all fell apart … the mid-palate disappeared and there was no finish. The alcohol dominated this wine and it has faded fast. Disappointing.

English Wine Producers Trade & Press Tasting - 2011

Thursday 5^th May 2011

Thames & Chilterns Vineyards Association

2010 Bothy Oxford Dry

Grapes: Findling, Kerner, Huxelrebe, Solaris, Bacchus

This is meant to be a dry white and is not dry enough, really. Has a touch of bitterness and a very odd finish. Unfocused and lacking identity - too many grapes in the mix. Good wine-making, though.

2010 Bothy

100% Bacchus. Picked too young? Formaldehyde-green "freshness", very “chimique”. Good acidity.

2006 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Brut NV (sparkling)

Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. No dosage. Not bad.

2009 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Pinot Blush

Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and 2 others. Yes, it should be blushing, with embarrassment.

2009 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Madeleine

This is a nice, “understandable” grape. It has personality and the wine is well-made and expresses the grape in a focused and clear fashion.

2009 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Bacchus

This is a clear expression of Bacchus: solid, dry almost in a Pinot Grigio style but with its own personality. Good.

SPARKLING WHITES

Chapel Down Vintage Reserve Brut NV

Grapes: Reichensteiner, Müller-Thurgau, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay.

Les boules sont trop mousseaux en bouche. Inélégant et lourdes.

Three Choirs Classic Cuvee NV

(85% Seyval Blanc, 15% Pinot Noir)

Sal au nez et en bouche

2007 Brightwell Sparkling Chardonnay

Savonneuse et sal. Pas bien.

2003 Nyetimber Blancs de Blancs

100% Chardonnay. It’s ok> but boring and lacking any complexity. Very one-dimensional.

2006 Nyetimber Classic Cuvee

55% Chardonnay, 24% Pinot Noir, 16% Pinot Meunier. Not bad, well-made.

2006 Chapel Down

50% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay. Trop de dosage : too dosed, too sweet.

Stanlake Park Wine Estate Stanlake Brut NV

Had this at earlier and liked it. It’s tight, correct, good.

2004 Chapel Down Pinot Reserve

70% Pinot Noir, 30% Pinot blanc. Well-made, correct, but no more than that.

2009 Three Choirs Blanc de Noirs

100% Pinot Noir. Une manque de parfum, aucun nez ou bouche (lack of aromas or taste – nothing there.)

2006 Denbies Cubitt Sparkling Cuvee

100% Pinot Noir – ok, but again, these wine are lacking complexity, movement, texture.

2008 Ridgeview Knightsbridge Blanc de Noirs

63% Pinot Noir, 37% Pinot Meunier. This is interesting, has some personality.

STILL DRY WHITE

2010 Chapel Down Flint Dry

(Chardonnay, Baccus, Huxelrube, Pinot Blanc) There is nothing either dry nor flinty about this wine. Unfocused.

2009 Three Choirs The English House Dry

(40% Seyval Blanc, 20% Huxelrube, 20% Phoenix, 20% Madeleine Angevine) Nice.

2009 Three Choirs Midsummer Hill

(35% Seyval Blanc, 30% Madeleine Angevine, 15% Orion, 15% Muller-Thurgau)

Yes. This estate is doing something right.

2009 Three Choirs Estate Reserve Coleridge Hill

(40% Phoenix, 30% Madeleine Angevine, 15% Orion, 15% Muller-Thurgau)

Nice. I am enjoying these, but is that simply because they are the best of a boring bunch ?

2009 Brightwell Oxford Flint

100% Huxelrube. Nice.

2008 Brightwell Crispin

100% Reichensteiner. Better, it is interesting to get a chance to taste this grape on its own. I do not know it well at all. Dry, tight, focused.

2009 Chapel Down Chardonnay

Gross

2009 Chapel Down Pinot Blanc

Ok, harmless enough.

2009 Three Choirs Cellar Door Bacchus

Gross

2009 Brightwell Bacchus

Nicely done – lovely acidity.

2007 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Kings Fumé

100% Ortega. All goes terribly wrong here. The fault of the grape or the fault o the oak programme ? It is over-oaked, diluted and disguting. Is it a variety that can take oak if done properly ? This is a mess.

2009 Astley Veritas

100% Kerner. Interesting. Liked this.Unchaptalised.

2009 Biddenden Gribble Bridge Dornfelder

Not as nice as Brightwell’s. Has a very bon-bon cherry medicinal taste.

2010 Bolney Estate Pinot Noir

Nice, but no varietal character, at least not what one would expect. I’m all for variations on a theme, but show me a theme.

2009 Chapel Down Trinity

Pinot Noir, Rondo, Pinot Noir Precoce. Hideous. A dirty, diluted soup of smoked bacon.

2008 Bolney Wine estate Lynchgate red (Dark Harvest)

Rondo, Dornfelder, Triomphe. Austere, bitter, unyielding and non-interestring. Again, it these wines are not saying anything or communicating clearly … all gibberish and confused.

Castello di Montevibiano, Umbria

SUNDAY (afternoon)

Tasting and Visit to the Castello di Montevibiano Vecchio estate (www.montevibiano.it). A gorgeous afternoon spent in the company of the charming Count Lorenzo Fasola Bologna, the CEO of the family business, and his family…on the sun-drenched grass terrace of the Castello, overlooking the Umbrian hillsides and valleys. There was a table heaving with local cheese and their own olive oil, which his father en freezes in little bottles and then defrosts before downing one  in one go, like a daily vitamin shot. Addictive - especially when it drenches a slice of their home-made bread and is accompanied by their Umbrian white. Lorenzo’s Italian/Iranian wife turns out to be a cousin of my step-daughter’s best friend – they met in boarding school days as girls. Weird. They have a very good web-site with all of their wines and olive oils and gift hampers that are sent directly to the UK and USA – with the shipping and duty included in the prices: no hassle.

Villa Monte Vibiano Vecchio Rosso Umbria IGT 2007

Using the youngest plantings from the vineyards, this is meant to be a young, fresh, easy-to-drink wine. Both the alcoholic and the malolactic fermentations are done in stainless steel tanks. It is bottles five months after harvest. It is exactly that: fresh, lively, fruity and approachable.

Monvì 2006, Colli Perugini Rosso DOC

Here they also use the younger plantings, but a bit older than the IGT, of Sangiovese, Syrah, Sagrantino, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot. 80% is aged for six months in stainless steel and 20% in French oak for one year, then bottled for left for another two months before release. This oak programme is exactly right for the fruit: no overpowering, just perfect accord. A lovely, complex, fruity, well-balanced wine. An Italian wine.

L’Andrea 2006, Colli Perugini Rosso DOC

The same grapes are used than as in the Monvi, but those from their oldest vines: more concentrated fruit means it can take a more concentrated oak programme: a minimum of 14 months in French oal barrels, then tanks for 2-3 months, then bottling for six months eofre release. The grapes are hand-harvested and fermented for 20-25 days.  Notes of fresh almonds, tobacco, ripe red fruit…an intense and elegant wine.

Umbrian Overview with Sandro Camille of AIS

3 APRIL, SUNDAY (morning)

At hotel: Tasting of the region’s best wines, organised by AIS (Italian Association of Sommeliers), President Sandro Camille

UMBRIA: SOME FACTS …

1. Etruscan heritage. Vines were actually trees that were not connected to other plants. Monks played an important role in preserving vine growing.
2. Grew grapes for church – lots of monasteries in Umbria. Monks came from all over the world and brought their grape varieties with them.
3. In late 1800s  phylloxera - so 1960s new plantings.
4. 8456 square kilometres
5. 75% is hillsides
6. The 29 % mountain areas
7. A mild and dry climate
8. Entire region faces south
9. Summers are hot
10. So large difference in temperature between day and night and between the seasons
11. 12,189 hectares of vineyards
12. Soil: argille, calcari, marne grigie, tufo, volcanic
13. Whites : 43%  red 57%
14. Production 2009 : 945,000 hl
15. Used to be majority of whites – now the opposite.
16. Orvieto still dominated by whites
17. Umbria produces 2% of Italy’s wine
18. GRAPES:  Trebbiano tuscano, Sangiovese, Grechetto, Merlot, Sagrantino, Cab sauv, Malvasie, Chardonnay, Verdello, Pinot Grigio, Ciliegioao, Montepulicano,
19. Gamay del Trasimeno, Pinot Nero, Canaiolo Nero, Cabernet franc, Barbera ..
20. Alirir: Trebbiano spoletto, Sauvignon blanc, Manzoni blanc, Alcatrico Dolcetto, Riesling italico, Colorino, Cesanese
21. Grechetto is THE most typical grape of the region
22. And Sagrantino and Sangiovese
23. 2 DOCG and 11 DOC
24. Other DOCs being created as we speak
25. 36 months from barrel to bottle
26. 5 year refinement process plus the 36 months
27. Riserva only come from a very small hillside vineyard

TASTING

CONTE DELLA VIPERA IGT 2007

Chardonnay/Sauvignon blanc.  He won’t tell us which percentages! He says that whites here are not very acidic. A warm region and getting warmer – yes, climate change is a factor. Finally he said it. Nez: floral, white flowers, elegant, fresh. Palate is acidic, and structured and not bad.

PALAZONE CAMPO GUARDIANO 2008 Orvieto Classico Superior

Greccheto, Trebbianno and Lupiego. Very little nose – palate bitter, lack of acidity …but finish is surprisingly persistent.

CORNIOLO Colli del Trasimeno Rooso Riserva 2007

Liked this one. Fresh, lively, elegant nose jammy and fruity. Ok, my favourite.

L’ARRINGATORE 2006 Goretti

Sangiovese 60%, merlot 30%, Cilliegiolo 10% 14%

Was a bit weird on the nose – salty, and huge tannins – undrinkable. So, went back to the nose later, and found it oaky and - still horrible on the mouth and finish.

CHIUSA DI PANNONE  Sagrantino di Montefalco DOCG 2004 chez Antonelli

Very nice. Nose perfumed, mouth elegant and fresh but then the alcohol and tannins take over… a 2004, way too young. Very green tannins and bitterness on the fnish.  Went back to it a second time and it was better. Still clumsy and urgh at the end. Boring and hot.   Everyone else loved this wine.

RUBINO della PALAZZOLA2005  IGT

Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Why try to do a Bordeaux blend in Umbria? Boring, unbalanced, malfait.  Horse nose, ok mouth, and then no finish:  hot dry and amer.  Went back to it and think now it is even worse!

RUBESCO Vigna Monticchio 2005, Lungarotti

Sangiovese and Caniaolo. Best nose. Elegant and fresh. Mouth also fresh. Too much alcohol on the finish: fruit and boy evaporates.

(Most of these wines are being sold at retail between 15-20 euros!)

Lungarotti tasting at Tre Vaselle, Torgiano

2 APRIL,  SATURDAY

Tasting of Lungarotti wines at our hotel spa (which belongs to the winery), Tre Vaselle, Torgiano, Umbria

They have 250 hectares at Torgiano.

LUNGAROTTI

Bianco di Torgiano 2010

We’d had the 2009 at lunch. 70% Trebbiano and 30% Grechetto. 4.4 euros HT. Nose is delicious, white flowers, sweet peas …green tea. A slight lack of acidity and the finish was a touch green – just needs a bit of time.

Bianco di Torgiano “The Pine” Doc 2008

This parcel/vineyard has much more clay. 30% is put into barriques of mixed ages. 9.8 euros. Nose is subtle, elegant, a touch of resin and white flowers, but dominated by oak, still. No finish. Wine is too forward.

Rubesco, Rosso di Torgiano Doc 2007

70% Sangiovese, 30% Canaiolo. 5.4 euros. Oak casks of mixed ages used. Sommelier said “it is a wine that is easy to understand”. Hmmm. I found it to be mediocre, with a short, bitter and green finish. Like in Chianti, they are experimenting with Sangiovese clonal selection (Sangiovese Grosso) – warmer terroir here – less acidity – and you can taste this.

Rubesco Riserva “Vigna Monticchio” 2005

Plantings are 300 metres above sea level in clay soils. Harvests by hand – vendanges verts (green pruning) is rigourous (I still think the yields are too high). Sommelier said wine is still too young (yes) and that the wine has another 10 years on it (No, not enough fruit/extracts or acidity). Tannins are green, immature. Finish is dry, hot and short. I think it is missing too many things to eventually balance out and mature well.

San Giorgio Umbria Rosso 2004, Tenuta di Torgiano

40% Sangiovese, 10% Canaiolo, 50% Cabernet Sauvignon. This is a “Super Umbrian”!! Produced in response to the Super Tuscans in Chianti. Meaning, they added Cabernet Sauvignon (or other international varieties) to their indigenous varieties, which is against the Doc and Docg rules – so added it to their IGT wines, for which the same rules did not apply. And these IGT wines gained more in international reputation and price than the supposedly superior Doc and Docg wines.

This is not bad, but like the others, falls apart at the finish…but I will go back to this wine again, and see if it was simply not tasting well today.

Rosso di Montefalco, Montefalco Rosso Doc 2008

75% Sangiovese, 15% Merlot and 10% Sagrantino. 7.3 euros. This was lovely, but I have a problem with the encépagement…Sagrantino is the grape grown and used in Montefalco wines (required in the Docg, flexible in the Doc) They have gone and stuck in Sangiovese and…Merlot (the sweetest red grape – so will soften the notoriously bitter, dark Sagrantino). I should not like this wine because it deforms the typicity of the wine – but I do. This was the best wine of the bunch.

Sagrantino, Montefalco Sagrantino, Docg 2007

100% Sagrantino. 13.4 euros. They got the grape variety right here, but now I know why they added the Sangiovese and the Merlot to the Doc version! Their Sagrantino is not up to scratch…Turns out that they have 8-9 hectares and they are young – planted in 2000. That’s what I am tasting – a lack of concentration and maturity.

La Greppia restaurant, Verona

1 April, Friday

Closing dinner in honour of Vinitaly Concorso judges, at “La Greppia”, Verona

Pecorino “Terre di Chiete” 2010 IGT, Cantina Tollo, Abruzzo

100% Pecorino, from this cooperative, established in the 1960’s, and that works as a cooperative is meant to:  1,200 members, 9+ million bottles. This is no mass produced cooperative non-entity, it is a near perfect expression of this unique and appealing white grape. The nose is spring white flowers covered in morning dew…peaches and cream …all held together with a steely, solid acidity which dances across the palate. Refreshing, amusing and delicious.

Excelsa Soave 2010 Castelforte, Veneto

100% Garganega. I was keen to try this “new” expression of Excelsa as I have been hearing a lot about it but did not quite understand what it meant: I still do not. But apparently, the Soave producers are trying to revamp the Soave style to make it more appealing to the modern, international market, but, without losing its varietal or local typicity. They are calling this new style “Excelsa”, and I don’t know how they did it, but it works. This wine is gorgeous. It was supple, fruity, playful, yet solid and straight-forward with very clean lines and movement – the wine drew you in and sort of directed you through its olfactive road show….

La Rocchetta Brut, Societa Agricola La Rocchetta

A sparkling wine issued from Pinot Bianco and Chardonnay. It was the evening’s favourite wine: solid, weighty, complex, creamy and compelling. We drank it with the entire meal and it handled every course beautifully.

Trattoria Al Pompiere, Verona

Dinner at Trattoria Al Pompiere, Verona with Jane. She chose the wines and they were delicious - get their names from her. Dinner was stunning: stuffed artichokes, an assortment of jambons ...

www.alpompiere.com



Osteria Giulietta, Verona

Dinner at the Osteria Giulietta e Romeo, Corso S. Anastasia, Verona

Gorgeous Amarone selection – also the “house” Amarone was 8 Euros and stunning. Served with pumpkin ravioli, polenta with mushroom, a horsemeat stew. Wine bar-hopped with colleagues: Bottega del Vino  – new owners – had a bad Pinot Nero from Alto Adige and a mediocre Amarone. Also stopped at the tiny wine bar just across from Osteria – had a decent Amarone. The other evening all of the judges dined at a sort of BBQ restaurant with a dire wine list and we ended up drinking mass quantities of Masi’s Amarone …reliably appealing.

Gala Dinner for Vinitaly Judges at Due Torri

Valdobbiadene Prosecco Docg Superiore Rive di Colbertaldo Spumante Brut “Maschio dei Cavalieri” 2010

Cantine Maschio di Cantine Cooperative Riunite, Vassola (TV)

Oltrepò Pavese Docg Pinot Nero Spumante Brut Cruasé “Oltrenero”, Tenuta il Bosco Gruppo Zonin – Zenevredo (PV)

Soave Doc Clasico “Rocca Sveve” 2010, Cantine di Soave, Soave (VR)

Cerasualo d’Abruzzo Doc “Terra d’Aligi” 2010 cantine Spinelli, Atessa (CH)

Valpolicella Doc Superiore Ripasso “Monterè – Cà Dé Rocchi” 2008, Casa Vitivinicola Tinazzi, Lazise (VR)

Asti Docg 2010, Santero Fratelli – Santo Stefano Belbo (CN)



Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, Villa dei Fiori 2008, Tenimenti Associati, Abruzzo

2 March, Wednesday

Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, Villa dei Fiori 2008, Tenimenti Associati, Abruzzo

Confusingly, although Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is a grape from …Abruzzo (!). It should not be confused with Vino Nobile di Montepulciano from Tuscany, which is issued from the Sangiovese grape It is100% Montepulciano, 12.4 % alcohol. The robe is intensly ruby red with reflections of violet. The nose has notes of tapenade, dark cherries stewed in cobbler, and on the mouth it is fresh, long and well-balanced. A truly rustic, Italian wine with a modern touch that does not compromise its integrity in the least. Fluid, velvety, full-bodied, dry, good tannins and a distinctly more feminine and elegant feel than the grape yields when in southern Abruzzo. Served with the best feast I have ever enjoyed: a Smörgåsbord of  delights…