2002 Passopisciaro Passopisciaro

Community Tasting Notes (2) Avg Score: 93.5 points

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  5/13/2019 - forceberry wrote: 94 Points

  The second ever vintage of Passopisciaro, tasted blind side-by-side with Palari Faro 2002. 14,5% alcohol.
  
  Quite dense and rather concentrated black cherry color with a fully opaque core and translucent, brick-orange rim. The nose feels quite aromatic and while not young anymore, still very juicy and fruit-driven with aromas of bloody meat, sweet black cherries, some strawberry jam, a little bit of roasted game, light licorice tones and developed hints of raisins and prunes. The wine is intense, ripe and quite concentrated on the palate with medium-to-moderately full body and savory flavors of wizened sour cherries, prunes, some black cherry marmalade, a little bit of developed raisiny character, light gamey tones, a hint of peppery spice and a touch of stony minerality. Great structure with bright, moderately high acidity and firm, somewhat grippy medium tannins. The finish is quite grippy, slightly warm and complex with lengthy flavors of raisins and wizened plums, some roasted gamey tones, a little bit of developed beef jerky character, light cherry marmalade tones, a hint of sour cherry bitterness and a touch of crunchy forest fruits.
  
  An impressive, wonderfully developed and still relatively youthful Passopisciaro with firm structure and lovely mineral core. It's hard to compare which one was better - this or Palari Faro 2002 - since they were somewhat different in style. This one showed more freshness and intensity, while the Faro showed more ripeness and complexity with somewhat more evolved overall style. Both wines were outstanding, however.

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  5/11/2016 - forceberry wrote: 93 Points

  The second ever vintage of Passopisciaro.
  
  Moderately translucent and still surprisingly youthful dark cherry color and a thin, colorless rim. Somewhat cool yet rather big and even slightly inky nose with aromas of ripe dark berries, black cherries, some liquorice, a little bit of roasted spices, a hint of developed mushroomy tones and a touch of sweet raisiny fruit. Contrasting the rather big and dense nose, the wine is surprisingly dry and tangy and only medium-bodied on the palate with quite savory flavors of sour cherry bitterness, tart cranberries, sweeter black cherries, some ripe redcurrants, a little bit of developed raisiny fruit, hints of tertiary earthy character and mushroomy tones and a touch of smoky character. Overall the wine feels surprisingly concentrated and firm with quite high acidity and somewhat grippy medium tannins. The finish is lively and medium long with some tannic grip and quite pronounced sour cherry bitterness along with flavors of sweet, ripe redcurrants, some juicy darker berries, a little bit of roasted exotic spices, a hint of inky character and a developed touch of wizened dark fruits. The fruit flavors don't last that long, but the spicier tones and bitterness persist for some while.
  
  A quite serious, structured and concentrated vintage of Passopisciaro. In many parts of Europe the vintage 2002 was pretty cool, producing rather light and nimble wines not really meant for aging, but I guess in Sicily these wines turned out to be more concentrated and less sweet-toned, as this vintage was noticeably more dry and savory in style compared to the other Passopisciaro vintages. The wine is starting to show the first signs of age, but overall this wine is still very youthful for its years and most likely it will continue to develop for another 5-10 years, perhaps even more. Definitely one of the greater Passopisciaro vintages that will reward extended aging. Recommended.

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