2003 Inama Cabernet Sauvignon Oracolo Veneto IGT

• By Antonio Galloni
  Exploring the Best of Northern Italy (Oct 2007), (See more on Vinous...)

  (Inama Oracolo) Login and sign up and see review text.

Garagiste

• By Jon Rimmerman
  5/14/2009, (See more on Garagiste...)

  (Oracolo) Oracolo Dear Friends, I'm traveling through the back roads of Apulia today and the stark contrast of decay and resuscitation is everywhere. Abject poverty stands side by side next to first generation wealth and the hodgepodge of building codes makes for a landscape dotted with an eyesore of graffiti-laced shacks and 1940s-era Mussolini housing structures that are reminiscent of Albania. Of course, beautiful Trulli and other structures are dotted within the same landscape which makes this a wondrous and difficult region to unravel. Apulia is a land that time forgot but that is the key to a door that has been slow to pry open...and discover. While the US perception of Apulia (Puglia) is one of high alcohol and extract (Primitivo and Negro Amaro), the real Apulia produces low alcohol wine of incredible aromatic complexity and layered, gritty fruit - think a combination of 1978-era Bordeaux meets Ribera del Duero and you will be close. There is much to be excited about, especially a few young producers that are so highly touted, I made a special trip all the way from the US to see them - a journey that took three full days of travel. More on my trip to Apulia and the vinous discoveries later (check the Forum Boards on our web site for new film clips and notes from the road as I pen them)... On to today's offer. While on the Italian road in my Renault Scenic diesel (a mini-station wagon of sorts that is not imported into the US), I've spent the driving hours re-connecting with my Italian friends and making deals on their wine. The first is below and it should prove to be very well-received. This is one of the most expensive wines in Italy, routinely trading for $100 or more but, for some reason, it sells for around $50-70 in the US? I've never understood the price discrepancy but past vintages of Inama's Oracolo have been extremely popular, especially with re-order requests. It is one of the only pure Cabernets outside of Tuscany that has the brawn and muscle to age for a very long time. Stefano Inama takes great care with this wine, making every bottle by hand. His goal? To make the world's most intense and massive Cabernet Sauvignon with the heart of the Old World still intact. Usually, this wine appeals to Napa and Le Pin enthusiasts looking for something new and exciting but the 2003 has something extra that Stefano considers his best expression to date. This wine is, in a word, huge - there is no way around it. It is one of the more serious Cabernet Sauvignon's produced in the world with so many layers of fruit, minerality and black as night extract that each hour of oxygen exposure brings an additional page of a book yet to be written. This is a mysterious wine for such a large scale, in need of several years in the cellar to unfold, but it speaks deeply (and loudly) of things to come. It is certainly drinkable now for it's sledgehammer of impact but it will undoubtedly unfold into something very complex and memorable. I urge you to look up additional TNs on this wine as it is undeniable in quality and potential: The best part? The price. Enticing to say the least. This parcel is directly from the cellar at Inama (packed by Stefano himself) labeled and on its way to us. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for Cabernet Sauvignon enthusiasts and those eager to seek the curiosity of the world: 2003 Inama "Oracolo" (Cabernet Sauvignon) (Veronelli 3/3) Thank you, Jon Rimmerman Garagiste Seattle, WA Italy6745