Isole & Olena Dinner with Paolo de Marchi

The Ledbury, London
Tasted Wednesday, January 19, 2011 by Papies with 951 views

Introduction

Organised by Bordeaux Index and catered by The Leadbury, which is at the moment probably top 3 restaurant in London. The food on the night was superb
Great opportunity to meet and hear directly from Paolo de Marchi his views, targets and philosophy. He is a great speaker, speaks excellent english too, and has a passion for his wines that is contageous.

Flight 1 (1 Note)

Flight 2 (2 Notes)

Quail Egg wrapped in kataifi with chestnut and truffle

  • 2009 Isole e Olena Chardonnay Collezione de Marchi Toscana IGT 91 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    Light lemony in colour. Some exotic fruit notes. Little oak. More mineral at this stage than buttery. Had side by side with the 1999 and the aging potentail is superb.Very elegant. The I&O chardonnays were the great find for us.
    A bit burgandian like its main competition the cervaro della salla

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  • 1999 Isole e Olena Chardonnay Collezione de Marchi Toscana IGT 93 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    WOTN. dark lemony colour.Has aged very well and now has a very nice density on the palate. Light mineral, lots of meursault like butteryness. This is a great wine and a great find. Although we usually think of ceparello when it comes to Isole& Olena these chardonnays are truly beautifull wines with amazing aging potential.93+

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Flight 3 (2 Notes)

Pork cheek coked in spices with white carrot and black pudding

  • 2007 Proprietà Sperino Lessona 88 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Lessona

    Just like the 06 these are designed to be light wines. Again the lack of desity shows on the palate and we are note sure as to the aging potential of this wine.
    Decanting helps. Paolo suggested 1 hour. The wine definitely improved over the course of the dinner.
    In General the Sperino is a return of De Marchi to Piedmont. These are young wines from young vines and offer a forward easy drinking experience although Paolo was adamant that the future is really bright for this property as the vines age.

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  • 2006 Proprietà Sperino Lessona 88 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Lessona

    Young but not austere. Big open on the nose. Primary, and light not overextracted and very aromatic.Designed to be light wines and decanting helps. Paolo suggested 1 hour. The wine definitely improved over the course of the dinner.
    In General the Sperino is a return of De Marchi to Piedmont. These are young wines from young vines and offer a forward easy drinking experience although Paolo was adamant that the future is really bright for this property as the vines age.

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Flight 4 (6 Notes)

Short rib of ruby beef cooked for eight hours with red wine lees and beetroot

  • 2007 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT 91 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    From Scew Cap bottle. Decanting really helps the young cepparellos and the winr improved significantly over the dinner.
    Young, tight, tannic. Primary and very difficult straight out of the bottle.Definitely lots of potentil but a 91 for the moment. Very sharp nose.

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  • 2006 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT 91 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    From Scew Cap bottle. Decanting really helps the young cepparellos and just like the 2007 wine improved significantly over the dinner.
    Rounder (especially vs the 07) and entering its drinking window. Still tannic but showing grace. Good density on the palate. Feels very well made and not over oaked or overdone. Worth it.

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  • 2001 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT 91 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    Nice open on the nose. Still Tannic but a good deal of fruit helps the experience. Still feels young and we woudl suggest decanting. Lacks a bit of magic to be truthfull.

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  • 1997 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT 93 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    The Ceparello of the night for us. Round wine with a nice sweet core and lots of red fruit. Still very dark and full. Layered, long and with some firm tannins. Very alive and vibrant. Wine is still at the start of its drinking window and can last easily 10yrs. We liked the density and presence of this wine. Great.93+

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  • 1993 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT 93 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    Still powerfull and alive.So vibrant. Nice fruit and with some earthy notes. Has the cepparello sweet core and with nice cherry tones. Old school and rustic vs the younger cepparellos. Full and lush on the palate. Very nice and a close second to the 1997.

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  • 1990 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT 92 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    Very earthy cepparello. Like the 93 it is earhty with a cherry core. Very smooth and although 20yrs old still very much alive. Very secondary at the moment and very enjoyable.

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Flight 5 (2 Notes)

Loin of muntjac cooked over cedar wood with pickled walnuts and celeriac in rosemary ash

  • 2001 Isole e Olena Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione de Marchi Toscana IGT 92 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    Great surprise and in a way eclipsed the cepparello in our view. Very nice elegant nose. Drinking very well at the moment and very round on the palate. Lots of fruit and although the oak (maybe a touch too much) took away some of the complexity this is still a very nice wine. Almost a bit new world and the only negative we woudl say is that they have no sense of place or origin. Still we enjoyed this very much.

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  • 1998 Isole e Olena Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione de Marchi Toscana IGT 93 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT

    Just like the 01, the Cab Sauvs where the suprise find and even eclipsed the cepparellos. Beautiful,great nose with lots of fruit and a very layered wine. Big, lush and dense on the palate. Very well made, maybe a touch of too much oak, and we loved it. Similar comment with the 01 though that the cab sauvs of I&O and unlike the cepparello lack a sense of place and origin. Could have been made anywhere but we would enjoy them nonetheless.

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Flight 6 (2 Notes)

Pear cooked in brown butter with orange blossom honey & porridge crisp

Closing

The Cepparellos showed their character over 2 decades and although we liked the old school rustic 90&93 still it is clear that the Cepparello's of today will be better than the current 90s are.
The Chardonnays where the big surprise and indeed we marked the 99 as WOTN and so did many other participants.
But for sure the Cabernet Sauvignons where the big winners to us ( they are more expensive than the Cepparello too) and almost eclipsed the Cepparello. True they lack a sense of origin but they are delicious wines.
Lastly on his Piedmont wines, or as Paolo called it the return to the homeland, these are light expressions of nebbiolo and more aromatic than powerfull. Still young vines and young wines but at the moment very light.

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