Small Vineyards Tasting, Round 1

Last Tuesday, 5/18, I attended a tasting of James King's Mercer Island Wine Club that was featuring a variety of Italian wines imported by Small Vineyards, LLC. I didn't realize that this would be hosted by a member of the trade, but I was pleasantly surprised. Small Vineyards was the sole US importer for the 'long lost' Il Colle Brunello, so it was fun chatting with Josh Hanson about how they obtained the business. He was also able to give me clear guidance on which vintages to drink first (1978, 1980 and 1981). Anyway, this tasting was about other wines in their portfolio.

It was an interesting lineup with some love 'em or hate 'em wines, nothing subtle here to be sure.

• 2001 Tenuta Duca di Casalanza Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie 84 Points

  Italy, Delle Venezie

  The restrained nose has a light scent of citrus with a waxy smell and a subtle smell of slightly stale socks (yuck) that I often find in Pinot Grigio. The palate is oily and rich with lemon peel, very extracted, and seems to show a lot of its 13.2% alcohol just below the surface. It is an admirably extracted effort, but frankly I look for something that is a little lighter in style and with more cut when I reach for Pinot Grigio.

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• 2001 Edi Simčič Chardonnay 80 Points

  Slovenia, Primorska, Goriška Brda

  Edi appears to enjoy toast on his barrels. Wow, this has a serious nose of high toast with a smell like charcoal briquettes it is so intense. The palate does show lush fruit with lavish mouthfeel, a long finish and nice acidity. However, all the good characterstics here are overmatched by the remarkable barrel toast. Thsi reminds me of a Pahlmeyer Chardonnay yet with more toast and less butterscotch. No thanks, not my cup of tea.

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• 2001 Tre Donne Barbera d'Alba 86 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba

  I like Barbera a lot, but I have grown fond of the somewhat atypical examples from La Spinetta. This was more in the mold of a Sandrone, finer grained and more subtle. The nose shows tart cranberry, powdered sugar, a certain waxy smell of lipstick, and some herbal characteristics, pretty interesting really. The palate is juicy with tart red fruit, raspberry, very bright but somewhat hollow and lacking the silky character of the Sandrone Barbera. This is a nice example, varietally correct, yet lacking any real excitment for me.

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• 1998 Tre Donne Barolo 88 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  OK, this is a bit more interesting. This is a pretty light-scaled Barolo with a pretty nose of dried flowers, anise, perfume, and a light hint of tar. The palate is black and leathery with very nice balance and surprisingly supple and approachable mouthfeel. This has good persistence and grip. Alas, it never really developed much in the glass and seems like a reasonable QPR Barolo but nothing to get totally crazy over.

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• 1999 Antonio Sanguineti Brunello di Montalcino 91 Points

  Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino

  Very nice, a focused nose of black cherry with some pine needle. The palate is searing, piercing, full of cherry fruit and some roasted espresso, very primary, with lively acid. This has awesome grip right on entry with a dry, poised mouthfeel. This one needs a lot of time but seems like a very pure and beautiful example.

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• 1999 Tre Donne Barbaresco 93 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  Oh baby, this is the nose I was waiting for with tar, violets and just enough volatile acidity to really lift this to soaring heights. I often hate VA, but in Barbaresco it really seems to work well. The palate on this shows a very supple entry with lots of coffee flavor, yet this explodes on the palate with a powerful, building, very memorable finish. This wine really hangs with you. Definite buy!

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• 1999 Edi Simčič Duet 88 Points

  Slovenia, Primorska, Goriška Brda

  Edi REALLY likes his wood. This Bordeaux blend (80% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc) is so heavily oaked with high toast barrels that all I can smell is tar. That said, the palate does elicit a WOW in my tasting notes, as it is darned plush with with excellent acidity and some complex floral characteristics. There is just way too much wood here for my taste.

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• 2003 Tre Donne Moscato d'Asti 85 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Asti, Moscato d'Asti

  Nothing too sophisticated here, just an incredibly refreshing way to finish off a tasting. This delicious and fizzy nectar tastes of honey and white flowers. Yummy, buy!

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