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Wine Dojo - Week 19 - The Grand Tour: Northern Italy
Elliot's Place
Tasted July 23, 2018 by Heynetty with 121 views
Introduction
Hello and Welcome to your tour bus. This week, we find ourselves at the very beginning of our wine tour of Italy. Taking in the sights and tastes of some of the most sought after wine regions in the world, we make our way through Piemonte, Liguria, Valle d'Aosta, Lombardy, Trentino Alto-Adige, Friuli-Venezia-Giulia and Veneto. All are linked by the Alps but show diverse terroir. We visit the landlocked, the Mediterranean, the mountainous and the lowland plains to sample their delights.
Seatbelts on and lets proceed with our Grand Italian Tour.
Flight 1 (7 notes)
White
2013 Pieropan Soave Classico
88 points
Tasted Blind
A: Medium gold. Medium (-) tears
N: Beeswax, honey, orange marmalade, grapefruit pith, WET STONE, everyone got SALT on the nose but i got that on the palate. The fruit is tart. leave it for an hour and mad amounts of kerosene are apparent as is fennel.Medium (+) intensity, fully developed.
P: Dry, medium (+) acidity, medium body, medium (+) intensity, medium (-) alcohol ,medium to medium (+) finish, little bitterness.
C: Drink now. BLIC? ticks everywhere. Well, half a tick for length. This is a very good quality wine. Am rather impressed. This is a different world to that of the rather bland neutral young Soaves that i have had in the past.
A: Medium gold. Medium (-) tears
N: Beeswax, honey, orange marmalade, grapefruit pith, WET STONE, everyone got SALT on the nose but i got that on the palate. The fruit is tart. leave it for an hour and mad amounts of kerosene are apparent as is fennel.Medium (+) intensity, fully developed.
P: Dry, medium (+) acidity, medium body, medium (+) intensity, medium (-) alcohol ,medium to medium (+) finish, little bitterness.
C: Drink now. BLIC? ticks everywhere. Well, half a tick for length. This is a very good quality wine. Am rather impressed. This is a different world to that of the rather bland neutral young Soaves that i have had in the past.
White
2017 Franco Serra Gavi
86 points
Tasted Blind
A: Pale lemon
N: PEAR DROPS, PEAR, BANANA (this and first descriptor indicate very cool fermentation), white peach, WET STONE. almond, others got honey. Leave it for a while and out comes the honey and jasmine. Youthful, medium (+) intensity.
P: Dry, medium (+) acidity, medium body, medium (-) alcohol (12%), medium intensity and finish.
C: $9 per bottle. I think this is for early drinking. BLIC? Half ticks for length, intensity is there but the cool fermentation notes are overpowering. Its a good quality wine, however.
A: Pale lemon
N: PEAR DROPS, PEAR, BANANA (this and first descriptor indicate very cool fermentation), white peach, WET STONE. almond, others got honey. Leave it for a while and out comes the honey and jasmine. Youthful, medium (+) intensity.
P: Dry, medium (+) acidity, medium body, medium (-) alcohol (12%), medium intensity and finish.
C: $9 per bottle. I think this is for early drinking. BLIC? Half ticks for length, intensity is there but the cool fermentation notes are overpowering. Its a good quality wine, however.
White
2016 Inama Soave Classico Vin Soave
86 points
Tasted Blind
A: Medium gold
N: Peach stone, wet stone, green almond, Elliot spotted Petroleum and i didn't get anything like that until it warmed up. There was a kerosene whiff for certain, salt. Youthful
P: Dry, medium acid, medium body, medium (+) intensity and medium finish. Medium (-) alcohol (12%)I wavered between dry and off-dry but it was dry with some RS still evident.
C: One should be able to hold these for 5+ years but the acidity is a worry. Not high enough acidity to guarantee freshness. I didn't get the same level of wax that i got in the first. BLIC? Good quality wine this but not complex and more fruit to balance the stoniness from the volcanic soil would be better.
A: Medium gold
N: Peach stone, wet stone, green almond, Elliot spotted Petroleum and i didn't get anything like that until it warmed up. There was a kerosene whiff for certain, salt. Youthful
P: Dry, medium acid, medium body, medium (+) intensity and medium finish. Medium (-) alcohol (12%)I wavered between dry and off-dry but it was dry with some RS still evident.
C: One should be able to hold these for 5+ years but the acidity is a worry. Not high enough acidity to guarantee freshness. I didn't get the same level of wax that i got in the first. BLIC? Good quality wine this but not complex and more fruit to balance the stoniness from the volcanic soil would be better.
Red
2014 Rocca Felice Barbaresco
87 points
Tasted Blind
A: Pale ruby
N: Violets, red cherry, cranberries, red currants, blackpepper for some but no me, stems. Youthful.
P: Dry, medium (+) acidity, medium (+) tannin, medium (+) body, medium (+) alcohol , medium intensity and medium finish.
C: BLIC? Good quality wine. Bit austere. I would hold this one, it needs development but that intensity is a bit worrying. I would like more intensity to lay down for a long time. No this one, i would pick up again in 3 years to check on its progress.
GUESSES:
Old world and cool climate given the tart nature of the fruit and the moderate alcohol. Valpolicella or pinot noir.
MISTAKES:
Missed the VA. In fact, when i learned what it was, the VA still evaded me. There were no florals on the nose and so i must remember that some of the barbaresco produced at lower elevations, won't show florals. This was a tough one as i think it was an atypical bottle. Perhaps, time would reveal more recognizable layers.
This one is a Total Wine bottle.
A: Pale ruby
N: Violets, red cherry, cranberries, red currants, blackpepper for some but no me, stems. Youthful.
P: Dry, medium (+) acidity, medium (+) tannin, medium (+) body, medium (+) alcohol , medium intensity and medium finish.
C: BLIC? Good quality wine. Bit austere. I would hold this one, it needs development but that intensity is a bit worrying. I would like more intensity to lay down for a long time. No this one, i would pick up again in 3 years to check on its progress.
GUESSES:
Old world and cool climate given the tart nature of the fruit and the moderate alcohol. Valpolicella or pinot noir.
MISTAKES:
Missed the VA. In fact, when i learned what it was, the VA still evaded me. There were no florals on the nose and so i must remember that some of the barbaresco produced at lower elevations, won't show florals. This was a tough one as i think it was an atypical bottle. Perhaps, time would reveal more recognizable layers.
This one is a Total Wine bottle.
Red
2013 Masi Campofiorin
Tasted Blind
A: medium to deep ruby with medium (+) viscosity
N: PLUM, tart red cherry, anise, rubber at first but that blew off. Nose is medium (+) and youthful.
P: Dry, high acid, medium (+) tannin, medium (+) body, intensity and finish
C: Could benefit from aging. Very good quality wine. I guessed this one correctly. $13/bottle
A: medium to deep ruby with medium (+) viscosity
N: PLUM, tart red cherry, anise, rubber at first but that blew off. Nose is medium (+) and youthful.
P: Dry, high acid, medium (+) tannin, medium (+) body, intensity and finish
C: Could benefit from aging. Very good quality wine. I guessed this one correctly. $13/bottle
Red
2005 Angelo Negro e Figli Roero Prachiosso
Tasted Blind
A: Medium garnet. Medium (+) tears.
N: Baking spice, blackberry, black cherry, leather, . Developing. Pronounced nose.
P: Dry, high acid, high tannin, high alcohol full body, medium (+) intensity and finish
C: There is more to come in the wine judging by this tasting. There is plenty to keep it fresh as the flavors move into greater complexity. Very Good Quality wine. Hold your nerve....keep this in your cellar longer.
A: Medium garnet. Medium (+) tears.
N: Baking spice, blackberry, black cherry, leather, . Developing. Pronounced nose.
P: Dry, high acid, high tannin, high alcohol full body, medium (+) intensity and finish
C: There is more to come in the wine judging by this tasting. There is plenty to keep it fresh as the flavors move into greater complexity. Very Good Quality wine. Hold your nerve....keep this in your cellar longer.
Red
2016 Comm. G.B. Burlotto Barbera d'Alba Aves
Tasted Blind
A: Medium purple. High viscosity.
N: VIOLETS, red cherry, cranberry, wet stone, pomegranate, medium (+) nose.
P: Dry, high acid, medium tannin, full body, medium (+) intensity and finish with high alcohol (15%).
C: $27/bottle.
GUESSES:
MY tastebuds were shot but somehow, i wrote Old World, Cool climate and barbera
A: Medium purple. High viscosity.
N: VIOLETS, red cherry, cranberry, wet stone, pomegranate, medium (+) nose.
P: Dry, high acid, medium tannin, full body, medium (+) intensity and finish with high alcohol (15%).
C: $27/bottle.
GUESSES:
MY tastebuds were shot but somehow, i wrote Old World, Cool climate and barbera
Closing
We tasted blind but revealed after we made group notes this week.