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Tasting a mixed bag of Petit Verdots with age (blind)
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Tasted November 27, 2022 by PSPatrick with 44 views
Introduction
My friend prepared samples in the morning, and we conducted the tasting in the afternoon. Samples were prepared straight from bottle, without aeration or decanting.
Flight 1 (6 notes)
Red
1993 Fattoria di Fèlsina Berardenga Chianti Classico
90 points
Wine 1 of 6. Medium to dark ruby colour. Good red fruit, raspberry effervescent, earth, and spices, with good acidity and good length. The finish is mineral and lightly tannic. Medium-bodied, with good structure. Very youthful and rustic at first, but softened and found balance quickly. Broader on day two, but still well-structured, with good, slightly pronounced acidity. Drink or hold.
Red
1996 Edgewood Estate Petit Verdot
88 points
Wine 2 of 6. Dark ruby colour. Red fruit, light chocolate, light earth, and spices, with good, slightly pronounced acidity, round, well-integrated tannin, and superb length. Much improved compared to five years ago. Balsamic and acidic by day three. Drink now, and over the next five or six years.
Red
2000 Marqués de Griñón Petit Verdot Dominio de Valdepusa
92 points
Wine 3 of 6. Dark ruby colour. Sweet red fruit, blueberry, blackberry, dark cherry, light herbaceous notes, dark chocolate, truffle, spices, vanilla, espresso, mint, and light Earl Grey tea, with good acidity, well-integrated tannin, and very good length. Medium-bodied, and well-structured, with good complexity. Smooth, lightly creamy, and quite harmonious from day two. I liked it quite a bit, in particular from day two!
Red
Red
2012 Pulpit Rock Petit Verdot Reserve
90 points
Wine 5 of 6. Inky dark garnet colour. Ripe red and dark fruit, coffee, chocolate, spices, herbaceous notes, smoke, and underlying mineral notes, with good acidity, fine, well-integrated tannin, and very good length. Medium- to full-bodied, with a creamy texture. The high alcohol does not show immediately, but it affects the head quickly. By day three, the high alcohol (15.5% ABV) is more apparent, and the wine shows some VA and finishes with coffee powder-Like bitterness. A good wine in its category, just too high in alcohol to be appealing to me.
Red
2017 Raka Petit Verdot
89 points
Wine 6 of 6. Dark ruby colour. Red and some dark fruit, dark chocolate, espresso, herbaceous notes, spices, and vanilla, with good acidity, round tannin, and good length. The wine has good concentration and complexity. That said, it currently is a little rough around the edges and needs more time to resolve the tannin and integrate the oak. Consistent on day two. If you chose to drink now, pair with a steak! 89(+)
Closing
What all Petit Verdots had in common is an emphasis on red fruit and some sort of light herbaceousness, as well as good acid/tannin structure. I admit that I liked the Marqués de Griñón Petit Verdot Dominio de Valdepusa 2000, and my wife is a fan of the varietal. That said, I think that, generally, Petit Verdot is best suited to lend structure to a cuvée, blended with other varietals.