• studleytrey Likes this wine: 91 points

    November 12, 2019 - This is in a great spot right now. I've had previous vintages of this with less age, and for me the nero d'avola has always brought a little too much forward nature and darker fruited constitution for my preference, in contrast to the 100% frappato that I've enjoyed more. This seems to be its sweet spot, however, as there's a really nice aged softening that I'm quite appreciating in this bottle tonight.

    Medium garnet color with bricking edges. Aromas of dark and dark red fruits, both fresh and dried, orange peel, lemon, potpourri, damp earth, tarragon, and graphite. Light to medium body, high acidity, medium finish, and flavors of sour cherry, iron, lemon, and black tea. You know, this wine really has a rustic brunello vibe that I can appreciate. Solid juice, this. Worked well with a winter minestrone tonight.

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  • Cote d'Or Likes this wine:

    February 8, 2018 - PopnPour, tasted over 2 hrs
    -pretty, brilliant dark red no bricking
    -quite complex nearly equal mix of bubble-gummy candied red fruit and more somber dark fruit slight funk a bit of spice and some minerality
    -med acidity, med/med- weight with crystalline sappy raspberry and black fruit liqueur, med/med- tannins
    -this bottle is really drinking beautifully now (still), great value, love how this transparently allows the two grape varieties to simultaneously express themselves

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  • kronfeld wrote: 88 points

    October 6, 2016 - More flat and one dimensional than I remembered bottles drunk earlier. May be at end of window. Perfectly fine, but not particularly interesting or pleasurable.

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  • DStone Likes this wine: 88 points

    July 25, 2016 - Nice, easy going lighter red (due to Frappato). Will pair nicely with Italian fare. Plenty of acidity, drinks nicely as a cocktail wine for those who like Cru Beaujolais, for example. An interesting alternative to said wines. I'll not hold the 2nd bottle thru 2017 as I first estimated for its window but will consume this year.

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  • PaulusLoZebra Likes this wine: 90 points

    February 23, 2016 - Medium ruby; upon opening, a nice barnyard nose which faded; big, and captivating nose of cherry compote, fresh-cut strawberries, and minerals with a medicinal note; hints of spring flowers; great acid and nice, firm but well-integrated tannins; a precise, structured wine with medium complexity and medium length; lip-smacking acidity on the finish; great food wine, especially for lunch or a light dinner, this would be an excellent and somewhat mysterious alternative to Dolcetto or Beaujolais and an excellent red with many fish courses.

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  • jrick Likes this wine: 89 points

    January 23, 2016 - Still good but unlike the 2013 I feel this has nothing to gain from aging. It was excellent already from release. Still good, the red berries here, primarily strawberry, are feeling almost overripe. This needs for this reason to be served at about 15 degrees celsius to maintain freshness.

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  • bopal wrote:

    January 9, 2016 - A spicy anise note on the nose. Bright red cherry fruit on the palate, tart but also a bit candied, with some dark earthy/meaty notes as well. Soft tannins. Not very complex, but shows good intensity without much weight (12.5% ABV). Outdone at this price point by several Beaujolais, to be fair.

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  • williamturck Likes this wine:

    November 21, 2015 - Pretty light from what I expected. I really liked this one.

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  • jnewman77 wrote:

    September 2, 2015 - This is a solid example of a frappato/nero d'avola blend. Cherry, strawberry, and some earth and mineral. Some spice with air. Good not great. Not quite at the same level as COS.

    2 people found this helpful Comment
  • UpfromtheCellar wrote: 88 points

    July 13, 2015 - This nice medium weight blend is strangely less than the sum of its parts. Arianna's Frappato is light, lively, sharp, focused. Her Nero d'Avola is darker, creamy rich with minerals and spice.

    This blend is neither!

    Rather its just that. A mash up of spice, acids, fruits, creamy side tastes and earth. There is no central focus to this bottle. Certainly easy to drink but where is the statement, the definition, the structure? I guess sometimes a bottle of wine is just a bottle of wine. Duh.

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