March 16, 2024 - Seems to be on a plateau of maturity, but unfortunately this bottle was barrel-marked (corky). Putting that flaw aside, the wild red plum/cherry fruit and mouthfeel are pretty nice. It would likely be a 90- to 91-pointer on my scale.
November 18, 2021 - Dejlig vin, men ikke så kraftfuld som Ripasso eller Amarone
August 25, 2020 - Upon opening, bottle-stink the likes of which I’ve not encountered in a good while. I’m not sure if it blew off, or if I just became accustomed to it over the course of three hours.
A very soft cork broke in half as I opened it, and it got pushed in to the bottle - no worry as it was not disintegrated and I decanted anyway. Surprisingly, little to no sediment. The wine poured a deeeeeeep red and the aroma of bing cherry and blueberry formed a heady cloud as I poured it.
On the nose, a little funk, the same fruit bolstered by a pleasant tang and just a whiff of oak. After it opened a little, a decidedly raisin-y appeared. It never overwhelmed and added a sexy sweet decadence to the bouquet.
The flavor was much as anticipated by the aroma... I enjoyed the funk, which my wife said reminded her of dried cherries left in a hot minivan too long during the summer. Haha. She wasn’t entirely wrong - and I loved it. The flavors, while intense and compelling, never veered towards flabby or syrupy due to an impeccably balanced acidity which gave this just enough lift to keep it interesting. Tannins has softened considerably creating a dry, but never drying, texture.
I’m pretty convinced that this is my favorite merlot to date and will certainly seek out others from the Veneto.
October 26, 2018 - An odd, wild and wacky wine. Tasting blind I assumed it was some sort of Ripasso, with the strong raisiny notes. Anyway it was fun to try but not something I would probably drink on the regular.
April 4, 2018 - 1 hour of air in a decanter (not significant sediment).
Still nice youthful plum fruit, floral lift and plenty of acidità.
Nice with both red sauce and pork meatballs in brown sauce.
No rush but at this level of pleasure, my remaining bottles are not likely to be around long.
June 19, 2017 - Venetian Merlot
September 26, 2015 - On the recommendation of Jim NeJaime I picked this up because actually Italian Merlot is some of the best in the world, and is often a terrific price point wine. This wine doesn't disappoint.