Plum, blackberry, ripe black cherries, crushed raspberries, pepper and herb, tannins to frame it all. Great Bordeaux style wine, not like the usual Super Tuscan. Drink now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Cabernet Franc (55%), Merlot (27%), Cabernet Sauvignon (17%) and Petit Verdot (1%). Fermented in stainless steel vats for 12 days. MLF for 1/3 of the wine in the vats in contact with skins before racking and for 2/3 in French oak barriques of 2nd, 3rd and 4th use. Aged for 8 months in French oak barriques of 2nd, 3rd and 4th use, followed by another 10 months in concrete tanks. Bottled in March 2014. 14,5% alcohol. Total production 55,000 bottles.
Deep, dark and somewhat opaque ruby red color - looks slightly darker than the vintage 2014 that was tasted alongside. Ripe, sweetish and quite sunny nose with bold, juicy aromas of soft black cherries, some strawberries, light blackcurrant tones, a little bit of alcohol and a hint of saddle leather. The wine is ripe, full-bodied and somewhat extracted on the palate with somewhat sweet-toned yet slightly restrained flavors of sunny dark fruits, juicy blackcurrants, some stewed plummy fruit, light woody notes of cigar box, a little bit of graphite and a hint of jammy red fruits. The acidity feels moderately high, the powdery tannins are very ripe and mellow and the alcohol lends a little bit of heat to the palate. The juicy finish is quite long, somewhat warm and subtly grippy with fruit-forward flavors of sweet red plums and ripe black cherries, some juicy blackcurrants, a little bit of jammy strawberry, light notes of graphite, a hint of tobacco and a sweet touch of cooked bell pepper.
Feels more like a generic Bordeaux from a hot vintage rather than anything particularly Super-Tuscan - there is really nothing "super" or "Tuscan" here. The wine is juicy, silky and very accessible, but also a bit too ripe and thus rather anonymous in style. It really calls for more structure to balance the ripe, soft and sweet-toned fruit flavors. Probably might become more interesting once the fruit-forward flavors develop some tertiary complexity to them, but then again, the structure really doesn't seem to call for any further cellaring. The wine drinks pretty well right now and doesn't really seem to promise much in regard to aging potential. All in all, a pleasant and accessible Bordeaux blend, but nothing special to write home about.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank at Mom's with lasagna. This bottle was consistent with the previous one and was drinking very nicely. Very good value super tuscan blend for $30. Would buy more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
First time trying this and was not sure what to expect. Bordeaux varietals but a wine of medium weight and med-high acidity that keeps an Italian identity. There's lots of red fruit, along with herbal notes that you'd expect from the dominant cab franc in the blend. K often doesn't like cab franc but we both enjoyed this with pizza. Tannins are still noticeable but not bothersome. Overall, a pleasing wine that works well with food. Solid value at $30 from Garagiste. Accessible now but the acid levels should keep this in a drinking window for several more years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pretty similar to the last bottle almost exactly a year ago. Nice match with with sausage pasta. Still has some tannins and strong acidity but nicely balanced with tart cherry and dark plum fruit. Very nice.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Medium body and color. Nose of plum. Medium tannins and acidity. Palate of plum, cherry, and some metalic notes. Medium finish. Stored at 57 degrees since purchase.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Intense and quite ripe. This is a tasty and balanced Bdx blend - for sure shows some cab franc - mostly plum and dark cherry fruit, delicous long quite sweet length. Nice wine while keeping Italian identity.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Didn’t decant, but airrated it as I poured. Given the initial reviews of this wine it is a little dissappointing. Citrusy and some barnyard on the nose. Dissappointing fruit and texture. I thought it would have improved from last year, but not really. Two more to go.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
From memory. Dark garnet color with little sign of age. Dark musty cherry aroma. Earth, mushroom, and dark cherry flavors with good acidity and nice finish. Lots of sediment.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Corney & Barrow Italian Wines Tasting (Pasta Brava): Appearance is clear, deep intensity, ruby colour. Legs. Nose is clean, pronounced intensity, with aromas of grilled bell peppers, earth, red cherries. Developing. On the palate, dry, high acidity, high alcohol (14.5%), fine high tannins, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of red cherries, red plums, sweet minty spices, and grilled bell peppers. Long finish. Good quality. Ripe accessible Bordeaux blend, though somewhat simple and lacking complex layers. Drink now and over the next 3-4 years as it develops a bit more. Not for long ageing. Blend of 55% Cabernet Franc, 27% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Petit Verdot.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ran through the Menu decanter and then back into the bottle. Had to pour through a strainer as there was a ton of chunky sediment and grit. Great Bordeaux-like nose of cassis, pencil lead and earth. Aromas follow to the palate, with the addition of some fairly hefty tannins that grew in astringency as the wine got more air exposure. I would say I popped this several years too early. Drink 2018 - 2027+.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
First off, very young and a bit closed. Cab Franc dominant in the blend (55% I believe) - and it shows (in a good way). Pretty wine with tons of upside potential in 7-8 years. Rediscovering bottles like this in your cellar several years in the future is part of the adventure of wine.
One previous reviewer mentioned that the oak still needed to integrate more. I do not find that to be the case. The oak character in this wine is not at all conspicuous or obvious - just simply does not stick out. I know for a fact that Andrea Franchetti did not put any new oak on this wine at all in 2012. (2013 and 2014 were aged in partial new oak). The fruit still needs to integrate with itself however.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This a wine with plenty of potential for pleasure once it harnesses and mellows out its structure. There is plenty of depth, concentration and intensity but too much "dusty" tannin to chew through for my liking. I followed this over several hours with lots of air in the glass and it was never much better than about an hour in, after a quick decant and .....with food. With food its closer to a 90pt wine right now. The oak needs to integrate more too. Says 14.5% Alc but doesn't feel remotely that high or heavy. Dark, nearly opaque, ruby color. if you're used to drinking a lot of young Cabs this might feel fine but I want it about 6 years from now. Oddly, for me, this is from a small multi Italy region wine enterprise that also happens to produce one of my favorite ready to go reds, Passopisciaro, from the sides of Mt Etna. I pretty much always love Passopisciaro straight out of the gates. This wine, OTOH, is a question mark for me. At $30 I don't feel compelled to buy more and age it for 3 years plus. Maybe Ill get lucky sometime to taste the 2001 version :). Might be the Cab Franc barking too?
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Quite good, but very young. There is nice ripe fruit, which helps balance out the still formidable structure, as well as herbal nuances that turn tea-like with more air. This will definitely be better with more time, as the structure is rather formidable, but the fruit means that the experience is bearable right now. Food would help as well, but hold if possible.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
At the Passopisciaro winery with Letizia: Red with hint of amber-orange color; dusty dry tannins, high acid, dry, austere; medium body, orange peel, very mineral, can't believe it's mostly Cabernet Franc! Walks like a SG. There are much better CF Super Tuscans IMHO. Paleo Rosso anyone? 55 CF 27 Mer 17 CS 1 PV
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
tasted at a free wine tasting of the winemaker at Radrizzani's in Milan. Complex supertuscan -still too young - with clear hints of oak barrel and e solid fashinating taste. Simply impressive
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
12/17/2023 - PatrikW Likes this wine: 89 Points
Plum, blackberry, ripe black cherries, crushed raspberries, pepper and herb, tannins to frame it all. Great Bordeaux style wine, not like the usual Super Tuscan. Drink now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/7/2021 - SpoochMan Likes this wine: 91 Points
Last bottle, consistent with previous notes. Drank very nicely. Was a good buy at $30
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/25/2021 - forceberry wrote: 86 Points
Cabernet Franc (55%), Merlot (27%), Cabernet Sauvignon (17%) and Petit Verdot (1%). Fermented in stainless steel vats for 12 days. MLF for 1/3 of the wine in the vats in contact with skins before racking and for 2/3 in French oak barriques of 2nd, 3rd and 4th use. Aged for 8 months in French oak barriques of 2nd, 3rd and 4th use, followed by another 10 months in concrete tanks. Bottled in March 2014. 14,5% alcohol. Total production 55,000 bottles.
Deep, dark and somewhat opaque ruby red color - looks slightly darker than the vintage 2014 that was tasted alongside. Ripe, sweetish and quite sunny nose with bold, juicy aromas of soft black cherries, some strawberries, light blackcurrant tones, a little bit of alcohol and a hint of saddle leather. The wine is ripe, full-bodied and somewhat extracted on the palate with somewhat sweet-toned yet slightly restrained flavors of sunny dark fruits, juicy blackcurrants, some stewed plummy fruit, light woody notes of cigar box, a little bit of graphite and a hint of jammy red fruits. The acidity feels moderately high, the powdery tannins are very ripe and mellow and the alcohol lends a little bit of heat to the palate. The juicy finish is quite long, somewhat warm and subtly grippy with fruit-forward flavors of sweet red plums and ripe black cherries, some juicy blackcurrants, a little bit of jammy strawberry, light notes of graphite, a hint of tobacco and a sweet touch of cooked bell pepper.
Feels more like a generic Bordeaux from a hot vintage rather than anything particularly Super-Tuscan - there is really nothing "super" or "Tuscan" here. The wine is juicy, silky and very accessible, but also a bit too ripe and thus rather anonymous in style. It really calls for more structure to balance the ripe, soft and sweet-toned fruit flavors. Probably might become more interesting once the fruit-forward flavors develop some tertiary complexity to them, but then again, the structure really doesn't seem to call for any further cellaring. The wine drinks pretty well right now and doesn't really seem to promise much in regard to aging potential. All in all, a pleasant and accessible Bordeaux blend, but nothing special to write home about.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/7/2020 - sburtt wrote: 89 Points
lacks depth, a bit of vegetative notes, very simple, no complexity, no vibe at all, a bit disappointed and think it lacks the acidity to last in time
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/24/2020 - SpoochMan Likes this wine: 91 Points
Drank at Mom's with lasagna. This bottle was consistent with the previous one and was drinking very nicely. Very good value super tuscan blend for $30. Would buy more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/2/2020 - SpoochMan Likes this wine: 91 Points
First time trying this and was not sure what to expect. Bordeaux varietals but a wine of medium weight and med-high acidity that keeps an Italian identity. There's lots of red fruit, along with herbal notes that you'd expect from the dominant cab franc in the blend. K often doesn't like cab franc but we both enjoyed this with pizza. Tannins are still noticeable but not bothersome. Overall, a pleasing wine that works well with food. Solid value at $30 from Garagiste. Accessible now but the acid levels should keep this in a drinking window for several more years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/31/2020 - Francophile Likes this wine: 92 Points
Whilst unusual for a Tuscan wine this was a nice, smooth wine without the usual factors that I identify it as Italian. We both enjoyed this very much.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/15/2020 - DravlaH Likes this wine: 91 Points
Good, but no longer great imo..
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/22/2020 - thebonnydooner wrote: 90 Points
Pretty similar to the last bottle almost exactly a year ago. Nice match with with sausage pasta. Still has some tannins and strong acidity but nicely balanced with tart cherry and dark plum fruit. Very nice.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/16/2020 - kcsteve Likes this wine: 90 Points
Medium body and color. Nose of plum. Medium tannins and acidity. Palate of plum, cherry, and some metalic notes. Medium finish. Stored at 57 degrees since purchase.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/19/2019 - 1961Vintage Likes this wine: 92 Points
Bright vibrant fruit starting to emerge, unclouded by sharp tannin. Very enjoyable and should continue to improve.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/16/2019 - RPerro wrote: 86 Points
Ran through the Menu decanter. Decent wine after the decant. Cassis and red cherry fruit, earth and barrel notes. Nice paired with grilled pork loin.
Day 2 this fell apart and was stewed cherry fruit and nothing else. Gross. Drink now, and finish the bottle.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/23/2019 - thebonnydooner wrote: 90 Points
Intense and quite ripe. This is a tasty and balanced Bdx blend - for sure shows some cab franc - mostly plum and dark cherry fruit, delicous long quite sweet length. Nice wine while keeping Italian identity.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/15/2019 - DravlaH Likes this wine: 89 Points
Didn’t decant, but airrated it as I poured. Given the initial reviews of this wine it is a little dissappointing. Citrusy and some barnyard on the nose. Dissappointing fruit and texture. I thought it would have improved from last year, but not really. Two more to go.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/13/2018 - davidspieker wrote: 89 Points
From memory. Dark garnet color with little sign of age. Dark musty cherry aroma. Earth, mushroom, and dark cherry flavors with good acidity and nice finish. Lots of sediment.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/26/2017 - Derek Darth Taster wrote: 90 Points
Corney & Barrow Italian Wines Tasting (Pasta Brava): Appearance is clear, deep intensity, ruby colour. Legs.
Nose is clean, pronounced intensity, with aromas of grilled bell peppers, earth, red cherries. Developing.
On the palate, dry, high acidity, high alcohol (14.5%), fine high tannins, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of red cherries, red plums, sweet minty spices, and grilled bell peppers. Long finish.
Good quality. Ripe accessible Bordeaux blend, though somewhat simple and lacking complex layers. Drink now and over the next 3-4 years as it develops a bit more. Not for long ageing.
Blend of 55% Cabernet Franc, 27% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Petit Verdot.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/6/2017 - RPerro Likes this wine: 89 Points
Ran through the Menu decanter and then back into the bottle. Had to pour through a strainer as there was a ton of chunky sediment and grit. Great Bordeaux-like nose of cassis, pencil lead and earth. Aromas follow to the palate, with the addition of some fairly hefty tannins that grew in astringency as the wine got more air exposure. I would say I popped this several years too early. Drink 2018 - 2027+.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/28/2017 - Der Weingelehrte wrote: 92 Points
First off, very young and a bit closed. Cab Franc dominant in the blend (55% I believe) - and it shows (in a good way). Pretty wine with tons of upside potential in 7-8 years. Rediscovering bottles like this in your cellar several years in the future is part of the adventure of wine.
One previous reviewer mentioned that the oak still needed to integrate more. I do not find that to be the case. The oak character in this wine is not at all conspicuous or obvious - just simply does not stick out. I know for a fact that Andrea Franchetti did not put any new oak on this wine at all in 2012. (2013 and 2014 were aged in partial new oak). The fruit still needs to integrate with itself however.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/29/2016 - chablis28 wrote: 87 Points
This a wine with plenty of potential for pleasure once it harnesses and mellows out its structure. There is plenty of depth, concentration and intensity but too much "dusty" tannin to chew through for my liking. I followed this over several hours with lots of air in the glass and it was never much better than about an hour in, after a quick decant and .....with food. With food its closer to a 90pt wine right now. The oak needs to integrate more too. Says 14.5% Alc but doesn't feel remotely that high or heavy. Dark, nearly opaque, ruby color. if you're used to drinking a lot of young Cabs this might feel fine but I want it about 6 years from now. Oddly, for me, this is from a small multi Italy region wine enterprise that also happens to produce one of my favorite ready to go reds, Passopisciaro, from the sides of Mt Etna. I pretty much always love Passopisciaro straight out of the gates. This wine, OTOH, is a question mark for me. At $30 I don't feel compelled to buy more and age it for 3 years plus. Maybe Ill get lucky sometime to taste the 2001 version :). Might be the Cab Franc barking too?
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/18/2016 - ilcalmo wrote: 89 Points
Quite good, but very young. There is nice ripe fruit, which helps balance out the still formidable structure, as well as herbal nuances that turn tea-like with more air. This will definitely be better with more time, as the structure is rather formidable, but the fruit means that the experience is bearable right now. Food would help as well, but hold if possible.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/3/2016 - peternelson wrote: 89 Points
At the Passopisciaro winery with Letizia: Red with hint of amber-orange color; dusty dry tannins, high acid, dry, austere; medium body, orange peel, very mineral, can't believe it's mostly Cabernet Franc! Walks like a SG. There are much better CF Super Tuscans IMHO. Paleo Rosso anyone?
55 CF
27 Mer
17 CS
1 PV
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/5/2015 - halprewitt wrote: 92 Points
Nice for price. Lower in restr than store.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/11/2015 - olracx62 wrote: 91 Points
tasted at a free wine tasting of the winemaker at Radrizzani's in Milan. Complex supertuscan -still too young - with clear hints of oak barrel and e solid fashinating taste. Simply impressive
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/23/2015 - Rezy13 wrote:
VinItaly Day 2 (Verona, Italy): 60% Cabernet Franc, 20% Merlot, 20% Petit Verdot and Cabernet Sauvignon; darker crimson, bright lighter rim; vegetal, cranberry, sour cherry, licorice, Christmas; softer tannin, medium body, good structure and acid; nice.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment