Toward the end of dinner, I overheard one of our group passionately state “I love Italian wines”. The other 6 of us just nodded our heads and revisited our wine glasses.
On this evening, our dinner group dined at Pane e Vino, a long time favorite and one of the top Italians restaurants in our area.
We had a theme of Super Tuscan wines and with a little help from some other fermented friends, this was another one of those stellar dinners we share about every 2 weeks. The wines:
NV LOUIS CHALVON GRANDE RESERVE- I bought this on a lark having seen it in an email solicitation and after reading the description and noting the under $25 price, I concluded it was worth a risk; it turns out to be well worth the risk as this has a lot of good things to rave about; it has good acidity, a medium to full body, a bountiful of citrus and stone fruit notes with a touch of saline; this is a little more on the bold side making a statement; it definitely served to prepare our palates for the all that followed; best when served chilled.
NV VRANKEN DIAMANT BRUT- I immediately recognized the glass bottle as one I`d held many times, but it was mostly the Demoiselle version and it had been a couple of years since the last one; that bottling had always shown real good and this brut was no exception; after the yellow gold color denoting some age, the nose is redolent of toasty butterscotch and minerals which continued on and was joined by rich and buttery golden apple and pear; with a creamy texture, it tasted more like a sparkling yummy Meursault.
2007 DOMAINE LEFLAIVE CHAVOILLON PULIGNY MONTRACHET- 1er cru; wondrous juice herein; this is the bomb with its perfect balance, silky smooth mouthfeel and layered tasty fruit and length; there`s so much finesse and integrity and it simply a marvelous white Burg of the highest esteem.
1st flight of 3:
2009 BRANCAIA ILITRAIA MAREMMA- 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Sangiovese, 10% Petit Verdot; the nose gives the immediate impression of something real good to come and it delivers; there`s loads of spicy chocolate flavored fresh dark fruit which moves on in to the mid palate with significant black currant blending in; it has beautiful balance and is really soft and easy albeit in a medium + body; very enjoyable and if I heard the price around $35 correctly, a great QPR.
2009 TENUTA di TRINORO le CUPOLE- another amazing treat; this one graces us with aromatics of milk chocolate, cola, talc and obvious gardenia flower coming in at the end and infusing with ripe black cherry/ berry and plum; all of these treasures continue on all the way through augmented by just the right touch of spice and a hit of tar; it`s full bodied, thick and creamy, balanced and beautiful; seamless; power and finesse abounds; 40% Cabernet Franc, 30% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Petit Verdot; another great QPR.
2009 PETROLO GALATRONA- after having a lot of this wine from different vintages, I`m inclined to agree with some in our group who hail this as a “baby Masseto”; for sure, it is really good Merlot; true to other versions, this is full throttle, in your face serious and yet comes along with grace and elegance; there was an unusual dry finish perhaps denoting some tannic structure still needing to soften, but everything prior is worth the experience; with time and patience, this just kept on opening up and giving up layers of pleasure with a vibrant dark fruit profile to match the youthful deep dark purple color. A strong candidate for decanting. What a flight!
2nd flight of 3:
2004 VALDACAVA BRUNELLO di MONTALCINO- I first had this wine a few weeks ago and loved it so much, I sought more and scored; this one had a nose of anise, ginger, cedar, cigar box and spicy black cherry, but by mid palate, the fruit profile becomes more on the wild and racy side, a good thing in this case; it`s complex and nicely structured and has a long ways to go before maturity although showing so extraordinarily now.
2010 SAFFREDI FATTORIA LE PUPILLE MAREMMA- blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Alicante; I kept going back for the nose since it was so inviting; talc and cedar first show up followed by black cherry, cranberry and black currant; it morphs into a beautiful expression of joy and pleasure; its soft, silky smooth and long. Love it!
2010 ANTINORI GUADO al TASSO SUPERIORE BOLGEHRI- as it turns out, this was my least favorite wine of the night and it was good; in the nose, there was some nice spicy dark chocolate covered black fruit with fresh brewed coffee which moved on, but was joined by a heavy hit of tannins and in the mouth, the fruit was tart and zingy; it had only decent length, but it`s clear, this wine needs time to evolve and I expect it to shine years down the road.
3rd flight of 3:
2011 PETROLO GALATRONA- served blind after an 1 hour decant; my impressions: inky dark color exuding youth, the nose had some funk which blew off also confirming a pup not ready to be a big dog yet; licorice and heavily extracted black cherry abounds with nice spice accents; full bodied, intense and loading up for integration; seemingly some buttery notes also not melded in; I have no idea as to the fruit ID and once it was revealed, I was shocked to find this is another Galatrona [all Merlot]; the youngest I`ve ever had and now I know to get this and hold on to it for a few years.
2003 TUA RITA REDIGAFFI - I`m salivating in anticipation of what this will give [as well as the next wine]; the aromatics reveal mint flavored spicy ripe black cherry/ berry which carry on and serve to delight to no end, thankfully; this is so complex with depth and incredible length; it has power and brilliance and all of the stuffing to give it exuberant vitality for the long run; 100% Merlot. 100% class.
2005 TENUTA dellORNELLAIA MASSETO- decanted for 11/2 hours; I
ve been such a fan of this wine over the years, I have to be careful not to project more than what Im experiencing through my 5 senses; in this case, it
s the KIND and I dont care how glorified I make it, it
s the real deal; layers and layers of spicy chocolate black fruit unfold while being delivered in a soft and smooth texture all the way to the back end; it`s rich, vibrant and long; stunning is the one word that comes to mind; 100% righteous Merlot.
I pause for a moment before our dessert wine to think, “ I love Italian wines”.
1995 AVIGNONESI VIN SANTO di MONTEPULCIANO- 14.5 %; 375 ml.; made from Trebbiano and Malvasia; OMG, I`ve never had a dessert wine that poured and looked like molasses; in fact, this poured so slowly, I had to monitor the drips to ensure I only got a little because it was readily evident, a little goes a long way; black inky thick and so sticky; my hand stuck to the bottle when passing it on; flavors include fig, toffee, vanilla, coffee, honey, maple and yes, molasses; WOW!
Should I repeat my love for Italian wines?
Cheers,
Blake