1996 Borgo del Tiglio (Nicola Manferrari) Collio Friulano- Italy, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Collio (10/23/2016)
The first bottle out of a parcel recently purchased from Chambers Street. I posted the note from that offer to my CT account as a reminder to myself, and I have to say, it’s spot-on. We’ve been on the lookout for aged Borgo del Tiglio for a number of years now and, trying this example, I am stunned that others don’t consider these wines age worthy. Based on previous experience, we decanted and put the decanter in the fridge for over two hours . During that time the nose, which was almost non-existent at first, blossomed into a shimmering curtain of spicy preserved lemon, verdant green notes, and bitter honey a la old chenin minus the lanolin and wooliness. Highly aromatic, potpourri without the Channel aspect that so many wines described as “perfumed” often display. On the palate, there’s a sleight-of-hand of acidity - it seems to be a low acid wine, except that it stands up to food that would normally topple a low acid wine. So you start to look for the acid that your palate didn’t get a first…and you find it! Wonderful complexity, powerful layers of rich fruit and delicately dried flowers, making deep shifts over time in the glass like the light on sand dunes in the desert over the course of a day as the sun slides down. By the end of the bottle, the perfectly in-balance maturity brought out a classic nutiness - walnuts, I think - not the least bit sherried or dried out. We kept saying “wow, this is great wine. GREAT wine.” I’m shivering remembering it this morning.
Great note, Sarah. Who said Borgo del Tiglio wines don’t age?! These are some of the best, most serious white wines being made anywhere in Italy. Most tend to be very structured when young, at least in my experience. I’ve had a fair number of Manferrari’s wines over the years that were between 10 and 20 years old, and, between his “varietals” and “single vineyards”, I can’t remember a single one that wasn’t chugging along just beautifully.
Eric - the label does say Tocai Friulano. I posted the note from CT, which fills in the name of the wine as you see it. And in those days it was bottled in a flute d’Alsace, which is way cool.
There are not many notes, and many of them are not flattering. In my opinion, this is because the wine needs age or a long decant and preferably both. But no one gives it that attention and so they encounter a closed, muted wine that costs more than it “should.”
Not Sarah, obviously , but I’m familiar with both producers. I’d say there are more similarities than differences between these two producers. Manferrari uses more wood, but I don’t feel the wines really show it. Other than that, both producers’ wines are terroir-driven, ageing exceptionally well, and the winemaking in both these places is at the highest level. Their wines are, as a rule, outstanding, sometimes profound. Both at the very top of the non-orange wine pyramid in Friuli (my pyramid, anyway ). Off the top of my head, the only two other producers that I like nearly as much would be Edi Keber and, perhaps, Ronchi di Cialla (with Vie di Romans coming a close fifth), and that’s about it. Everybody else is at least a notch below, in my opinion.
Tvrtko, thanks very much for the detailed information. Very much appreciated and good to know it’s in a similar style to i Clivi (which I’ve really enjoyed). I’ll be on the lookout for this producer.
Circling back to this, since I had asked how the Borgo del Tiglio wines compare with i Clivi. I just had a 2010 Borgo del Tiglio Friulano, and I’d put it about on the same level as the i Clivi single-vineyards (Galea and Brazan). It was outstanding, and at seven years doesn’t seem like it’s aged a day. But you can tell it’s holding a lot back. It doesn’t surprise me to read Sarah’s note about how well a 1996 was drinking.
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, but I’m familiar with both producers. I’d say there are more similarities than differences between these two producers. Manferrari uses more wood, but I don’t feel the wines really show it. Other than that, both producers’ wines are terroir-driven, ageing exceptionally well, and the winemaking in both these places is at the highest level. Their wines are, as a rule, outstanding, sometimes profound. Both at the very top of the non-orange wine pyramid in Friuli (my pyramid, anyway