TN: Four Chinatos...(short/boring)

Over the last week, I’ve tried 4 Chinatos:

1. Boroli BaroloChinato Vermouth (16.5%; www.DallaTerra.com) B by Distilleric Dr.MMontanaro NV: Fairly dark color w/ slight bricking; strong quinine/barky quite grapey fragrant licorice/spicy very complex/exotic nose; soft quite sweet very aromatic/barky/quinine/grapey/very spicy exotic flavor w/ light smooth tannins; very long/lingering some alcoholic/fumey intense grapey/licorice/quinine/barky very complex/exotic finish w/ some smooth/gentle tannins; a beautiful herbaceous Chinato w/ light quinine/barky character. $64.00 (SFW&S)

2. Cocchi BaroloChinato VinoAromatizzato a Base di ChinaCalissic DOCG: Barolo (QuinineBark/GrandWormwood/Rhubarb/RootGinger/Gentian; 16.5%) NV: Med.dark color w/ some bricking; beautiful aromatic quinine/barky/earthy/dusty/herbal very complex/aged classic Chinato nose; some alcoholic off-dry/slightly sweet very quinine/barky/licorice/herbal aged Barolo rather earthy/dusty medicinal/herbal off-dry very exotic finish w/ light tannins; lots of aged Barolo character. $50.00/hlf (SFW&S)

3. Harington bebe Chinato Vermouth AromaticWine (Infused w/ a blend of fruits/roots/herbs/spices; Aged: 8 yrs in oak barrel; 29 cs bttld in 2016; 16.5%) NV: Med. somewhat bricked color; strong earthy/dusty bit medicinal/quinine bit herbal/Cab/licorice some alcoholic rather complex nose; rather soft dry some hot/alcoholic quite dusty/earthy some medicinal/quinine/cough syrup bitter/sharp bit herbal/Cab flavor w/ some bitterness; very long somewhat hot/alcoholic quite dusty/earthy rather medicinal/quinine/cough syrup bit herbal finish w/ slight bitterness; a fairly good resemblance to Piemonte Chinato but not as strong on the herbs/barky character and not the aged character. $35.00/hlf

4. Bigallet China-China Amer (40%; www.BigalletUSA.com; sweet&bitter orange peels/herbs/spices/cinchona/anise/clove; BackBarProject/Seattle) Virieu/France NV: Very dark some bricked color; very sweet orangey/orange peel/very spicy some alcoholic/fumey slight earthy/herbal very exotic/complex nose; soft/bit underacid quite sweet very fumey/alcoholic very orangey/orange peel/orange liqueur some licorice/anise little quinine lovely flavor; very long/lingering some hot/alcoholic very intense orangey/orange peel/orange liqueur some herbal/earthy rather sweet very complex finish w/ no tannins; resembles some an intense orange liqueur w/o the syrupy sweetness; a wonderfully exotic drink. $43.00 (CB)

A wee BloodyPulpit:

1. Chinato is just one of what is called Amaro in Italy, a very interesting genre of liquers, usually bitter, often sweet, that is used mostly as an after-dinner digestif. I was first introduced to BaroloChinato by DarrellCorti back in the '70’s. I can’t say that I took an immediate liking to it. It reminded me of the Buckley’s Cough Syrup that my Mom made me take when I had a cold…one of the foulest beverages I ever put in my mouth.
   It is typically made in the Langhe from Barolo wine, often sweetened w/ sugar, and infused w/ various herbs & spices, one of which is quinine bark (cinchona). Cappellano was the first, invented back in the late 1800’s.
   Of these four, I liked the the Cocchi probably the best. To my knowledge, the Harrington is the first attempt in Calif to make a Chinato-style wine. Though it was my least favorite of these four, I thought it was a pretty heroic stab at the genre. Even at 8 yrs in barrel, it didn’t have the aged character that the other 3 showed. Not sure what the base wine was, but it seemed to have a bit of a Cabernet character. But it is a genre I think they should pursue more in Calif. It’s open for all sorts of creativity. There are a number of folks (Massican/Matthiasson) who are making very interesting Vermouths.
   In fact, way back when, SutterHome made a TripleCreamApertif wine, based on Darrell’s urging and recipe. It was a phenomenal wine. Primarily because it was made from a base wine of very old cream sherry from EastSideWnry in Lodi. Easily, the best wine BobTrinchero ever made. But when that sherry source dried up (when they closed), the wine went South fast. Don’t know that they even make it anymore.

2. Since I opened these Chinatos and have been sampling them daily, I have absolutely no fear of coming down w/ malaria here in NM in the dead of winter.
   I used some of the Chinato, w/ a bit of Espresso-flavored Balsamic, as a marinade and reduction sauce for duck breat on Sunday. An absolutely killer dish. And had some last night w/ a ChocolateGelato (a new Arti-San brand, made in Italy, that Smith’s/Krogers has brought out…highly recommended, along w/ the Sicilian Pistacio) that was delicious.

3. Bigallet: This is a Amer (French for Amaro) that is made in the foothills of the Rhone Alps. Not sure what the base wine is made from. The orange character comes from the alcohol that is triple-distilled after the maceration w/ Valencia and Curacao oranges. Not much resemblance to Chinato but a pretty interesting apertif drink. Should be served at a fairly cool temperature to reduce the alcohol fumes.

4. I can see that I’m going to be browsing the Amaro section of the wine shops w/ a more than casual interest. May even buy the Amaro book that just came out.
   Tom

We have our spirits license now, Tom, soon we should have quite a few for you to taste next time you’re in town.

Thanks Tom. My wife and I are big Amaro fans. Fabulous as a digestif and they make very interesting cocktails.
Barolo Chinato are great, I love Capellano’s version.

Here is a link to a great site about Amaros. This guy tasted through a bunch of them and has pretty good tasting notes.

I don’t think I’ve met anyone that enjoyed Barolo Chinato on their first taste, and I was no different. However the 2nd one I tried I was more prepared for and enjoyed it. I remain a fan. I’ve also very much taken to the intensely herbal and often bitter Amaro drinks from Piemonte. We still have half a bottle of a lovely local one from around Castino. Then there are the herbal grappe in Trentino, where again they are very appealing once you are attuned to the flavour profile.

Some of them seem to very much help with digestion, somewhat counter-intuitively, but the effect long respected.

At first I thought that was a Martin Short movie…

Thanks for posting. Not much experience with these. Always more to learn.

I must say I loved the stuff from the first sip. I find Barolo Chinato to be a fascinating creature, and pretty much never see it around to get any. Seeing as I get up to Fremont once in a while I may have to venture to Oliver’s place in Oakland.

Thanks for the notes, Tom. To clarify a point on the Harrington, the base wine was entirely Nebbiolo from Glenrose Vineyard.

I’ve tried all of the Chinatos I’ve been able to get my hands on up here in the Great Northwest. In my experience, the Capellano is still far-and-away the best version I’ve ever had.

Michael

Hello Wade,

I don’t have a store, unfortunately, I’m an importer.

The two specialist stores for interesting spirits in the East Bay are Cask and Ledger’s Liquors, both in Berkeley.

I recently tasted a Barbaresco Rabaja Chianto that I found to be quite special and a must-have to take home. To me it looked more like an aged wine than others…almost bricked red at times. I really enjoyed it…

One of my Barolo producers is toying with the idea of producing Chinato commercially, he says the bureaucracy is awful, which is giving him pause. I wish I had one.

Very fascinating topic and TN’s, Tom!!!

I strongly recommend that you check out the nerdy delights of the Boston Apothecary website: history, recipes, research, etc. The discussions on Vermouth and similar wines are golden!

By the way, I had no idea that Harrington bottled anything like this! Thanks!

Me, too. And I’ve corrupted others. K+L has a decent selection, at least as an intro, including Cocchi. The best Amaro I’ve had is this white: Tempus Fugit Kina L'Aero D'Or Vin Aperitif Du Quinquina Aperitif Wine (750ml) - SKU 1094437 Absolutely amazing aromatics.

I love Chinato!! The best commercially available one is Cappellano hands down. The best one I’ve had isn’t for sale, and is gifted only at the winery. The Bartolo Mascarello can’t be topped.

I visited Boroli recently, and was told that they have stopped making the Chinato.

I’ve gotten to try these Chinatos (Chinati undoubtedly more correct) at Tom’s over the last week or two and, though my consumption has been far less than Tom’s, I also feel quite well protected against malaria.

I liked the Baroli version the best, and Tom and I were talking about its alcoholic content the other night at a Bordeaux tasting (Tom does do Bordeaux tastings, though only for group solidarity). It seems really alcoholic, and we were speculating in the 40% range, but it turns out it’s only 16.5% – you know, right in the sweet spot for some California pinot!

Very interesting stuff. A little bit goes a long way.

Hi Larry
Technically (but a little clumsily) Barolo Chinati could be used for the plural, though linguistic butchery is starting to pluralise place names as well, with this forum often seeming happy with this *trend. Easier on the ear is bottiglie di Barolo Chinato.

So Chinatos is perfectly fine for an English language forum.

regards
Ian

• Languages do change over time, and old rules get relaxed or ignored. Some people may equally be irritated by ‘wossup!’, ‘innit’ and ‘yernowohimin’, but that’s the evolution of language.

Had this one NARDINI TAGLIATELLA LIQUEUR yesterday in a very similar vein to Amaros. Really enjoyed it. Don’t drink much of these at home as my wife hates them but I really like them.