Wine Impressions 5-19-19

Wine Impressions - 5-19-19

(Aside: most of the wines with prices listed were from Total Wine. With my cellar in CA and me in FL, sometimes one must shop local.)

Bubbles:
N/V Ridgeview, Sparkling Rose - from Sussex, England; a Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunière blend; fruit driven with character, good bead, fine acids, pretty textures and real flavor (so many sparkling wines have very little flavor that I can discern). Pricy but quite nice.
N/V Monistrol, Cava Brut - I’ve had this wine many times and enjoyed it but this bottle is sulfurous and it ruins the experience.

Whites:
2008 Lopez de Heredia, Blanco Gravonia - starts out tight but opens over the evening, complex nose with an overall savory delivery, young on the palate but showing good complexity and finesse, medium length. Not as precise as the Tondonia bottling but still, a wine to sip with or without food; we had it as starter and then with both tuna tartar and pasta with pesto. Nice wine.
2017 Bougrier, Muscadet - screwcap; typical of the grape and place but slightly sour, not so much that you want to dump it but probably not drink the whole bottle. A glass for an aperitif is ok. $11. Not a re-buy.
2017 Greek Wine Cellars, Assyrtiko Santorini - dense and full on the nose and in the mouth, lovely textures, good acidity, full but structured; much more than expected, especially from a co-op. This place/variety deserve your attention. $20. Re-buy.
2016 George’s Vigouroux, Pigmentum - Cotes de Gascogne that’s 60/40 Ugni Blanc and Colombard; composite closure that was extremely hard to pull; deep golden color, white fruit nose with some cognac florals, fresh in the mouth with a part sweet (like the RS level of a Qba Riesling) and part dry delivery - a bit odd but in a good way and the freshness is engaging. $10. Probably not a re-buy.
2018 Eguren, Viura - light, clean, fruit-sweet, balanced, delicious and joyful. A no-brainer at $6. Re-buy a case.
2018 Saladini Pilastri, Pecorino - complete nose, viscous without cloy, bright, citric and long. Quite good and only $13. (This is the second vintage of this wine I’ve tasted and both are re-buys)
2017 Bellini, Orvieto Classico - commonplace but not objectionable; slightly bitter, crisp, with a nod toward citrus. I will say that as this warms from refrigerator temp. it gets much better because the bitterness dissipates. $10. Not a re-buy.
2018 Quinta de Azevedo, Vinho Verde - estate grown and with just a bit more aroma, flavor and elegance than the typical. Nice. $10. Re-buy.
2017 Casale Burgio, Catarratto - from Sicily; grapefruit skin marinated in lime juice aromas, more density and volume in the mouth than expected yet still lots of angles going on - a unique wine, very dry, odd but also sort of intriguing. $15. Not a re-buy.
2016 Hermès, Moschofilero - plastic closure; aromatic, citric, not as delicate as this variety often is with some bass tones on the palate, good acidity and balance. Once this warms a bit, it’s quite nice. Re-buy. $13.
2018 Scilio, Etna Bianco - 100% Carricante; a complete wine that is fruit sweet, bright, has some depth and definitely some finesse. ‘Becoming a fan of this grape when, like here, it stays toward the feminine side. $22. Re-buy.

Reds:
2015 La Sacrestia, Nebbiolo Langhe - typical Langhe Nebbiolo without tricks or undue oak. A touch rustic but balanced and nice fruit. Quite good with pizza. $17. Re-buy.
2014 Dominio de Tares, Baltos - 100% Mencia from Bierzo; lightly floral, soft edged dark fruit, licorice, dark semi-sweet chocolate and a light touch of freshly turned earth; medium weight, fleshy and a kind of loose deliciousness. Has an old vine density without being ponderous. Quite good. $15. Re-buy.
2015 Quevedo, Oscar’s Red - a Port house makes Douro table wine; Touriga Nacional and Tinta Roriz; full fruit nose with earthy accents, great structure and depth with an intense, mouth-filling delivery and lots of sustain. A balanced and impressive rendition of this blend and appears to have what it takes to develop over time. Around $12-15. Re-buy.
2017 Jadot, Beaujolais-Villages - as usual, a clear, balanced expression of Gamay without artifice; as reliably good (but not great) a wine, year in, year out, as one can find at the price point. $10. Maybe a re-buy.
2017 Rilento, Nerello Mascalese - from Sicily; straight-forward, typical, a bit volatile but not such that it detracts, but has too much of a mustard aroma and flavor. $8. Not a re-buy.
2015 Saladini Pilastri, Pregio del Cont’e - Montepulcino and Aglianico; there is nothing wrong with this wine - good balance, clear flavors, good tannin management, integrated - but I just don’t like Aglianico. $18; no re-buy.

Best, Jim

When we did Greek wines a few summers ago, my impression was of very high acid, exceptionally clean wines, which seemed as though they could age just about forever [assuming their corks held true].

Like yours, the prices I saw were just a little on the high side - given the current import channels into the USA, dollar for dollar, the Loire can still beat the Greek wines in value.

But for AFWE acid-heads, who love clean wines, Greece has some dynamite products to offer.

An odd name for a winery. At least “Produttori” sounds cool for a coop. Couldn’t they come up with something more original?

With Total Wine, it’s always possible that the original producer did have a cool name, but it was more advantageous legalistically & financially for Total to slap their own branding on the bottle.

I imagine the Assyrtiko is from Santo, the Santorini Wine Cooperative. While Santo’s Assyrtiko doesn’t reach the heights of the other Santorini wineries, they make a consistently good Assyrtiko that sells for a more than fair price.

Santorini Assyrtiko is one of the world’s great white wines.

Seems like the selection at Total Wine is getting worse, at least for their Italian selection. It was never great but I was usually able to put together a decent case or so of Italian wine and felt the were strongest in the south. Just jumped on-line to check the inventory of the closest store and much of what I used to buy there is no longer available. Replaced with direct imports of which I have little interest.

Brian,
I am not as familiar with the inventory at Total, past or present, but I have noticed that when I arrive at check out, most of my cart is white wine, and much of that from Italy or Iberia. There seem to be some nice wines in those areas that are also reasonably priced.
Best, Jim

Thanks Jim–appreciate your fining the distinction between the Gravonia and the more familiar Tondonia. Would you say that the Gravonia presents itself as earlier-to-maturity?

Pecorino has such a gamut of quality. Glad to have a reference for a good one. Now to try and find it…

Any others of that varietal that you have enjoyed?

Haere Ra,

Mike

Jim, you may already know about them, but B-21 online and near Tampa has a pretty good wine selection at very fair prices and a flat rate $12 shipping at least in FL. We discovered them this past winter while we were in FL and they contributed to acquisition>>consumption for those months. Cheers, -Jim

B-21 has free shipping on a case minimum today and every 21st of the month.

I like the Gavalas Assyrtiko from Santorini

Very familiar with B-21 but thanks.

Gravonia ready sooner then Tondonia? Probably but I’m sure there are exceptions.
Pecorino is a relatively new grape to me; I may have tasted ten in total. None have been bad; I just like this one.

Best, Jim

Nathan,
I am not as quick to paint Greek whites with the high acid brush. I admit having only a handful but I have found them pretty balanced for the most part. Perhaps, that says more about me than them.
As for the Loire, my experience there is substantial and I have seen prices rise significantly over the past twenty years. There are values, certainly, but it seems there are values almost everywhere if you search.
The search continues . . .
Best, Jim