For the 7th anniversary of my wife and I’s meeting, we decided to open the oldest dry and oldest dessert wines we have yet had and added in a white for good measure. We have very different food preferences, so she had sushi while I ordered from a great nearby Italian spot. We intended to cook up some Ribeye/Delmonico from Morgan Ranch a bit later, but were still satiated from the later than expected lunch.
2011 Jermann Vintage Tunina Venezia Giulia IGT
To preface this note, I do not drink dry still white wine very often at all. 3 other bottles this year to put that into perspective besides a handful of others at tastings or that guests brought. From what I understand this wine was a blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Ribolla Gialla, Malvasia Istriana, and Picolit. These wines are sealed with a screwcap.
The nose was not quite appealing to me rubber and some spice. The palate however was a bit more interesting. The wine seemed to glide across the tongue until it engulfs it in lemon grass, candied lemon peels and sourdough. Although the flavor was buttery, the texture was much more so. The finish lingered and a bit more sweetness emerged with notes of honey, golden delicious apple and even some honeydew.
1967 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Normale
To put further into perspective that number of 4 dry still white bottles opened, I have opened 21 Nebbiolo alone this year. Initially we intended to open this a week prior, so the wine got to stand for 10 days. I double decanted but used a different bottle when removing it from the decanter because the bottom was coated in sediment that was not so easily removed.
This wine was perfumed! I first opened it next to fresh flowers but instantly I was consumed by cloves and roses from the wine.
The color was a translucent garnet. I am generally not one to care so much about the visual of a wine, but found this color to be quite pleasant and I may have been able to help it a bit more than I did during the double decanting.
The first glass was poured less than an hour after it was initially opened and paired with pappardelle pasta with mushrooms in a truffle cream sauce as well as pizza with a truffle cream base, mushrooms, caramelized onions, and Prosciutto di Parma. The palate started with a burst of acidity showing tart cherries in a way that initially made the wine seem much younger than the nose and color would suggest. The acidity softened quickly and an array of flavors slowly unraveled themselves. After the cherries which dried out as the acidity receded, anise was the most dominant of those flavors. As it softened, the dried cherries were accompanied by strawberries, which gave new life to the wine, keeping it pretty vibrant for a 55-year-old wine.
The 2nd glass, about 2.5 hours in, started to show a more rustic side with the fruit followed quickly by forest floor, leather, some minerality, and even a bit of iron. Over about 45 minutes in the glass the wine found another gear. A sweetness began to appear late in the palate, adding a layer of complexity that I really loved with dried figs and hazelnut.
The 3rd glass was started a little over 4 hours in with another reheated slice of the pizza from earlier. The pairing was again excellent, and perhaps saved a portion of the 3rd glass, because once the slice was gone the wine began to struggle. The fruit dissipated but the acidity remained apparent on the front end. The wine continued to fade in the glass.
1959 Antonio Ferrari Solaria Jonica
Sadly, this bottle did not make it the 73 years. It was fizzy, and showed wet cardboard. I have left it out since hoping something will change, despite being certain that it won’t.
So, to close the evening out we opened a 2011 Alvear Pedro Ximenez de Anada, which was excellent and will likely be consumed over the next few days. No notes yet here.