Hey Guys,
Sorry for such a long first post. But maybe someone will make it through. I posted on the “other board” a few years ago but just kinda stopped. I’ve been following all of the recent activities closely with a lot of interest since I am in the wine business. Anyway, here I am and here are some notes!
A few weeks ago I hosted a Ribolla Gialla tasting to learn more about this elusive grape. It is next to impossible to find any wines from this in Maryland, luckily I had a few from New York that I have been collecting over the past year.
Quick lesson – Ribolla Gialla is an Italian grape grown in the Friuli and also in the Brda region of Slovenia. There is a little planted in Napa Vally as well but I couldn’t get a bottle in time. It produces deep colored wines with moderate to high acidity.
As everyone was showing up we opened a few sparklers up.
Glenora Brut 2001 – From the Finger Lakes, Glenora is one of the top sparkling wine producers in my opinion. This didn’t disappoint, it was crisp with a light hay color. Notes of yeast and citrus. Not terribly complex but who cares?
Woodhall Blanc de Blanc 2000 – I helped make this and the winemaker was present so the notes are biased. I thought it was very tasty with a nice nutty nuance. It is starting to get a little long in the tooth. Probably the last time I’ll get to try this wine, so that was special.
On to the Ribollas!!
Jermann Vinnae 2007 – Yellow tined in the glass with lime, grass, and minerals on the nose. It has a nice oily texture with lemon notes and a long limestone finish. Good, but not worth the $30 price of admission.
Movia Ribolla 2005 – A great producer! Golden in color with notes of smoke, banana, and a touch of oxidized/nuttiness that was very appealing. On the palate it was full bodied with caramel flavors and late hitting acidity on the long finish. Very nice wine!
Radikon 2001 Ribolla – Ok, this guy is a freak. No sulphur, no fining, no added yeast. No…NOTHING! This pours out of the bottle looking like apple cider. Orange blossom, lemon, smoke on the nose with cider and nutty flavors. Long black tea finish and again, an oily mouthfeel. This was pretty darn unique and outstanding. To me at least, many people hated it!!
Gravner 2002 Breg – A blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling Italico, Chardonnal, and Tocai aged in amphorae on the skins and aged for 2 years in large Slovenian oak barrels. Knock out nose here with mint, caramel, smoke, and tangerine. On the palate it was equally rich and complex with a saline quality and a tannic bite at the end. Another polarizing wine that I was all over!
One last white.
Bisson Vermentino 2004 – Hay colored with a nice nose of white flowers, beeswax, and seashell. It had a lemony flavor on the finish. Good, but not a standout.
I had asked my friend Mark to bring a red wine…so he brought 5…
Grillo Schioppettino 2005 – Apparently this is Ribolla Nero. Very much like a ripe chinon. Cherry and tobacco notes with leather, smoke, and plum nuance. It was soft on the palate with nice acidity and moderate tannin. I really liked this wine.
Gallo “Winemaker’s Signature” Barbera 2004 – This was a gift to Mark from Gina Gallo. We aren’t sure if this is released for sale or what. Who knew Gallo made a high end Barbera? It was tasty at first with black cherry and leather notes. Ripe fruit, high acid. Pretty nice! Fell apart in an hour or so though.
Massena Barbera – Australian Barbera! Blind, I guessed Aussie Shiraz. Not too far off. Over extracted, high American Oak, dill, olives, blackberry, tasted like raspberry syrup. Noone I know cares for this style of Aussie wine. How does so much of it get sold? All the high points they get? I just don’t get it.
Massolino Barolo Parafada 2000 – Ok, we are back on track here! WOW! Purple color with slight bricking on the rim. Smoke, black tea, and such plush, elegant black cherry fruit. Massolino really makes classy wines and even though this had a high amount of tannin, it was just delicious. I’d love to have a few bottles of this in the cellar. If only I hadn’t just bought some of those Deiss closeouts…
Massolino Barolo 2003 – Such a hot vintage (apparently) Massolino didn’t make any single vineyards, just one Barolo blend. Damn tasty. Lighter red in color with tar and orange peel on the nose and bright cherry. A nice dose of tannin at the end. Also tasty, and fun to taste beside the Parafada, but not quite as good.
How about a semi-sweet low alcohol red to segue into the dessert wines?
Tenuta La Meridiana “La Malaga” 2006 – Very fun! All candied cherries, slight sparkle, nice sweetness. This is like a less sparkling, red Moscato. Not an intellectual wine by any means, but fun to drink.
Bring on the dessert wines!
Colutta Verduzzo Friulano 2005 – Mostly Verduzzo with a touch of a local clone of Riesling. This was outstanding. Golden orange color, nutty/oxidized style with salty, toffee notes and sweet caramel and honey. Long finish. Very nice. Completely new wine for me.
Reif Vidal Icewine 2004 – Waxy golden color, candied apricots on the nose with a very rich palate of honey, orange peel, and dried fruit. On the finish comes in tea leaf and golden raison. From Canada, simply delicious.
Woodhall Traminette Dessert Wine 2007 – Opened up two bottles of this. The first had a faulty cork and was DOA. The second was good, but not as good as it should have been. Not sure what went wrong with my bottles. Bummer.
And since we didn’t open enough wine for 9 people already…
De Forville Barbera – An Italian Barbera to put up against the Cali and Aussie ones. It was nice, cherries, oak, and smoke on the nose. Nice acid. Good but nothing to really get excited about. Solid Barbera.
Overall, quite a blast that lasted about 6 hours. No tasting notes provided for the grappa, marc, and homemade basil-lemoncello that was also consumed.
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