Decanted and rested for a good 4 hours.
We had the wine with a nice « Portehouse » with demi-glace port sauce!
There was a bit of fine deposit on the edges of the bottle !
Appearance : Nice intense red ruby robe.
Nose: First aromas are of flowers and black cherries.
After a few swirls, there are nice aromas of leather, spices and some hints of mint!
Taste: The mouth feel is velvety but also quite nicely balanced!
Lots of nice red fruits, sour cherries & nice cranberry action with some spices!
The tannins are somewhat silky and the nice dose of acidity makes for a very fresh and smooth wine.
The finish is quite long and tasty!
Overall:
I really enjoyed this wine and was quite surprised by how approachable it is at this stage.
The acidity present makes for a nicely structured package that should really age well and only get better in time.
This producer is starting to make noise in Quebec and is still a bit “under the radar” but it is well worth the detour if you can get your hands on it!!! :!:
I have heard so much good stuff about QB, and wish they were imported into the U.S. so I could give it a try. Ideally, I’d take another trip to Montalcino to taste (I didn’t visit them when I was there in 2009), but that doesn’t look to be in the cards now that we have a one year old daughter.
I’m visiting Tuscany with a small group in May. Do the QB winemakers conduct a tour and/or tastings? Do you know if anyone at the vineyard is conversant in English? This sounds like a wonderful opportunity to visit and learn. We have booked a farmhouse near Montepulciano, which seems like it is in the area.
I believe that the owners Sandra & Roberto do speak English and also French for that matter. I also know that if you contact them, they would probably be very happy to receive & guide you to the appropriate dates for touring their amazing vineyards and facilities.
Some Quebec acquaintances from a French Canadian wine Forum (FOUDUVIN.CA) that I also participate visited them a few years ago. They were very well received by them. I have posted a link to their blog on their visit to Querce Bettina below, although it is in French, it is very interesting, well written and chock full of passionate information!
Their contact info is on their WEB site as stated in the initial past above!
Many thanks Norm. While we are there we would like to pick up some of their juice from a vintage that is ready to drink. Any idea of price or availability? Do they sell direct from the vineyard?
Pricing around here in Canada is about 80$ for the 2004 BDM, I believe they do sell direct from the winery, the best I think, would be to contact them at this email for details–> info@quercebettina.it
Yes! Got a very enthusiastic reply which appears to be from Sandra. Can’t wait to firm up a tour and tasting. This is the kind of experience that makes a Tuscany trip special. Tip o’ the hat to you for hooking me up!
Just a quick report on our visit to Querce Bettina. We had a fabulous lunch, tour and tasting with Roberto and Sandra. Royal treatment! Excellent wines flowed freely. I bought some to drink on our trip and had a half dozen '05 Brunellos and 3 '06 Magnums shipped home. They were out of the 06 750’s, but did have the 06 Riserva. It was excellent, but–to my taste–not significantly above the standard 06 Brunello (which was less expensive). I would heartily recomment these folks. Friendly, engaging, small operation. First class!