TN: Interesting New Reds...(long/boring)

WINE TALK
1

We tasted tonight (12/3/14) Some New Reds:

  1. Forlorn-Hope Valdiguie AlFredianiVnyd/NapaVlly (45 cs; 47 cs; 12.52%) 2012: Med.light color; very fragrant
    grapey/strawberr/Gamay-like/alpine strawberry some herbal/thyme very spicy quite dusty/OV very perfumey nose;
    bit tart very bright/alpine strawberries/Gamay-like bit herbal/thyme very spicy/perfumed flavor w/ very light
    tannins; long perfumed/fruity/alpine strawberries bit earthy/herbal/thyme/musky w/ light tannins; doesn’t have
    the heft of a Gamay/Beauj; a bit like a Jura/Trousseau or an AltoAdige/Schiava; quite a pretty/drinkable red.
    $35.00
  1. Idlewild Valdiguie EnzenauerVnyd/DryCreekVlly/SonomaCnty (12.5%; 75 yr old vines) 2013: Very light color;
    more earthy/Beauj-like spicy/strawberry/grapey lightly spicy/earthy rather fragrant/perfumed nose; bit tart
    some earthy/dusty/Beauj-like bright grapey/fruity/strawberry flavor w/ light tannins; long bright/Gamay-like/
    earthy/strawberry some Beauj-like finish w/ light/gentle tannins; a bit more heft & grapiness and more
    Beauj-like wine; quite an attractive/easy-drinking red at a very good price. $22.00
  1. Harrington Carignane Lover’sLaneVnyd/MendoCnty (13.5%; Planted in the '30’s; 31 cs) 2012: Med.color; rather
    dusty/OV light black cherry/Carig somewhat spicy fairly perfumed nose; rather tart/lean light black cherry/
    cherry/Carig bit coarse/rustic flavor w/ light/rough tannins; med.long fairly dusty/OV light cherry/black
    cherry/Carig/spicy some coarse/earthy/rustic finish w/ light/coarse tannins; some like a Languedoc Carignan
    w/o the hard tannins; pretty light on its feet red for a Carignan. $25.00
  1. Harrington Carignane Lover’sLaneVnyd/MendoCnty (80 yr old vines; 14.1%) 2013: Med.dark color; much richer/riper
    strong black cherry/boysenberry/Carig quite spicy/fragrant nose; softer rich/lush/riper strong black cherry/
    boysenberry/Carig quite spicy slight Mendo tomatoey/licorice flavor w/ light/soft tannins; very long quite
    spicy ripe/lush black cherry/black cherry cola/boysenberry slight Mendo tomatoey/licorice finish w/ soft/
    gentle tannins; reminds a bit of Ridge Buchignani w/o the oak hit, some of a Priorat Carignan; doesn’t show
    the coarse/rustic side of Carignane; maybe you can make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. $25.00
  1. Idlewild Carignan TestaVnyd/MendoCnty (14.2%) 2013: Dark color; rather fragrant/perfumed quite spicy some cherry/
    black cherry/black cherry cola bright very attractive nose; fairly tart bright cherry/black cherry/Carig
    light toasty/oak some earthy/dusty/OV finish w/ light/gentle tannins; very long bright/cherry/black cherry/Carig/
    very spicy light toasty/oak some earthy/dusty finish w/ some smooth tannins; a very nice rendition of Calif
    Carignane that avoids the coarse/rustic character of the grape. $32.00
  1. Shardana IGT Valli di Porto Pino/Sardinia (Carignano; 13%) 1998: Dark color w/ some browning; rather earthy/
    dusty/OV fairly grapey/Carignan very ripe bit funky/hot-climate/goat-pen nose; soft rather coarse/ruustic/
    hot-climate/funky rather earthy/loamy little fruit flavor w/ light/gentle/coarse tannins; med.short earthy/
    dusty pretty rustic/coarse/funky/hot-climate finish w/ light/coarse tannins; a bit on the old/tired side but
    much better shape than I’d expect for 15 yr-old Carignane; quite coarse/rustic/earthy. $24.00 (LM)
  1. BedrockWineCo Carignane BedrockVnyd/SonomaVlly/SonomaCnty (14.6%; Planted in 1888; 4 brls) 2012: Dark color;
    strong dusty/OV light vanilla/toasty/oak deeper black cherry/black cherry cola/Carig/boysenberry ripe/lush
    fairly intense lovely nose; soft rich/lush quite dusty/OV strong blackberry/black cherry/boysenberry/ripe
    light toasty/oak flavor w/ light/smooth tannins; very long/lingering black cherry/boysenberry/Carig/ripe
    strong toasty/oak quite spicy/dusty/OV structured finish w/ some smooth/round tannins; lots of deep black
    cherry character; speaks strongly of Bedrock OV style; deep/lush lovely Carig. $34.00
  1. Toccata Barbera LosAlamosVnyd/SBC (14.5%) 2010: Med.light color; rather pleasant/Barbera/light spicy some
    fruity/simple/grapey/pleasant nose; soft light Barbera/spicy/cherry light earthy some fruity/grapey flavor
    w/ light/gentle tannins; med. pleasant spicy/cherry/Barbera/fruity slight earthy finish w/ light tannins;
    a pleasant/simple/fruit red but nothing more; a pretty low-impact Barbera. $29.00
  1. Idlewild Barbera FoxHillVnyd/MendoCnty (14.4%) 2013: Very strong TCA/corked nose that permeates the flavor;
    pretty much destroyed this wine; too bad. $32.00
  1. ElioAltare Larigi DOC: Langhe (Vines planted in 1948 in LaMorra; 3-4 days in rotary fermentors; 18 mo in
    new Fr.barrique; 100% Barbera; L.11-07-12; 14.5%) LaMorra 2010    : Very dark/near black color; strong spicy/
    Barbera/Italian sausage bit herbal/peppery/menthol very strong toasty/charred/Fr.oak very International-style
    nose; soft very lush/ripe some Barbera/spicy/Italian sausage very plummy/fruity loads of toasty/charred/
    smokey/Fr.oak flavor w/ some soft/ripe tannins; very long some spicy/Barbera loads of charred/toasty/Fr.oak
    very ripe/plummy/lush finish w/ ample soft/ripe/smooth tannins; a Piemonte Barbera that’s been transmorgified
    into a NapaVlly Cabernet; quite a tasty/ready-to-drink wine but speaks not of Piemonte Barbera; grossly
    overpriced at $92.00 (AV)
  1. Toccata Dolcetto LosAlamosVnyd/SBC (13.5%) 2010: Med.light color; pleasant grapey/plummy/fruity simple nose
    w/ slight Dolcetto character; soft light/fruity/grapey bit plummy/licorice simple flavor w/ very little
    tannins; med. lightly fruity/grapey/plummy/licorice simple finish w/ little tannins; a rather vapid/innocuous
    fruity little red w/ no distinguishing characteristics. $19.00
  1. Idlewild Dolcetto FoxHillVnyd/MendoCnty (12.1%) 2013: Med.light color; quite spicy/fragrant grapey/Dolcetto/
    plummy/slight licorice bit earthy fairly fragrant nose; slightly tart some earthy/loamy strong grapey/Dolcetto/
    fruity/light licorice flavor w/ light tannins; med.long grapey/fruity/Dolcetto/plummy/pomengranate light
    licorice/pungent finish w/ light/lean tannins; an attractive Calif red that speaks quietly of Dolcetto but
    not the heft or intensity of Piemontese Dolcettos. $30.00

And more stupid stuff from TheBloodyPulpit:

  1. Valdiguie: What used to be known in Calif as NapaGamay. Makes wines rather similiar to Beaujolais/Gamay.
    Not a whole lot of real GamayBeaujolais a jus Blanc is planted in Calif. The NapaGamay was identified in
    Calif in 1980 by PierreGalet as the Fench Valdiguie, which is now the accepted name for the variety.
  1. Carignane: Appears to have originated in NE Spain as a spontaneous cross in a vnyd there. No known parents.
    Also known in Spain as Carinena and Mazuelo. The workhorse grape in Southern France as well as in Priorat.
    I’m not a big fan of Calif Carig. It often has a tart/tannic character that suggests it might age well,
    but seldom seems to do so. It often has a coarse/rough/rustic character compared w/ the more high-toned
    character of Zin. I particularly liked this Harrington ('13), Idlewild, and Bedrock rendition as they seemed
    to avoid the coarse side of Carignane.
  1. Toccata: The is the Lucas&Lewellen label for their Italian varietals. These two reds were very much on the
    simple/innocuous side and not strongly varietal. I think they do better w/ their whites.
  1. Dolcetto: Known as “little sweet” in Italy. Its origins are unknown but suspected to be in Dogliani, where
    most of the better Dolcettos hail from. It is often described as the Beaujolais of Italy. I fail to see
    that analogy. It is usually on the dark side in color. It can sometimes have pretty hard tannins. Beaujo
    it ain’t. The first Calif Dolcetto was made by KentRasmussen. It came in this very ugly tall cobalt-blue
    btl…but was actually pretty delicious. It’s a variety I’d like to see more of in Calif.
    Tom
2

Hey Tom,

Always enjoy your notes. I’ve worked with the Al Frediani Valdiguie the last few years for Buena Vista and added another vineyard (Turner in Knights Valley) this past year. The Frediani definitely has more weight and color in comparison, but than we’re making them more in a Pinot style with no carbonic and probably a bit more extraction than most of the other Val’s I’ve tasted. In terms of flavor profile I find a lot of Malbec characters (dark fruits, blueberry, medium+ body and dark color) when young, but then maybe I’m being influenced by Jancis Robinson’s ancestral charts…

Carignane to me is one of the most mercurial varietals that I work with, depending on the vintage it seems to change from lean and hard to juicy and rich, with out a lot of correlation to growing season, we’ve got two old vine sites we pull from (Caballo Blanco up west of Ukiah and Saitone down the street from De Loach) and put blind I’d have a hard time saying they’re the same variety even if the clusters look the same out in the field.

Finally with Dolcetto, I’ve only had one experience working with it out of the Windsor Oaks vineyard in Chalk Hill/RRV and I agree with the intense tannin nature of the grape… it seems to cling to its bitterness forever, so we ended up making a pretty hefty wine for Buena Vista out of it, waiting for the bitterness to resolve out in the field. Not a lot like any of the Piedmonte Dolcetto’s I’ve had, which tend to have more delicacy to them (in my mind), and something more akin to a PS if anything, but with more gravelly and less graphitey notes (if that makes sense).

Cheers,
Brian Maloney
DeLoach Vineyards and Buena Vista Winery and Cellars

3

Gasp…Brian…are you implying that Carignane reflects its terroir more than any other grape variety??? Say it isn’t so!! [snort.gif]

Thanks for your insight, Brian. I think I had your BuenaVista Valdigue that I got from MX up in Calistoga. I recall it
being a pretty hefty expression of Valdigue…but I recall liking it quite a bit.
Back in the '70 vintage, or '71, JoeSwan made a Gamay that was pretty amazing…big/extracted, like his Zins.
But don’t know if it was Valdigue or PinotNoir. It aged remarkably well.

I don’t have a very good handle on Calif Dolcetto. I wish there was more around to try as I think it can be
a pretty interesting wine.
Tom

4

Within about 6 hrs of posting my TN’s, got an e-mail from SamBilbro wanting to make the corked Barbera right.
Of course, I couldn’t resist…and ended up ordering more of the Cortese and Valdiguie to keep the Barbera company
on its shipping journey.
Another example of great customer service. I was just gonna blow it off. $hit…and TCA… happens.
Tom