Hello, Feastlings.
This month’s Last Sunday tasting finds us with our old friend Andy Ramirez, bringing us wines from the upper corners of the Italian countryside. Three wines from the northeast and three from the northwest, and a solid mix of reds and whites from a handful of producers. The tasting will take place on Sunday, February 24th, at 3:30 pm, and snack will be served, each of which will be paired to its specific wine. All the wines are delicious, but there’ll be a couple of showstoppers at the end (how often to you get to taste serious Barolo and Barbaresco at a wine tasting? Or anywhere else, for that matter?) It’s a mere $35 plus tax and tip. We hope you’ll join us, but if you want to, you’ll need to call us and make a reservation. Remember, web and email reservations won’t save you a seat, so you’ll want to call us at 326-9363 and grab a spot at this one before it’s full. See you there.
NExNW
2017 Venica & Venica “Pètris” Malvasia, Collio DOC $35.00
The grapes were picked and de-stemmed on 6th September. The must was then left on the skins for 20 hours at a temperature of 10°-12° C in tanks specially designed to protect it from oxygen by using recycled carbon dioxide from the first fermentation, thus reducing levels of antioxidants. Subsequently 60% fermented and aged on the lees for 5 months. Straw yellow with golden reflections. Broad and delicately aromatic on the nose with hints of apricot and peach. The palate is smooth and fleshy with fresh acidity to balance the alcohol.
2017 Venica & Venica “Jesera” Pinot Grigio, Collio DOC $23.00
Harvested in August and left on the skins for 4-6 hours to achieve ramato coloration. Subsequently 10% fermented and aged on the lees for five months in 20-27 hl barrels and the remainder in steel tanks.
Fresh and inviting on the nose with notes of acacia blossom. Intense, dry and full-bodied on the palate, with good acidity and excellent balance.
2017 Cantine Lenotti Bardolino Classico DOC $13.00
Predominantly Corvina with some Rondinella and a few other assorted varietals, this field blend from the eastern shores of Lake Garda offers light, fresh fruit, soft and easy enough to drink with fish and appetizers but fleshy enough to enjoy with aged cheeses.
2014 La Spinetta “Ca’ di Pian” Barbera d’Asti DOCG $27.00
From Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate: “The Barbera grape from Asti tends to show crisper lines and sharper acidity when compared to the Barbera grape from Alba. However, this interpretation is more difficult to peg down. The 2014 Barbera d’Asti Ca’ di Pian is a mid-weight effort with a dark appearance and rich concentration. Fruit is sourced from 45-year-old vines so that richness comes naturally. Yields were farmed low, and the wine’s acidity has been greatly tamed as a result. This was a bad vintage for Barbera, but you would never know it, thanks to the high quality presented in this wine.”
2015 La Spinetta “Bordini” Barbaresco DOCG $65.00
The 2015 Barbaresco Vigneto Bordini is La Spinetta’s most accessible expression of Barbaresco. I tasted the wine one month after it was bottled. This edition should be hitting the market within the next few months. Fruit for this wine comes from the southeast side of the Bordini cru that is known for softer and sweeter berries. That ripeness is particularly evident in this warm vintage. This wine is packed tight with flavors of cherry and blackberry confit and ends with powerful 14.5% alcohol. This is a ripe-tasting, near-term Barbaresco. (Wine Advocate again.)
2014 G. D. Vajra “Albe” Barolo DOCG $51.00
Abundant rainfalls and low temperatures were the norm throughout the season of the 2014 vintage, with snow on the mountains at low altitudes for most of the summer. Alas, the season had an early start due to the gentle Spring, and lengthened more than usual thanks to a wonderful, dry Indian summer that lasted until October, with important diurnal temperature drops. Three hailstorms between July and August all spared the Vajra vineyards. The long, yet mild, season allowed late-ripening varietals like Nebbiolo, Freisa, Barbera to deliver wines of finesse, with extremely pure red tones and silky tannins. 2014 is one of the most vibrant and elegant vintages for GD Vajra’s Barolo Albe. Red fruit aromatics wrap all senses. The fresh, pure aromatics allow this wine to be enjoyed young with a plenitude of pairing, or to be aged for approximately fifteen years after release.