Radikon 2001 Venezia Giuli Ribolla Gialla (Friuli-Venezia Giulia) – Big, full and ripe. I see almost no way to not view this as a red wine, except…well, it’s white. Rainier cherries come at you amidst a solid wall of complexity, and there’s an endless, fairly tannic finish to deal with as well. This wine is not yet unthreaded from its tangled youth, either. (1/08)
Browse Month
February 2008
Lagrein belt
Mayr-Nusser “Nusserhof” 2004 Lagrein “Riserva” (Alto Adige) – Quartzy minerality, cold verbena, and mint. Pretty, in a very Teutonic way, with a lovely finish (perhaps that comes after the Teutonic beauty finally warms up). (1/08)
Young Tyroldego
Mayr-Nusser “Nusserhof” 2003 “Tyroldego” (Alto Adige) – If I gave out points (which I don’t), this one would get 100 of ‘em just for the label pun (for the less geeky, that’s the teroldego grape from the Südtirol, the name of the Alto Adige region amongst German speakers). Dusty and dark, with chewy cherry and fennel, plus a bit of peanut. Balanced, long. Perhaps a bit stiff, but otherwise solid. (1/08)
TT boy
Mayr-Nusser “Nusserhof” 2006 Blaterle (Alto Adige) – Or possibly Blatterle. There seems to be some disagreement between labels past and present, marketing materials, the web, dubious sources, and authoritative sources. I certainly can’t adjudicate. Anyway: papaya dominates a big, fat nose to which acidity and structure are joined much, much later. There are falling apple leaves, as well. This wine is all about cold-climate diffidence, and that’s pretty much how I feel about it. I’m still waiting for my blat(t)erle epiphany. (1/08)
The Swiss mint
cascina ‘tavijn 2006 Ruché di Castagnole Monferrato (Piedmont) – Exotic florals and bitter candy. A strange combination. There’s a lot of lurid fun to be had, though it’s a little more structured than the last vintage I tasted (2004), with a long, spandexy finish. Hey, no one promised slavish conformity here… (1/08)
Ba-ba-ba, ba-ba-bera
cascina ‘tavijn 2005 Barbera d’Asti (Piedmont) – Slightly medicinal, with big, fun acidity in the form of crisp apples fresh from the tree. It’s an acid that bites with the faintly bitter tang of underripeness. All red fruit on the finish. Old school! (1/08)
American Grigno(lino)
cascina ‘tavijn 2006 Grignolino d’Asti (Piedmont) – Small, tight, and slightly angry. Albino wine – all bones and shells – with white-pepper tannin. Quite acidic, too. Wants, needs, cries out for: food. (1/08)
Nero fiddled
Occhipinti 2006 Siccagno Nero d’Avola (Sicily) – Fennel fronds, crumbled tar, pomegranate, and layers of soil. I’ve never tasted anything like this. But we’re not done, either; there’s espresso bean, licorice, and gorgeous black fruit as well. Fascinating. Every time I go back to the glass, there’s something else to discover. This may have the best acid balance of any wine I’ve ever tasted, which gives the wine a soda-like intensity of tactility that marries perfectly with the rich tapestry of aromatics. It practically buzzes with electricity. Beautiful. Just beautiful. (1/08)
Pinocchio & frappato
Occhipinti 2006 Il Frappato (Sicily) – Terrific soil aromatics, huge (but ripe) acidity, red strawberry-dominated fruit and red apple skins. Flowers, too. Long, building, and incredibly impressive. Great wine, and still in the first flush of its youth. (1/08)
Leave the body, take the canelli
Bera 2007 Moscato d’Asti “Canelli” (Piedmont) – Not moscato d’Asti as it’s commonly understood, but an almost passito expression…and not gassed, but rather allowed to spontaneously referment. Plus – unlike the vast majority of similarly-labeled wines – meant to age. Its delicate bead is soft yet surprisingly persistent, and the palate is rich with melon and grape. None of the usual flower-truck-crashing-into-a-perfume-shop stuff here. The strength and, it must be said, seriousness of this wine are as surprising as they are profound. Absolutely terrific. (1/08)