The Edinburgh Wine Club
|
Una Serata Italiana
il 11 novembre, 2015
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This meeting followed a slightly different format with fewer wines
(but more of each!) and a fairly wide selection of food to allow us
to sample different wines with various foods. Also the prices were
disclosed upfront as the wines had been bought in Italy and over a
period of time. Similarly it was agreed that a 'best value' vote was
inappropriate.
The producers' or suppliers' comments are shown first followed by
our own comments in italics.
1. Pinot Grigio Arcole 2013 12.5% £5.74
A
light and refreshing wine with intense flowery nose.
Excellent as an aperitif and also with fish.
Fruity, lovely nose,
honeyed, not as dry as most pinot grigio.
2.
Anselmi 2013 San Vicenzo (80%
garganega, 10% chardonnay, 10% sauvignon blanc) 12.5%
£9.23 Best White
Light
straw
in colour. Crisp and pure, with scents of minerals,
lemon/lime, apricot and yellow apples. Medium-bodied, dry
and fresh, with notes of citrus fruit.
Well-matched
with
smoked or grilled fish, shellfish, lobster salad and roast
chicken.
Light-medium-bodied
and
smooth, it serves up much more intrigue and depth than your
typical northern Italian white at this price, with round
pear-apple-lemon fruit and a hint of flint. Great on its own
or with light fare, such as grilled fish and shellfish.
Comment from Peat
Inn wine list: Appalled at the supermarket commercialisation
of Soave and the ensuing poor public perception of it
maverick Roberto Anselmi famously organised a funeral for
it, procession, coffin and all. Though you wonÕt see the
name on the label this is how Soave should be!
Lemons on nose, full bodied, citric and dry, well balanced
acidity
3. Munus Rizzardi 2013 13% £7.10
This
wine
is made by long established producers Rizzardi and comes
from the Bardolino region of Lake Garda. (We actually
purchased it at this yearÕs Bardolino festival having
sampled a few local wines and having enjoyed a plate of
pasta served from one of the many outdoor stalls.)
Made
from
a blend of Corvina, Rondinella, Corvinone and Merlot, this
is a complex wine with layers of rich, silky smooth
blackberry and black cherry fruit.
Smokey red berry nose, wonderful aftertaste,
velvety, strawberries/vanilla on nose, seems older than 2013, like
a burgundy.
4.
Barbaresco Vecchia Storia 2007 (nebbiolo) 13.5% £12.34
Equal best wine
After
vinification
in steel tanks the wine is matured in large oak casks for 32
months. Goes well with game, roasted meats and matured
cheeses.
We
tasted
the 2004 vintage in 2012.
Fine well rounded, burnt sugar on nose, plummy
fruits in mouth, prune juice, raisins, good legs.
5. Amarone della Valpolicella San
Giorgio 2004 15.5% £19.00 (bought in
2007) Equal best wine
Amarone
is
when a Ricioto style wine is fermented completely dry as
opposed to sweet. (Ricioto is when the grapes are left to
ripen on the vine and then taken to special drying rooms to
increase the sugar level producing a rich sweet wine. This
method has been used for centuries.) This wine was
historically an accident when a Ricioto fermentation went
too far. However, in the 1950s the process was resurrected
and perfected.
Today
Amarone
is a highly respected fine wine of the world. With its high
alcohol, it manages to capture the rich notes from the
drying but still holds on to a great acidity due to the cool
climate of Valpolicella.
(We
have
tasted this same wine at EWC meetings in 2008 and 2014.)
Slightly sweet, long warm finish, great colour and legs,
marzipan nose, seems to get better and better.
6. Ricioto di Soave Bixio 2009 13.5%
(garganega) £14.63
Beautifully balanced, honeyed nose, reasonable
acidity, nice syrupy flavour but not sugary.
7. Ricioto di Soave Gini 2004 14%
(garganega) £28.68
Even more beautifully balanced, honey and orange,
complex nose, jammy, mineral.