Search results for: 'paraje de close'

From the importer: Bush-trained Cannonau (also known as Grenache) from a vineyard called Sas de Melas, at 600 meters (about 2,000 feet) above sea level, near the village of Mamoiada. This altitude is unusual for red wines, and gives the wine uncommon freshness (cooler night-time temperatures at altitude mean higher acidity in the grapes). The vines were planted in 2004 and 2010 in soil based on decomposed granite.

The grapes are picked in late September or early October, de-stemmed and crushed, and fermentation begins using indigenous yeasts only, encouraged by a a ‘pied de cuve'* (Luca believes that cultured yeasts don’t give a wine that truly is representative of place.) The wine is left in contact with the skins for 10-12 days, then pressed off. The wine is aged for about 6 months in stainless steel tanks, lightly fined, then bottled without filtration.

Learn More

94 Points! The 2021 Poggio de Colli, 100% Cabernet Franc, is stunning. It’s peppery and floral throughout, with masses of crushed strawberry and raspberry spiced up by tangerine zest. This impresses further with its wiry textures offset by tantalizing acidity. A core of tart wild berry fruit cascades across the palate, underscored by saline minerals and hints of citrus. Fine-grained tannins emerge through the finish as the 2021 tapers off spicy yet fresh, leaving the mouth watering despite its structure and intensity. This is a ripe vintage for Poggio de Colli, yet it is still a glorious Cabernet Franc that will pay dividends in the cellar. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

Learn More

91 Points! The 2024 Soave Classico Otto impresses with its fresh mix of vividly ripe orchard fruit. It’s airy and lifted with notes of minty herbs, sweet spices and white smoke. A burst of vibrant acidity invigorates the palate as salty minerals saturate. Crisp and clean, the Otto closes with a long, citrus-inflected finish. - Eric Guido, Vinous

Learn More

92 Points! Hailing from vineyards in Dogliani, the 2022 Langhe Nebbiolo from Poderi Einaudi boasts enticing scents of dog rose, violet, red berry and rhubarb. Vinified in steel and cement, the fresh, polished palate features red forest berry, baking spice, graphite and a Mediterranean note recalling myrtle before closing on a hint of rosemary. Thanks to lithe tannins, it’s drinking beautifully right now. - Kerin O'Keefe

Learn More

80% Nerello Mascalese and 20% Nerello Cappuccio from various estate vineyards in Passopisciaro. Each plot is fermented separately with native yeasts in stainless steel. A selection of the resulting batches is then assembled and aged 50% in stainless steel, 50% in 50HL Slavonian neutral oak. A classic Etna Rosso, offering juicy wild berry aromas wrapped in the signature mineral notes typical of volcanic soils. Grilled, smoked herbs close a delicious finish. “Mofete” means “it’s erupting” in Sicilian. Learn More

Learn More

92+ Points! The dusty and floral 2023 Susumaniello Askos offers a refined bouquet of crushed blackberries, incense and exotic spice. Silky and round, its core of tactile minerals adds form toward the close. The 2023 finishes structured and long, leaving a coating of fine tannins and a lingering resonance of polished wild berry fruit. This could use some time in the cellar to come fully into focus, but it shows the complexity that Susumaniello can deliver. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

Learn More

Learn More

This cuvée is a selection of Nebbiolo from the younger vines of the various “cru” in Barbaresco supplemented by grapes from the neighboring village of Neive.  The average age of the vines is 30 years.  The wine is fermented in stainless steel for 10 days to 2 weeks and then is refined in large oak barrels for an additional year before being bottled.  An astonishing value … as are all of the fine wines from this remarkable estate.

Learn More

92 Points! Darkly alluring, almost smokey in nature, the 2019 Rosso Granomelo tempts the senses with a complex blend of black currants, exotic spice, air-dried meats and crushed rocks. This seems to hover across the palate, lifted and finessed, with rose-tinged red berries that slowly take on a more savory profile as saline-mineral tones form toward the close. The 2019 lingers with impressive length and is potent, blending wild herbs with black fruits and blood orange hints that slowly fade to leave behind a fine web of tannin. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

Learn More

97 Points! The 2016 Santa Croce is the estate’s blend of equal parts Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon that spent close to eight years in cask during a time when proprietor Coralia Pignatelli della Leonessa was ill and some lots sat undisturbed in cellar for extended periods. Dark red fruit, rose petal, spice and menthol build in the glass. Most suprisingly, the 2016 is shockingly fresh for a wine of its age . This is a great, great wine. It’s not Sangiovese, it’s not Cabernet Sauvignon, it’s not a blend. It’s simply Castell’in Villa at its most profound. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

Learn More

96 Points! The Domenico Clerico 2019 Barolo Ginestra Ciabot Mentin (with 5,500 bottles made with fruit from vines planted in 1978) is a bit closed initially. This is a trait I found across a vintage that gives us good reason to bet on long bottle-aging potential. There is dark fruit and spice with licorice and grilled herb. Rusty mineral nuances also emerge slowly from the bouquet. This wine needs a double decant if consumed on the young side, but you're better off waiting. I came back to my open sample 24 hours later, and the wine was singing beautifully. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

Learn More

98 Points! Enticing aromas of red cherries, dried strawberries and hints of plums, cedar, sandalwood and balsamic. Medium-bodied with a tight and rich center palate and a chewy and powerful finish. This needs time to come together and soften slightly. - JamesSuckling.com

97 Points! Aromas of new leather, spiced black plum, violet and camphor unfold on the bold and beautiful 2021 Brunello Pianrosso. Combining power and restraint, the full-bodied palate delivers layers of ripe Morello cherry, raspberry jam, licorice and fine tobacco blend before a spiced orange zest close. Velvety, enveloping tannins provide seamless support. - Kerin O'Keefe

Learn More

91+ Points! The 2007 Barbaresco Asili speaks eloquently to the silkiness and elegance of this great site. Freshly cut roses and berries of all sorts make a positive first impression. The Asili shows gorgeous freshness and depth in a classic, mid-weight expression of this vineyard. There is a wonderful sense of harmony that flows through to the finish, as the fruit and tannins remain composed and nicely integrated. With time in the glass the Asili closes in on itself. I am not sure it has the warm radiance that is typical of so many wines in this vintage, but it is nevertheless a strong effort. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2025. - Antonio Galloni, robertparker.com

Learn More

96 Points! A mentholated freshness introduces the 2019 Brunello di Montalcino, as a vibrant wave of crushed cherries, mint leaf, clove, and dusty roses make up it's absolutely gorgeous bouquet. This is silky and enveloping, yet lifted and full of energy, with crunchy red berry fruits that leave a crackle primary concentration towards the close. It finishes pretty saline and spicy in character, leaving edgy tannins that mingle with a residual bump of acidity that maintains a wonderfully fresh sensation as tart cranberry notes fade. This is one of the most exciting young renditions of Voliero I have ever tasted. It captivates with a precision and spry personality while holding depths of complexity in reserve. Wow. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

Learn More

92 Points! The 2019 Sangiovese Romagna Superiore Thea opens slowly in the glass with an understated mix of sage and dusty dried roses, giving way to nuances of strawberry and mint. This is silky and elegant in feel with mineral-tinged tart wild berries carried by zesty acids, as pretty inner violet tones form toward the close. A coating of fine tannins lingers through the lightly structured finale, but they are sweet and round as vivid raspberry and blood orange notes slowly fade. The Thea is a single-vineyard Sangiovese refined in tonneaux for nine months, 40% new. The 2019 is very attractive, but give it another year or two of cellaring for the best results. (Drink between 2024-2028) - Eric Guido, Vinous

Learn More

From the importer:

Made entirely of organically grown Teroldego grapes, picked around the end of September; bunches are entirely destemmed, 50% of the berries are left whole; fermentation is sometimes carried out with indigenous yeast, sometimes with cultivated yeast, depending on the vintage. Fermentation and maceration take place in both wooden and unlined cement fermenters, for a total of up to 40-50 days. The wine is aged in French oak barrels of between 2,500 and 4,000 liters capacity and in unlined cement tanks for about 10 months. About 2,500 cases are produced.

Color is a gorgeous opaque violet-tinged purple; on nose and palate the wine makes me think of cooler-climate Syrah with hints of Cabernet Franc, very berryish, meaty, some Assam tea notes, some herbal notes, rusty/meaty hints, big but not at all bitter. Fresh palate, long finish with almond note.

Learn More

96 Points! Also yet to be released is the 2019 Barolo Riserva Cerretta Vigna Bricco, which is deep and expressive of this structured vintage and textbook Serralunga power. It’s sanguine and deep with notes of leather, ripe cherries, dark stony earth, sage, and floral perfume. Fabulous all around, it fills the palate with rich, well-defined tannins, gravelly angular texture, refreshing acidity, and savory notes of tea leaf and truffle on the finish. It’s a contemplative wine built to last the long haul over the next several decades. - Audrey Frick, jebdunnuck.com

95 Points! The Elio Altare 2019 Barolo Riserva Cerretta shows some tertiary definition with aromas of sambuca, licorice, tar and campfire ash. But it also has a sweet side from the oak, with dusty cinnamon and dried fruit. It is full-bodied with velvety tannins, closing with a hint of sweet cherry liqueur. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

Learn More

95 Points! The 2019 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva tempts the imagination as a mix of geranium and rose petals complement citrus-laced blackberries and hints of violet pastille. This is lifted and finessed with vibrant acidity and masses of mineral infused red and black fruit aromas offset by a tinge of orange zest toward the close. The finish reveals its tannic and poised structure, yet it's blended with a primary concentration that adds tremendous balance as nuances of tobacco and licorice fade. Bury this deep in the cellar. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

95 Points! Packed with cherry and blackberry fruit, this red is dense and a bit chunky at this stage. Mineral, earth and floral notes add depth, and this finishes with echoes of fruit and earth, plus the emergence of Tuscan scrub accents. A solid base of tannins lends support; this is balanced and built for the long haul. - Wine Spectator

Learn More

Best Grignolino ever? I can tell you I've had none better...

From the importer:

Italian import consultant and brand manager for many significant Italian producers, Gino Della Porta, and his close friend, superstar-enologist Gian Luca Colombo founded Sette in 2017 with the purchase of a 5.8ha hill in Bricco di Nizza, in Nizza Monferrato. They join the new generation of driven young winegrowers who experiment with new and ancient techniques to express their vision of wine free from cultural and regional expectations while employing the most ecological methods possible. Certified organic since 2018 and in conversion to biodynamics in 2020, their terroir is composed of sandy limestone, chalk, and a wide variety of other siliceous geological formations on steep hills with great variations of soil grain.

The Sette Grignolino was destemmed and naturally fermented up to 18°C for 20-22 days with 2 daily punchdowns aged 9 months in Tava Amphoras with the first sulfites added after malolactic fermentation. It’s neither filtered nor fined.

Learn More