Unless you have had a somewhat unusual wine experience, we are pretty confident that this will be the best Charbono you have had in years. We can say that because it is very likely the only example of this varietal you are likely to have experienced over the last few years. There is precious little even being produced any more.
Charbono has a shadowed past. To this day there is no agreed upon origin of the grape. Some suggest it comes from the northwestern part of Italy under the name Bonarda Piemontese. Others claim it comes from the southwestern part of France and exists under the handle Corbeau or Douce Noir. The only things that can be stated with any certainty is that the Charbono grape thrives in a harsh mountain terrain, and that it made it across the ocean as the Italians that settled California early on planted multiple-varietal field blends to assure, through diversity, there would always be some sort of crop to harvest.
For a lot of you, there is no point of reference for a wine like this. In truth, we don’t need more than our fingers to count all of the California versions of Charbono we have had over the years. The thing is that, among the limited experiences we have had with California versions of this varietal, there have been a disproportionate number of intriguing efforts. So on the rare occasion we are presented with a Charbono, we pay attention.
This story is particularly interesting. We initially were a little skeptical of the ‘program’ at Inizi, a small side project for some wine professionals who have ‘day jobs’ at other wineries. That in itself is not a big deal. But the fact that they were focusing on eclectic Italian varietals like Sagrantino and Tocai Friulano, and blends of things like Dolcetto and Montepulciano, gave us some concern that they were a little bit out on the fringe from a marketability standpoint. The Inizi Charbono 2014, however, showed us some of the best traits of this somewhat hard to pinpoint grape.
The profile is engaging red and mainly black fruit, a touch of woodsiness and lots of spice, ample enough but with plenty of freshness and lift. There’s some tobacco and vanilla in there, too. It is a delightful example of what Charbono can be. It is a unique situation. The grapes come from the Heitz Brothers vineyard near Calistoga, a 1.5 acre plot with 40-year-old, head-trained, dry-farmed vines.
A long, dry vintage delivered great optimally ripe fruit that was 30% whole berry fermented. About 25% saw once used barrels, the rest neutral wood, for 10 months. Plenty to like here, Charbono is one of those grapes that has elements that remind you of other varietals, but ultimately has its own unique character.