Time and Italian Wine

Over the last year I've been thinking about and writing about drinking older wines; wines that I and others have been saving for that 'special occasion' or have frankly just forgotten about.

I knew I had a few older vintages Italian wines and had promised to share one with some friends from the old country next time I was at their house for dinner, happy hour, really any occasion. 

Feeling a little wine depressed after a weeklong trip to California I dug in my cellar and pulled out a twenty year old bottle of La Giola Riecine a sangiovese based Super Tuscan. This is one of several bottles I brought back from Italy when you could actually still carry liquids aboard an airplane. I put it in the overhead compartment, put it in my wine cuvee and let it sit...for nearly 20 years!

BTW, the currently release is highly rated and available in the U.S.

We carefully removed the cork and made the executive decision not to decant. In the glass, it immediately smelled like bandaids, had very little fruit and we feared it was past its prime. But patience paid off and after about 45 minutes the bandaid burned off, dark fruit and tannins emerged. For a brief moment, it hit a stride, however, it was short lived.

I have a couple more older Italian wines on the roster to open. Next time,  I may opt to decant.You never know how a wine is going to drink, that is one of so many things that makes it exciting.

The Cellar Called; I Answered

I was recently trading stories of Tuscany with a friend who had just returned from three months in the beautiful Italian countryside. It made me want to buy a plane ticket in the worst way. As I sat reminiscing about the amazing food and wine I've consumed in Italy, a faint voice beckoned. I went to my wine cellar and peered at the rows of Italian treats I've been collecting over the years. I gently pulled out a bottle of 1996 Podere Capaccia, Querciagrande (a Sangiovese from Chianti) and decided it's time had come.

The big question when opening a big bottle is what to serve it with. It may not have been the best pairing, but I wanted eggplant parm. As I was cooking I opened the bottle for an initial taste. It started out remarkably balanced and smooth with lots of dark fruit and some tobacco. About 2 hours into the bottle (yes, I milked it that long) the chewy tannins started to appear; time has been kind to this wine. I was so happy!

I brought this bottle back from Italy ten years ago; when you could still carry liquids on planes and the dollar was actually worth something. I tried in vain to find tasting notes and values for the 96 vintage. I mostly wanted to see if it was a vintage that aged well.  But at the end of the day those stats really don't matter. What mattered was that the wine was awesome and I got to share it, and it's story with good friends over good food. Cheers!


***COMMENTS: Thanks to all my Facebook friends for posting so many great comments. I would LOVE it if you could also post your comments here on this blog site. Many people tell me they posted and it never showed up. Disappointing for us both. So click comment, type your comment, check the box that says "comment as" then hit post. If a word verification box does not appear next (a scrambled word to retype) your comment did not post. Thanks!

Viva Italia Part II

I have delayed long enough in continuing my ravings from the Kobrand and Republic National Italian wine tasting I went to last month. I honestly didn't know where to start so lets go right for the top!


Sassicaia! It's considered to be one of Italy's leading Bordeaux-style red wines and it is delicious! I tried the newly released 2007 vintage of this Super Tuscan gem that received 95 points by the Wine Advocate. (All of the wines in this blog have ratings of  over 90 points!) It's still a little tight and takes awhile to open but it definitely lives up to it's reputation!

For a 1/3 of the price and just a couple of points shy of Sassicaia I found the 2004 Tenuta La Fuga Brunello di Montalcino, Le Due Sorelle. I was told that this may be the first time this wine has been distributed to Florida. It was a beautiful deep ruby color with flavors of berries, a little chocolate and yes, leather. I wanted to be alone with it for a few minutes.

Some other outstanding Italian reds to look for right now are the 2004 Castello del Terriccio, Lupicaia. The wine is mostly Cabernet Sauvignon with some Merlot and Petit Verdot to round it out. It's limited, it's over $100, it's big and balanced, it has lots of layers and it's delectable. I think it could use another couple years in the cellar. A little more moderately priced is the 2008 Tenuta Sette Ponti Crognolo. It's a Sangiovese blended with a little Merlot that is juicy with black fruit and soft tannins.

One final nugget to leave you with: 2007 Tenuta Sette Ponti Oreno. This bad boy made the Wine Spectator's Top 100 List! The blend of Sangiovese, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon is dark and dense. I smelled a bit of blueberry and tasted alot of dark fruit with some coffee on the finish. Nice layers that once again will make this wine age nicely!

The wines of Sette Ponti are all fabulous!