Oh begob, back when I was a nipper, studying Diploma we had David Gleave MW for the Italian lecture. A hunky, smooth-talking Canadian he was always popular with the women in the class. Nowadays, we have Michael Palij MW, a hunky, smooth-talking Canadian...is there a pattern emerging here?
Anyway, Michael came over on 20th October to do a whole day on Italy and we had some very good wines to taste. Almost all came from Michael (Winetraders UK) or one of his Irish stockists; as long as I've known Michael he's always been mad about Italian wines and his range is superb.
First up was a flight of Northern Italian wines, starting with the mineral but fruity La di Motte Piave DOC Pinot Grigio 2008, 64 Wine, €12.95. Then, one of my all-time favourites, the firm, deep and minerally Inama Soave Classico DOC “Vigneti di Foscarino” 2007, 64 Wine, €22.95 - really one of the best in Soave.
The reds started with the Marco Porello Barbera d’Alba DOC “Momiano” 2007, 64 Wine, €12.95, juicy and round and really yummy, especially with food, followed by the very deep and almost brooding Corte Sant’ Alda Valpolicella Superiore DOC “Campi Magri” 2005, 64 Wine, €25.95. Then, the Bovio Barolo DOCG “Rocchettevino” 2004, 64 Wine, €36.00, a very good Barolo with a lovely depth of ripe fruit underneath all the typical Barolo firmness.
Then we had a light of Central Italian wines, starting with La Monacesca Verdicchio di Matelica DOC “Mirum” 2006, 64 Wine, €22.50. I love the wines of La Monacesca - they have a fine balance of dept, minerality and fruitiness that makes them great with and without food - this single vineyard wine really needs some age, however. Then the Antinori Umbria IGT “Cervaro della Sala” 2007, O’Brien’s, €36.49, a top-end chardonnay from Umbria. Almost new world in style, it is rich, oaky and actually very good.
The reds kicked off with the very juicy and lovely to drink now La Pieve Chianti DOCG 2007, 64 Wine, €11.95, followed by the quite firm Castello Vicchomaggio Chianti Classico Riserva DOCG “La Prima” 2003, from my own cellar. A good wine but perhaps not shwoing as well as I would like. However, the Isole e Elena Toscana IGT “Cepparello” 2001, also from my cellar was seriously good, with soft ripe maturing fruits in a very elegant wine.
The last flight of southern Italian wines started with the fresh and easy-drinking Fontana Candida Frascati Superiore DOC 2008, O’Brien’s, €9.49, then the juicy, ripe Terra Firma IGT Sicilia Inzolia 2008, Winetraders, and the excellent Terre Dora Fiano d’Avellino DOCG 2008, 64 Wine, €19.50. We had two reds, the very ripe, warm and full-bodied Gulfi IGT Sicilia Nero d’Avola “Rossjbleo” 2007, 64 Wine, €14.95 and the superbly rich and ageworthy Terredora Taurasi DOCG 2003,Winetraders.
All in all, Italy in 15 wines is not easy, but I think we did well.
About Me
- DermotMW
- Dublin, Ireland
- Hi, I'm Dermot Nolan, and I became a Master of Wine (MW) in 1997, and resigned from the Institute of Masters of Wine in 2023 after being an MW for exactly 26 years. I opened a wine shop in Dún Laoghaire, Ireland, called The Wine Library, which closed in 2018, and this is my personal wine blog. I will do my utmost to be fair and responsible in my posts – please read my Who Pays article in re the ethics of wine trips and writing. I have worked in wine education, retail, and consultancy since 1990. I was a Director of the Institute of Masters of Wine (IMW) from 2008 to 2014 and was also a member of the Events Committee, founder of the Trips Committee, and member of the Governance Committee. Having had problems with potentially libellous comments from unidentifiable posters, I now require that if you post a comment, you must identify yourself properly or it won't be published. Please note that I do not review products or services on request so kindly don't ask. I value my independence and I believe my readers (few that they may be) do so also.
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