Elisabetta Geppetti "Poggio Valente" Morellino di Scansano 2006

We visited this vineyard in Tuscany and schlepped this all the way back with us! It wasn't our favorite over there, but our palates were thoroughly spoiled when we tried it. Now back in reality, we give it a try...

EXPERIENCE

Cork has bright floral notes. The nose is floral and sweet, with underlying citrus and earthiness. Light alcohol on the nose, though not offensive. Seems brighter and sweeter than other morellinos. The taste is bitter dark chocolate with pepper on the finish. The wine is a bit light and watery which makes the flavor less deep than we'd like. As the wine opens, the finish becomes more bitter. 

VERDICT

NOT A VALUE - This was 25 Euros in Tuscany and pops up on the internet state-side for around $40... just not worth it. Aside from the fact that there is better Morellino di Scansano available for cheaper, this wine just wasn't that pleasant to drink. It lacks the depth of flavor and overall balance that we are big fans of in other morellinos. 

FACTS

Elisabetta Geppetti's vinyard "Fattoria Le Pupille" is located just outside of Grosetto in Southwestern Toscano. The 2006 "Poggio Valente" is a DOC classified Morellino di Scansano and this vintage marks the final production of the winery's original location. It is made from sangiovese (at least 85%) and alicante grapes, and is aged in oak barriques for 15 months. Geppetti also makes a DOC Morellino that is not aged (simply labeled Morellino di Scansano... no fancy name) which we've had as well... go ahead and skip that one too. 

Fattoria Del Cerro Vino Nobile di Montepulciano 2006

A holiday gift enjoyed on Super Bowl Sunday...

EXPERIENCE
The cork has a faint peppery spice. The wine smells very Tuscan... pepper and dried cherries, with very little alcohol on the nose. The first taste is tart, acidic and dry. As it opens you get more fruit, peppery spice, and the surprisingly vivid scent of oregano. Solid medium body with a nice dry finish. Good depth and variety of flavors throughout the tasting.

VERDICT
GOOD AND CHEAP - This wine sells for right around $20 and it is well worth it! It's hard to find a bottle at this price point with such varied and interesting flavors. Nothing knocked us out, but also nothing bad... just enjoyable all around.

FACTS
Fattoria del Cerro is located in Montepulciano, just south of Sienna in eastern Toscana. The estate is part of a larger agricultural group called Saiagricola. Their DOCG Vino Nobile di Montepulciano  is made from Prugnolo Gentile (Sangiovese) 90%, Colorino 5%, and Mammolo 5%. They age 30% of the wine in French oak barriques for 12 months followed by 6 months in Slavonian oak casks and the other 70% in Slavonian oak casks for the full 18 months. The wine is then moved to stainless steel drums for a short time before it spends 6 months in the bottle. The winemaker recommends no more than 10 years of maturation in your cellar.

Le Sughere di Frassinello 2006

Schlepped this one all the way back from the vineyard in Tuscany! We know it's quality wine, but were worried it didn't survive the travel...

EXPERIENCE
It survived! Cork is light with cherries. First nose is beautiful (candle worthy) with a potpourri of pepper, some fruit, & a subtle amount of earthy funk. First taste, pepper all down the middle, sangiovese! It has some raisin/prune with a bit of cherry on the finish. Full bodied and opens to more raisin with soft earth tones & softer on the pepper. Becomes a little less dry with a dried cherry finish. Towards the end we tried it with some spicy capocollo, and it made a great combination... makes the wine seem extra smooth.

VERDICT

GREAT VALUE - We got this from the vineyard for 20 Euro, but it's widely available in the States for around $30... definitely worth it. A great example of what the new "Super Tuscans" are all about. A sangiovese blend that is unique and new, yet still true to the region and its history. 

FACTS

Rocca di Frassinello is located near Grossetto in the North of the Maremma region of Toscana. The winery is beautiful with one of the largest cellars in the world designed by Renzo Piano. Rocca is actually a joint venture between two heavy-weights of the wine world, Chianti producer Castellare di Castellina and the legendary Lafite from France. This IGT Maremma Toscana blend is made from 25% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 50% Sangiovese. It is aged for 12 months in French oak, and then another 9 months in the bottle. Check the winemaker's website for more on this interesting collaboration. 

Fontodi Chianti Classico 2006

The one Italian wine you can always find is Chianti, but that's not always a good thing. There is a lot of low quality Chianti out there, and the odds are against you randomly choosing a good bottle. This one is a bit pricier, but just might restore your faith in Italy's best known wine.

EXPERIENCE
Cork is light and sweet with a hint of white pepper. The nose offers an earthy cinnamon spice and a wee bit of funk. First taste is smooth yet dry on the tongue. There is a bite on the finish with some lingering pepper and a sweet, soft undertone. Well rounded overall with a nice contrast between the nose and the taste.

VERDICT
GREAT VALUE - This bottle sells for right around $30 and is well worth the price. This is what Chianti should be, a refined and balanced take on the sangiovese grape. Get some and restore your faith!

FACTS
This DOCG Chianti Classico comes from the Chianti region in Toscana. It is made from 100% sangiovese grapes and is aged in Troncais and Allier barrels for 12 months. Visit Fontodi's website for more info.

Falesco Ferentano 2006

A trip to Italy for The Vintage Knows can mean only one thing... many, many wines. Here's the first... A stop into Cul De Sac, an amazing wine bar just off the Piazza Navona in Rome. This place is a must if you are ever in Rome. Their wine list is a catalog of Italy's best offerings, and their selection of cheeses and cured meats is almost as extensive. A request for a full bodied white wine from Lazio yielded the following result...

EXPERIENCE
The wine has a deep golden color, and the nose is dark and earthy (funky if you will). A medium full body, yet a surprisingly crisp finish. All the depth you hope for in a full white, yet also refreshing. Overall, great balance and an interesting duality to its flavors that you don't usually get out of a white wine.

VERDICT
GREAT VALUE - This bottle was €19, so that puts at around $25. Definitely worth that price. From a quick search online, it looks like it's available stateside for $20-$30. If you can find it, get it!

FACTS
Falesco's Ferentano is classified IGT and is made from 100% Roscetto grapes. It comes from Montefiascone in the Lazio region. The wine is aged in barriques for 4 months and then further in bottles. Check our Faleso's website for more information.

COS Pithos 2006

A Nero d'Avola blend from IWM.

EXPERIENCE

Cork is spicy. Lighter red in color with a semi-brown hue. Medium light body with a good amount of spice on the finish. Has the floral nose with the dried fruit as jam. Best way to describe is spicy jam! An elegant yet provocative Siciliano!

VERDICT

GREAT VALUE. We love Nero d'Avola, and though this runs around $50 a bottle (much more than your typical Nero), the uniqueness of this blend is worth the money.

FACTS

This Sicilian DOCG blend is 60% Nero d'Avola and 40% Frappato. Check out the COS website for more information.  

Cantina Zaccagnini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Riserva 2006

A Christmas Day tasting with a comparison part 2... note... 2006 riserva has 2 red diagonal stripes on the label and in between the stripes is the vintage and riserva.

EXPERIENCE
The cork reveals nothing. The nose is cloves. Has balance with a sweet and dryness to it. Good amount of jam and fruit, the finish is slightly dry but not over powering. It is quite silky and we try not to use that term loosely. However for the price, well it just is. Medium bodied and smooth or as we tend to say balance balance balance.

VERDICT
GOOD AND CHEAP. The 2006 Cantina Zaccagnini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Riserva cost right around $13. This wine is one of the more valued wines for the price. If we had a Great and Cheap category this wine would be in it. We tasted this wine and the Vallevo side by side and with the same verdict. But if you see this wine on the shelf PICK IT UP and enjoy. This wine stands apart from the rest, when it comes to quality for the price! The wine is also known loosely as the toggle wine. For the wooden toggle that is twined on the bottle.

FACTS
Classified DOC, and comes from Montepulciano in the region of yes you guest it AGAIN Abruzzo. Fermentation with the skins in stainless steel and aged in oak barrels for 6 months and another 3 in the bottle. The winery has an aesthetically pleasing website...www.cantinazaccagnini.it

Bruno Giacosa "Falletto" Dolcetto d'Alba 2006

This may be the first Bruno Giacosa wine we've posted, but we've been a fan his wines for a while. We hope this $32 bottle has a lot to offer, but with expectations comes scrutiny...

EXPERIENCE

The cork has a dark spice to it, more peppery than aromatic. The nose is much like the cork, but also hints at black berries. The taste is somewhat muted and soft at first, then the spice comes through with a moderately dry finish. As the wine opens, you get slightly more fruit and less spice, but overall the change is subtle. The wine is never really sweet nor tart, but consistently smooth and spicy. A uniquely complex flavor that you can explore as you drink.

VERDICT

GREAT VALUE. $32 is a small price to pay for this wine; in fact, before we went back to check how much this bottle cost, we were thinking it had been around $50. We'd happily pay that much, but thankfully we (that means you) don't have to! We aren't reliant on too many wines in the $20-$50 range, most we've tried seem to taste "cheaper" than they cost, but this wine is an exception. 

FACTS

This 2006 DOC Dolcetto d'Alba is part of Giacosa's "Azienda Agricola FALLETTO" which solely uses grapes from their private vinyards. The winery is located outside the village of Neive, about 100 miles southwest of Milan in the Piemonte region of Italy. For more information, check out their website.

Buceci Nero Merlot 2006

This wine, consumed prior to a lovely easter meal, was purchased at IWM for just under $22. We are big nero d'avola fans, but blended with merlot? We'll see...

EXPERIENCE

Synthetic cork (sigh). First aromas of wine are soft with spice and berries. The initial taste is smooth, medium bodied, and sweet with some dryness and spice at the end. The wine definitely has a nero nose, dark & deep, but the merlot adds the softer, sweeter side. As it opens up, you notice dark berry and subtle "jam" flavors and bit of tartness on the finish. Overall, a complex flavor with nice balance throughout. 

VERDICT

GREAT VALUE. You get more than what you pay for. This is definitely a wine you can take your time and really think about, which is not something you usually come across for $22. The merlot really works well with the nero; the two grapes compliment each other and come together to produce a really interesting, well balanced wine. GO GET SOME!

FACTS

The blend is 60% nero d'avola and 40% merlot and is classified IGT. Not much info out there on Buceci (looks there their website is down). The origin is marked on the label as Palermo, Sicilia. If anyone out there in our vast audience of readers can find more information, please let us know.

Renato Ratti "Ochetti" Nebbiolo d'Alba 2006

A random evening and a random bottle of wine from the liquor store shelf. Lets see what we can get for $19.50...

EXPERIENCE

The cork is very nice, a bright berry scent; however, as soon as you pour the wine in the glass, that is gone. The nose has bit of alcohol and spice, and you can see how light and thin the body is. The first taste has a smokey, spicy flavor with a sour dry finish; there is nothing sweet about this wine. The thin, watery texture leaves something to be desired and everything is dwarfed by the finish.

VERDICT

TASTES CHEAP. We take a chance... and we lose. Certainly not the worst wine we've had, but not something we enjoy drinking. For a red wine to be this light we'd prefer it to have some bright fruit and not such a harsh dry/sour finish. 

FACTS

Renato Ratti is located in and around the town of La Morra in Piemonte, Italy. Their "Ochetti" 2006 is a Nebbiolo d'Alba and made entirely from the nebbiolo grape. The wine is aged in oak barrels for one year and is classified DOC.

Cantine Colosi "Rosso" Nero d'Avola 2006

This Nero d'Avola came highly recommended from the trusted proprietor of our neighborhood liquor store. We got it for a mere $13, and from the looks of a quick Google search you may be able to find it for less.

EXPERIENCE
Synthetic cork isn't our favorite way to start a bottle, but it doesn't always spell disaster. The wine has a soft, pleasant aroma with small amount of alcohol. The first taste has a nice 'jam' flavor, slightly sweet, and a bit watery in the beginning. That leads to a full fruit flavor in the middle and ends with a very light dryness. The full body of fruit in the wine is the essence. You are left with the middle of the wine in your mouth not the beginning or end. Very well balanced throughout.

VERDICT
GOOD AND CHEAP. We can't stop picking this bottle up, and apparently neither can anyone else in out neighborhood; the liquor store sold out their original stock and had to order a second round. Its surprisingly full for a Nero d'Avola and more surprising for only costing $13. Once again with this wine, pleasant flavor and balance prevail!

FACTS
Cantine Colosi is located on the isle of Sicilia in Italy. Their "Rosso" 2006 is a Nero d'Avola and thusly made entirely from the nero d'avola grape, the main grape of Sicily. Our friend at the liquor store told us this wine gets its full flavor from aging in oak. It is classified IGT.

Penner-Ash Rubeo 2006

On my annual trip to Oregon for family & friends fun consisting of hiking, white water rafting and of course a tour of some of the Willamette Valley vineyards and wineries, I ran across this little gem. I was lead there by a couple that live in Oregon and really know their Oregon wine. The Penner Ash Rubeo, a blend of Pinot Noir and Syrah. With a moderate price of $20 this was the most interesting and pleasing (at least for me) of the Penner Ash wines. They have a great selection of Pinots and a Viognier along with a Syrah. But this blend of Pinot Noir and Syrah really stands out from the rest. My friends that took us to this vineyard hit this on the head. I purchased a bottle to bring back and he purchased a bottle in which he was nice enough to share with me.
-Nick

EXPERIENCE
The wine is medium to full body, at first very earthy. Our Oregonian acquaintances like to say: “If the wine has an aroma of a compost pile, chances are that wine is going to be a good one.” You may ask, 'why would you want to drink something that smells that bad?', but have no fear. As this bottle opens up, the “compost” aroma fades and the wine takes off with an aroma of spice & fruit. The taste offers rich fruit with earth undertones that is well balanced from beginning to end. We really enjoyed this wine particularly because it is different than the “normal” huge, in your face wines that are now coming from the west coast.

VERDICT
GOOD AND CHEAP. You can't argue with a nicely balanced and pleasantly complex wine for around $20. Don't be scared by the description of the aroma... just think 'well tilled earth' rather than 'rotting garbage'.

FACTS
Penner-Ash is located in the northern Willamette Valley, Oregon. Their 2006 Rubeo is a blend of syrah and pinot noir. Check out their website for more details.

Fattoria di Magliano "Heba" Morellino di Scansano 2006

A precursor to a night of Red Wings hockey and a Kimbo Slice fight, we found this wine at a new shop in our neighborhood for $18. Given our reverence for La Mozza's Morellino, this wine has some high standards to live up to...

EXPERIENCE

The cork is surprisingly strong; hinting at an earthy/wood tone balanced with fruit. The first taste is mellow, with little bit of alcohol on the nose. The body is medium-light, with a dry tart finish. Often with a lighter red wine a tart finish can be overpowering; however, in this case, the body is not too light and the finish not too strong. As it opens it becomes pleasantly sweeter on the front, the finish gets longer and less tart, and you really get a sense of the smooth "jammy" taste of the grapes.

VERDICT

GOOD AND CHEAP. No complaints on this one. Good balance with enough complexity the keep your attention. Our affinity for Morellino continues... 

FACTS

Fattoria di Magliano is located in the town of Magliano in the Maremma region of southern Toscana. "Heba" is the name they give to their DOC Morellino di Scansano (much like "I Parazzi"), which is made from 85% Morellino (the local variety of Sangiovese) and 15% "other." Unfortunately they aren't very specific with their grapes, but they do mention aging in "cement butts." We tried our best to figure out what they are referring to, but couldn't really piece it together. Bad translation? Perhaps. Whatever these mysterious "butts" may be, they make for some good wine!

Carpineto Dogajolo 2005 & 2006

In case you were wondering what exactly our name means... this post explains it all. This is a wine we picked up at our neighborhood liquor store for a meager $9. We've had it before, so we were looking forward to giving it some thought. We popped the cork, took a sip, and were simply puzzled. This was not the wine we've had before?!?! Well, it just so happens that we still had the empty bottle from the last time we had the wine. After some quick label sleuthing, we realized that the old bottle was a 2005 and this new bottle is a 2006. Seeing this as a great opportunity for a side by side tasting, we ran out and grabbed the last 2005 bottle they had at the liquor store. Here are the results...

EXPERIENCE

We tried the 2006 first. The nose is weak, but you can tell the wine is going to be relatively bitter; the first taste follows suit. There is not much of anything when the wine hits your tongue, and then all you are left with is an intense tart bitterness. There is really no fruit taste to this wine at all, just a dry finish that leaves you reaching for a glass of water.

The 2005 is the wine we remembered. There is a hint of bitterness in the nose, but there is also a more complex, fruity aroma that is missing from the 2006. The first taste is starkly different; this is a much more balanced wine. There is a slight berry flavor and a smooth texture, both of which are missing from the 2006. The finish has a similar bitterness, but is less dry and much less harsh. Rather than make us wish we just had water, this wine makes us wish we had more.

VERDICT

2006 TASTES CHEAP while the 2005 is GOOD AND CHEAP. This is a great example of how different two vintages of the same wine can be. If you can find the 2005, pick up a couple of bottles; if not, skip 2006 and hope for a better vintage in 2007.

FACTS

Carpineto is based in the Chianti Classico region on the coast of Toscana; however they have several estates throughout the region. The grapes for this wine come from their vineyards near Chianciano and Montepulciano. Dogajolo is their "super-tuscan" blend made up of 80% sangiovese and 20% cabernet sauvignon. Though it is not labeled as such, according to Carpineto's website this wine is classified IGT. The website also notes that the two grapes that make up this wine are harvested and vinified separately, then later combined in small wooden casks.