R.I.P. Guiseppe Quintarelli

From the NYTimes: "Giuseppe Quintarelli, a wine producer from the Veneto region of northeastern Italy whose Valpolicellas, reciotos and Amarones were revered by devoted followers all over the world, died Sunday at his home in Negrar, Italy. He was 84."

This wine is the reason we started this...

Thanks for the great wine, and may the family continue your legacy!

Vall Llach 2007

We thought really hard for 6 months about what to drink next. We decided on tasting our first Catalan wine (don't call it Spain)...

EXPERIENCE
Cork is dark & jammy. Nose has a lot going on, dark chocolate, smokey, some light tart fruit, earthy fall leaves. As it opens, the nose begins to have some mushroom funk. The first taste is chocolate, cherries, and smoke. There is some sugar on the front and dryness on the finish with a slight sourness. Nice dark smokey, coffee notes throughout.

VERDICT
SIT OUT - It's always painful to type that... Don't get us wrong, this is a great wine; one that we'd gladly drink again. The only problem is the cost... $95! At that price point, we expect to have our minds blown. I'd expect to pay anywhere from $30-$50 for a wine of this quality, but for $95 your money is better spent elsewhere (we suggest grabbing as much Quinterelli as you can before prices skyrocket!).

FACTS
Great stuff on Vall Llach's website (though its a bit difficult to navigate), including details on each separate vintage. This DOQ (just think DOCG, but for Catalonia) wine comes from the Priorat winemaking region in Southern Catalonia. It is made up of 70% Cariñena, 15% Merlot, and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. The wine is aged for 14 months in French oak before bottling.

Querciabella Chianti Classico 2008

Not going to lie... we know this is going to be good... with so much chianti out there and so much information available, know before you buy!

EXPERIENCE
Cork smells like dark chocolate. The nose is full of aromas... a light earthiness, a slight sweetness, prominent notes of vanilla and black berries, and sweet almonds at the end... it compels you to drink, though we resist the urge to guzzle. The first taste is tart, with a prominent sour fruit and acidity. As the wine opens the tartness balances and a faint peppery finish emerges. The nose continues to open and reminds us of licorice spice. A medium bodied, full flavored chianti, with plenty of depth throughout the tasting.

VERDICT
GREAT VALUE - $35 is not bad for a great bottle of chianti, and you'll be hard to find one of this quality for much less. Complex, balanced, and easy to drink... what more could you ask. A very different wine from the Fontodi we've had, and trying them both speaks volumes about the endless variations Tuscan winemakers get out of the omnipotent sangiovese grape.

FACTS
Querciabella is located in Greve in Chianti in central Toscana. Their 2008 Chianti Classico is classified DOCG and is made from 95% sangiovese and 5% cabernet sauvignon. The wine is aged (before blending) for up to 14 months, and rests in the bottles for at least 3 months before it's release. Querciabella is a biodynamic winery (a.k.a. organic) though the wines won't be labeled as such in the US. Check out their website for more info.

Willamette Valley Vineyards "Founder's Reserve" Pinot Noir 2008

A trip to our favorite American region, Oregon's Willamette Valley, brought us this 2008 pinot...

EXPERIENCE
Cork is very light with a little scent of perfume. The nose is like "dirty" cherry coke, not quite as funky and earthy as other Willamette pinot we've had. The first taste has a light sweetness on the tongue and an interesting bitterness to the finish reminiscent of pecorino cheese and white pepper. A fairly subdued (in a good way), medium bodied, almost old-world Oregon pinot.

VERDICT
GREAT VALUE - This bottle retails for $35, though you should be able to find it in the mid $20 range. American pinot can often be over the top, high in alcohol, and too bold and unbalanced for our tastes. This bottle, however, is a great example of a uniquely American wine that shows restraint and winemaker that values balance over shock value. This is very much in line with what the Super-Tuscan winemakers are doing back in Italy.

FACTS
Willamette Valley Vineyards is located in Northwest Oregeon just south of Salem. Their 2008 "Founder's Reserve" Pinot Noir is made from 100% pinot noir grapes and weighs in at 13.1% alcohol. The winemaker boasts that 2008 offered the best winemaking conditions that OR has possibly ever experienced. Check out this wine's fact sheet and the vineyard's site for more details.

Grattamacco Rosso 1988 & 1989

The two oldest wines we've tasted for this site... side by side... scurred?

EXPERIENCE
1988 Cork smells like cherry cola with some good olde funk. The nose is cherries and sherry. First taste is a lot lighter than expected; tart and the finish is soft. Definitely needs to be decanted (as is always the case with wine this old), the flavors are harsh at first and begging for some air.  As the wine opens the nose becomes more raisiny, and the wine becomes less tart and develops a cocoa finish. The wine becomes fuller bodied and the balance evens more and more with time decanted.
1989 Big differences right off the bat... Cork is more floral than cherry. The nose is funky, earthy, and dark - very much like a truffles and black pepper. First taste is sweet and smooth, more balanced than the '88 at first. As the wine opens it becomes closer to the '88. Holds strong with the balance. There is a fruit and raisiny quality showing as it opens.

VERDICT
SHELL OUT if you've got the capital and the cojones for one of these. One of these bottles will set you back around $75-$100. Yes, that is a lot... but aside from being great aged wines, these bottles have historical value. Grattamacco was one of the originators of the ever popular "Super Tuscan" category, dating back to their first vintage in 1978. Both of these wines offer a look back to the roots of perhaps the foremost region in contemporary Italian winemaking.

FACTS
The 1988 and 1989 Grattamacco Rosso are blends of 50% cabernet sauvignon, 25% sangiovese, and 25% merlot. The bottles are simply classified "Table Wine" as they predate the advent of the IGT classification. The vineyards are located in Southwestern Toscana near the Mediterranean coast. For more information on current offerings, check out Grattamacco's website.

Contratto "Tenuta Secolo" Barolo 2000

"Want some Barolo?"
"Yes please."

EXPERIENCE
Cork is rich and earthy. Soft nose with cinnamon spice and orange peel. First taste is soft on the toungue with a long pleasant finish. The wine is a little sweet with just the right balance of tartness. Medium full body, not as heavy as some barolos (in a good way). As the wine opens the nose gets stronger and more earthy... you get more of the "orange" citrus flavor, and more peppery spice on the finish... and it becomes a bit drier on the tongue. Complex and balanced throughout the tasting.

VERDICT
GREAT VALUE - Barolo aint cheap and neither is this bottle at around $50, but it's worth it. A perfect old world wine thats both easy to drink and complex enough to think about. We can't get enough of that combination. If you've got the money, this is great wine... simple as that.

FACTS
This DOCG Barolo from Contratto's Cerequino vinyard hails from Canelli, just oustide Asti in the Piemonte region. Like all Barolo's, the wine is made from 100% nebbiolo grapes. Aging is done in small barriques for 18 months and in the bottle for another 12 months. The label is quite confusing, and the "Tenuta Secolo" isn't even listed on Contratto's site, but the importer has some great information up on their site.

La Selva Ciliegiolo 2007

Our final bottle brought back from Tuscany...(sigh)... We were hanging on to this one for sentimentality sake when, while visiting with Roland Krebser (the winemaker himself!) in NY, we were ordered to drink it.

EXPERIENCE
The cork has a very light hint of fruit. The first nose has notes of truffle, dark fruit, and cherries. The first taste has a jammy cherry flavor on the tongue with a semi-tart dry finish. Medium body with a good balance of fruit, acid, and earthy tannins throughout the tasting. The cherry aroma that ciliegiolo is known for is ever present, but never overwhelming. Though we never talk about terroir, this is a great and obvious example for us. Here you have a very unique grape with strong characteristics, but the resultant wine has many of the same characteristics of La Selva's other wines and of the region in general. A great wine and lesson to be learned all in one bottle!

VERDICT
GREAT VALUE - This was one of our favorite wines from all of our Italian travels, and that memory holds true. A really unique grape made into an excellently balanced and interesting wine. Of course... you can't get it here in the US, but hopefully that will change soon. It looks like the wine sells for around 20 Euros in Europe... if you can find some, get it!

FACTS
This IGT wine is made from 100% organic ciliegiolo grapes at La Selva's winery near Magliano in Toscana in the beautiful Maremma region of Southwest Tuscano. The wine is vinified in stainless steel and aged in oak barriques for 8 months before being bottled. We have had the great fortune of being in touch with the winemaker, Roland Krebser, after meeting him during a tour of the winery. According to the man himself, his wines are meant to be drank young. So forget about sticking these in the cellar and buy a case to drink now!