On a Sunday afternoon I attended a small wine tasting held at the Cleveland Restaurant located at 25 Cleveland Place in Manhattan. It was a small tasting with four unconventional importers showcasing unconventional wines. These were Biodynamic/Natural/Organic unusual and interesting wines made from the mad scientists of the wine world.
Zev Rovine Selections:
2013 Frank Cornelissen “Susucaru 6” (Sicily). From grapes grown on the slopes of Mount Etna, a cloudy salmon color with strawberry and floral notes on the nose and was chewy with mint flavors on the finish.
2010 Sebastian Riffault Sancerre “Sauletas” (Loire). A cloudy gold in color with sour lemon on the nose, chewy for a white wine with good balance. Not the usual Sancerre but tasty.
2011 La Paonnerie “Le Rouge de La Jacquerie” (Loire). Cabernet Franc, dark purple with a nose of crushed blueberries and was juicy and balanced with nice tannins at the end.
Fifi’s Import:
2012 Aveyron-Nicolas Carmaran “L’Olto” (Aveyron). A wine made from 100% Fer Sevadou, a grape variety grown in southwest France, it went through semi carbonic maceration and was dark purple with spicy crushed rocks on the nose with sweet fruit followed by oak and tannin.
2010 Les Vignes Herbel “Le Rouge” (Loire). Dark purple in color with sea air and strawberry on the nose, peppery fruit and fuzzy tannin.
Louis Dressner Selections:
2012 Domaine du Possible “C’est pas la Mer a boire” (Roussillon). Rhone blend, a small amount of the wines were foot trodden and it was purple in color with a salty tang and barnyard on the fruit.
2012 Domaine de Souch “Jurancon Sec” (Jurancon). Made from more grapes I’m not familiar with, Petit Manseng, Gros Manseng and Courbu. Vinified in stainless steel vats and was yellow with spicy peaches on the nose and great balance.
Selection Massale:
2013 Maison PUR “La Boutanche” (Rhone). In a liter bottle, a Syrah based wine that was dark purple with a nice perfume of crushed berries and was rustic and chewy.
2013 Andy Knauss “Weissharpt” (Wuttemberg). Pink and sparking, light and easy to drink.
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