Slow Wine is an organization that seeks to “preserve simple, traditional ways of living and eating and that wine, just like food must be good, clean and fair, just not good”. They support and promote small scale wine makers who use traditional techniques.

Every year they host a tour in which they showcase wineries that follow their philosophy.

This year that tour will take them to Washington DC, Austin, Denver and San Francisco. On March 19th the tour came to New York City.

The event was held at Eataly Downtown located at 101 Liberty Street in lower Manhattan.

They had a walk around tasing and seminars for members of the trade in the afternoon with an evening session for consumers.

I would say that about three quarters of the wineries at the event were Italian with a handful of wineries from other countries.

I attended the trade tasting in the afternoon and as in previous events in the past, it was a lively event. These trade tastings are obviously about the wine but it’s nice to have something to snack on while sipping. Sometimes that’s some cheese and crackers but not surprisingly at Eataly they put out a nice spread of food for the attendees. Besides some excellent cheese and charcuterie, they served pasta and some really good pizza.

Some of my highlights:

2020 Authentique Wine Cellars Riesling “Brementown” (Oregon): Clear light gold, petroleum on the nose, peachy fruit with a nice balance.

2020 Donum Estate Chardonnay “Year of the Rat” (Carneros): Clear medium gold, tropical fruit notes on the nose, juicy lime notes on the long finish.

2021 Grgich Hills Sauvignon Blanc (Napa Valley): Clear light gold, herbaceous, tropical notes on the nose with herbaceous notes and crisp acids on the finish.

2021 Grgich Hills Chardonnay (Napa Valley): Clear light gold, tropical fruit notes on the nose, surprisingly light and crisp on the fruit.

2022 Unti Vineyards Vermentino (Sonoma): Clear yellow gold, sweet nose, medium bodied with kiwi notes, good structure.

2016 Paradigm Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville (Napa Valley): Opaque medium red, crushed black fruit and green herbs on the nose, tight, concentrated, dusty black olive notes on the fruit, nice finish.

2019 Unti Vineyards Aglianico (Sonoma): Opaque dark purple, oak notes on the nose, concentrated and dusty fruit, silky tannins, nice finish.

2020 Crocker & Starr Cabernet Franc Blend (St Helena): Opaque dark red with a purple rim, smoky crushed dark fruit on the nose, chewy and tight with a nice structure and a long finish.

2020 Ceretto Barbaresco “Bernadot” (Piedmont): Clear light brick, smoky roast meat on the nose, toasty light fruit with firm tannins.

2020 Terrabianca Croce Chianti Classico Riserva (Tuscany): Clear medium red, dusty sweet nose with dusty fruit and a nice balance.

2021 Crocker & Starr Cabernet Sauvignon “RLC” (St Helena): Opaque dark red, dried herbs on the nose, chewy dark chocolate fruit, good structure and balance.

2021 Unti Vineyards Sangiovese (Sonoma): Clear medium red, tar and cigarette smoke on the nose, medium fruit with a nice structure and a balanced finish.

2021 Donum Estate Pinot Noir “Three Hills” (Sonoma): Clear light red, earth and cola on the nose, juicy cola fruit, good balance.

2021 Scarzello Nebbiolo (Piedmont): Opaque dark purple, tar and leather on the nose with silky red fruit and silky tannins.

2021 Casa E, di Mirafiore Nebbiolo (Piedmont): Clear light red with a classic nose of tar and leather, sweet fruit ending firm but balanced.

2021 Podere Il Carnasciale “Carnasciale” (Tuscany): Made from the obscure Caberolot varietal, opaque dark purple, sweet herbs on the nose, silky red fruit, balanced and a long finish.