Author: Bruno Donaggio

Planet Bordeaux NYC

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Planet Bordeaux is a French trade organization that represents the wineries of the Bordeaux AOC and Bordeaux Superieur appellations from the world’s largest fine-wine vineyards. Bordeaux is justifiably famous for its grand cru wines from the famous Chateaux. Those wines are also very expensive but these off the radar regional wines, which are over half the production of the Bordeaux appellation, are more accessible in both price and style.

In February and March the organization held various trade and consumer tastings of its member wineries around New York City. On Sunday evening March 4th, they held a tasting for members of the trade. That tasting was held at O’Cabanon restaurant located at 245 West 29th street in Manhattan.

They poured sparkling wines, whites and several reds, many from the excellent 2015 vintage but from other vintages as well. I wasn’t familiar with many of the producers but there were some nice drinking wines that didn’t break the bank.

Some of what I sampled:

 

2010 Chateau Montlau

2012 Domaine del Ile Margaux

2014 Domaine del Ile Margaux

2012 Chateau La Rose du Pin

2014 M de Monsegur Reserve Cabernet Franc

2013 Chateau Boutinet

2014 Chateau Donjon de Bruignac

2014 Chateau de Seguin Cuvee Carpe Diem

2014 Chateau La France Cuvee Gallus

2015 Chateau Grand Jean

2015 Chateau Lauduc

2015 Chateau Lauduc Grande Cuvee

2015 Chateau Montlau

2015 Chateau de Bel

2015 Chateau Tayet Cuvee Prestige

2016 Chateau Haut Favereau

2016 Ipsum Carmenere

 

Bacon & Bourbon At Astor Center

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The Astor Center is the event space of Astor Wine & Spirits which is located at 399 Lafayette Street in Manhattan. Throughout the year they hold all sorts of spirits, cocktails and wine events and classes at the Center.

On February 17th they held their 10th annual Bacon & Bourbon event. It was a walk-around tasting of over 60 All-American whiskey that was accompanied by copious amounts of bacon and bacon infused snacks (including ice cream). Many of the well-known whiskey companies were in attendance pouring their small production (and expensive) specialty whiskey as well as smaller not as well known producers many of which produced proprietary whiskey for Astor.  The event was open to the consumer and there were two sessions. I attended the afternoon session and it was a nice way to spend a snowy afternoon.

Some of what I sampled:

 

Jim Beam Masterpiece Bourbon

Jim Beam Single Barrel Bourbon

Maker’s Mark Astor Private Select Bourbon

Knob Creek 25th Anniversary Cask Strength Single Barrel (121°-125°)

Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon

Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit Bourbon

Booker’s Sip Awhile’ Small Batch Bourbon

Four Roses Astor Cask Strength Single Barrel Bourbon (122.2°)

Smooth Ambler Contradiction Bourbon

Barrell Bourbon Batch #12 Bourbon

Barrell Bourbon Full Proof Astor Barrel (126° 174 bottles produced)

Black Dirt Bourbon

Black Dirt Single Barrel Bourbon

Charles Medley 12yr Old Kentucky Bourbon

Kings County Distillery Peated Bourbon

Balcones Brimstone Smoked Corn Whisky

Balcones Texas Old Single Malt Whisky

Pikesville Straight Rye

Potrero Single Malt Straight Rye

A.D. Laws Straight Rye

A.D. Laws Bottled In Bond Rye

 

 

Cider On Long Island

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Cider was once a staple of the early American diet. New laws promoting craft beverages is creating a cider renaissance in New York State, the second largest producers of apples in the United States.

On the north fork long island wine country, a couple of wineries bottle cider and a couple of cider houses opened showcasing cider made from local and New York State apples.

 

Lieb Cellars  13050 Oregon Road, Cutchogue. The tasting room is in a converted barn.

Rumor Mill sparkling cider: Made from east end apples, yellow with tints with green apples and mowed grass on the nose.

***

Woodside Orchard  729 Main Road, Aquebogue. Not only do they make hard cider but pies and doughnuts as well.

Traditional Cider: Pale yellow, fizzy when poured with greenish tints, crisp off dry with tart apple and ginger notes.

***

Riverhead Cider House  2711 Sound Avenue Calverton. New place that opened recently. On a slow superbowl Sunday they had a good crowd. Large room with entertainment and a deli. Large selection of local beer and cider.

Prickly Pear Rosé Cider: I asked for the driest cider and this is what they poured me, amber in color, cotton candy on the nose, off dry with cherry candy notes on the fruit.

 

Mohegan Sun Wine & Food Fest 2018

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Mohegan Sun casino is located in Uncasville Connecticut which is about a two-hour drive as the crow flies northeast of New York City on interstate 95. It’s owned by the Mohegan tribe and is one of the largest gaming facilities the U.S with three casinos all with Native American decor. The casino has all the usual amenities of dining, shopping, hotel accommodations, a concert venue and even its own WNBA basketball and lacrosse teams.

It was a two-day event on January 26-27 kicking off with a bourbon and cigar event on Friday evening. I attended the Grand Tasting on Saturday afternoon with featured chef demonstrations, wines and spirits on the main floor with craft beers on the 2nd floor.

When I go to these mega consumer events I have a certain expectation. I know they have to cater to a large range of wine drinkers so I don’t expect much high-end juice to be poured and also have an expectation that on a Saturday night, the venue will be mobbed which it was.  Fortunately there was a separate “Elite Cru” tasting room with a more manageable crowd and some nice juice poured. Some of what I sampled at that tasting:

 

Keenan Winery

2013 Merlot Napa Valley

2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

2013 Spring Mt Reserve

2013 Cabernet Franc

Fulcrum Winery

2013 Petite Sirah Landy

2015 Pinot Noir Gap’s Crown

2015 Pinot Noir Anderson Valley

Fullerton Winery

2014 Pinot Noir Momtazi Vineyard

2015 Pinot Noir Bennet Vineyard

Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars

2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Fay

2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Cask 23

***

2015 Penfolds Cabernet Sauvignon Bin 707

2012 Guilano Rosati Amarone

2013 Pelissero Nebbiolo

2013 Cheval des Andes

2015 The Withers Winery Mouvedre Rubin

2014 Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon The Reserve

2014 Beringer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve

2013 Mt Brave Cabernet Sauvignon Mt Veeder

 

 

Grand Crus de Bordeaux New York 2018

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The Union des Grand Crus de Bordeaux is an organization of 135 estates of the Bordeaux wine region of France and whose mission is to promote its members to foreign countries. They do that by travelling to 15 countries and 65 cities during the year to showcase whatever current vintage has been bottled and ready to be released.

The North American tour began on January 18th in Toronto and would stop in Montreal, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. On January 22 the tour arrived in New York City for a trade tasting in the afternoon at Cipriani restaurant at 110 East 42nd street in Manhattan and for a consumer tasting that evening at Sotheby’s auction house in Manhattan.

The 2015 vintage was poured. I always take vintage reports with a grain of salt but the general consensus was that the vintage was a very good one. After attending the trade tasting in the afternoon and working my way through many of the wines, I found many of them hand characteristics that I don’t normally associate with Bordeaux wines. I was getting a lot “jammy” notes both on the nose and on the fruit as well as higher alcohol notes on a few of the wines. With that fruit, many had firm silky tannins that will age well and some had softer tannins that are ready to drink soon. It was a very enjoyable tasting.

 

Saint-Emillion

Chateau Canon-La-Gaffeliere: Dark red, dried herbs on the nose, thick and chewy black licorice fruit, moderate dusty tannins, drinking nicely now.

Chateau Pavie Macquin: Dark red, sweet perfume of tar, silky fruit with tar notes on the dusty finish, firm tannins.

Clos Fourtet: Opaque dark red, toasty sweet fruit and black licorice on the nose, chewy black fruit with silky, firm tannins.

Chateau La Couspaude: Medium brick, big perfume of sweet tar with sweet tarry fruit and dusty tannins on the finish.

Chateau Canon: Opaque medium red, tar and dark cocoa on the nose, bright silky fruit with silky tannins on the finish.

Chateau Dassault: Opaque dark red, big perfume of sweet cherry, chewy cherry tar fruit with firm tannins at the end.

Chateau La Gaffeliere: Dark red, strawberry jam on the nose, dusty red fruit finishing with bitter cherry notes.

Pomerol

Chateau Clinet: Medium red, smoky tar on the nose, chewy green herbs on the fruit, moderate tannins and acid.

Chateau Gazin: Medium to dark red, crushed red fruit and tar on the nose, tight with silky tannins on the firm finish.

Chateau Le Bon Pasteur: Dark red, toasty tar on the nose, chewy and thick with firm tannins on the finish.

Saint-Julien

Chateau Leoville Poyferre: Dark red to black, black tar on the nose, chewy, tarry, silky tannins on the firm finish.

Chateau Talbot: Medium red, tar and cigar box on the nose, sweet, black berry on the fruit, moderate tannin, some heat.

Chateau Beychevelle: Clear dark red, tar notes on the nose, chewy black fruit, moderate tannins and acids, drinking nicely now.

Chateau Gruaud Larose: Clear medium red, toasty, smoky nose, bright fruit with firm acids.

Paulliac

Chateau Pichon Baron: Dark red, cherry jam and herbs on the nose, thick, chewy with firm silky tannins on the mouth coating finish.

Chateau Clerc Milon: Dark red with toast and crushed dark fruit on the nose, moderate fruit with mouth coating tannins at the finish.

Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtese de LaLande: Medium red, jammy and turned earth on the nose, tight with oak notes on the firm finish.

Margaux

Chateau Lascombes: Black, toasty black fruit on the nose with chewy ,silky crushed black fruit, firm finish, nice balance.

Chateau Cantenac Brown: Dark purple, mint and roast meat on the nose, bright fruit with dusty dark chocolate and firm tannins on the finish.

Chateau Prieure-Lichine: Dark red, crushed red berry and roast meat on the nose, chewy and silky fruit, nicely balanced with a long finish.

Chateau Brane-Cantenac: Cloudy dark red, tar and cigar box on the nose, chunky with tar and green vegetable notes on the fruit, bitter black cherry on the finish.

Chateau Malescot Saint-Exupery: Medium red, strawberry mint on the nose, chewy minty fruit with bitter red candy notes on the finish.

Haut-Medoc

Chateau Cantermerle: Dark red, cherry candy on the nose, tight, bright red fruit, balanced.

Chateau Coufran: Opaque medium red, dusty cherry on the nose, tight cherry candy on the fruit, crisp finish.

Chateau La Lagune: Opaque medium red, tar and cigar box on the nose, dusty graphite fruit with moderate tannins and acids.

Pessac-Leognan

Chateau Pape-Clement: Dark red, crushed dark fruit on the nose with chunky, silky fruit and firm tannins. Coming in at 16% alcohol.

Domaine de Chevalier: Medium red, perfume of sweet tar, moderate dusty, bright fruit.

Saint-Estephe:

Chateau Phelan Segur: Medium red, sweet tar on the nose, bright, light fruit.

 

 

 

Cochon 555 New York 2018

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Cochon 555 is a multi-city culinary tour to “further the conversation of heritage pigs on dinner tables across the nation” and whose goal is to “support family farmers and to educate influencers ultimately making them a better, more knowledgeable teacher”.

The 14 city tour kicked off in New York City on January 21 with a “friendly competition for a cause” featuring 5 chefs, 5 pigs and 5 winemakers.

The event was held at the Kimpton Hotel Eventi at 851 6th Avenue in Manhattan and showcased pork centric dishes from local restaurants (and the outlier steak tartare bar) and competitions that involved bartenders, sommeliers and butchers.

Of course to wash all that down were punches, Manhattans from the Manhattan Project and international wines some of which included:

 

2016 Mariotti Campi Rosato

2015 Chateau Carbonnieux Blanc

2015 Ronco dei Tassi Sauvignon Blanc

2015 Antica Chardonnay

2013 Antica Cabernet Sauvignon

2013 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon

2013 Chateau Carbonnieux Rouge

2005 Marquis de Riscal Rioja Gran Reserva

 

 

Albany Chef’s Food & Wine Fest 2018

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The 9th annual Albany Chef’s Food & Wine Festival was held on January 11-13. The event raised money for the arts in Albany and was three days of seminars, dinners, grand tastings and culinary and bartender competitions which included a cooking challenge and a Bloody Mary contest.

This year the event partnered with the Indonesian Diaspora Network which inspired the artwork on the poster and provided the food theme for the dinners.

The event was held at the Empire State Plaza, a 1970s era complex of monolithic state government buildings which cost around $2 billion to build at the time. I attended the grand tasting on Saturday afternoon which featured food from local restaurants, wine, spirits and craft beer as well as the chefs and bartenders competition. There was also a one seminar which I attended.  Like many consumer tastings, there was a lot of mid level wines but there was a table with some high end juice and I tasted some interesting whiskey.

Albany is the capitol of the state of New York but it’s a small town and the downtown area was pretty much a ghost town on the Saturday afternoon I was there.

Some of what I sampled:

 

Whiskey

Jack Daniels’s: single barrel rye, single barrel select, Sinatra select

Hudson: Manhattan rye, four grain bourbon

Eagle Rare bourbon 10yr

Ironweed rye

 

Wine

2015 Steele Chardonnay Cuvee

2015 Cartlidge & Browne Pinot Noir

2013 Twonmey Cellars Merlot

2013 Gaja “Sori Tilden”

2012 Il Poggione Brunello di Montalcino

2014 Chateau La Nerthe Chateauneuf du Pape

2016 19 Crimes Red Blend

 

Seminar: Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir Horizontal

The tasting room is just south of the city of Salem, Oregon and is one of the larger producing wineries in the state. I did stop by the huge tasting room when I visited Willamette Valley last Spring.

2014 Pinot Noir “Estate”. A blend of grapes from several vineyards, clear, dark red with a delicate perfume of dark cherry, some earth and petroleum, dusty fruit ending with tart black cherry.

2014 Pinot Noir “Tualatin”. Clear, medium dark red, red licorice on the nose, tight, bright delicate fruit with smoky notes on the finish.

2014 Pinot Noir “Elton”. Clear, dark purple, cherry and leather on the nose, tight fruit, firm acids with charred notes on the finish.

2014 Pinot Noir “Bernau Block”. Clear, dark red with mint, green herbs and strawberry jam on the nose, delicate and earthy notes and black licorice on the finish.

 

 

Malbec On Long Island

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Malbec is one of the varietals allowed in the Bordeaux blend but not widely grown there today. It is however, the most important grape in Cahors in the south-western part of France and in Argentina where it usually makes for a beefier wine than in Cahors. Out on Long Island production is limited and a few wineries bottle it on its own. I drove out one Sunday afternoon to try some. These cool weather wines had more in common with Cahors than Argentina.

 

Lenz Winery 38355 Main Road, Peconic

Lenz is celebrating its 39th year which makes it ancient on the north fork. They are known for their Merlot but they bottle a Malbec as well.

2014 Malbec: Black with a purple rim, slate and black fruit on the nose, graphite and slate notes on the juicy fruit ending with dusty tannins.

 

Bedell Cellars 36225 Main Road, Cutchogue

Family owned winery with an always crowded tasting room.

2016 Malbec: Dark purple with a purple rim, crushed stone and cooked fruit on the nose with mint notes starting to show as the wine opened in the glass, tight, sour cherry notes on the light finish.

 

Shinn Estate Vineyard 2000 Oregon Road, Mattituck

Established in 2000 and whose motto is “heritage, history & heart”, they recently changed ownership.

2013 Malbec: About 38 cases produced, black in color, sweet berry, mint and dark violets on the nose, dark and concentrated fruit with tart blueberry notes.

 

 

Matter of Taste New York 2017

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Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate presented its Matter of Taste wine event on Sunday, December 3rd. It was the final event of the year of their global tasting series that had similar events held in London, Singapore and Macau. This year’s theme was The Ultimate Cult Cabernets and Champagne and featured over 300 wines rated 90 points or more by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate.

The event was held at the Conrad hotel located at 102 North End Avenue in lower Manhattan and was a walk-around tasting with a couple of seminars thrown in.

Wines were offered from many of the wine-producing countries of the world but the stars of the afternoon were the Cult Cabernets from California. There were many high-end wines from Washington State as well. As with tastings of this size I had to focus my efforts and that focus was on the California wines. Without a doubt this was one of the best tastings of the year with a copious amount of the best wines from California available for tasting.

Some of what I sampled:

California

2014 B Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon “Beckstoffer Vineyard” (Napa Valley). Dark purple, green herbs and dark chocolate on the nose with chewy, cocoa and tobacco fruit on the nice balance.

2013 Blackbird Vineyards Paramour Proprietary Red (Napa Valley). Mostly Cabernet Franc, black in color, graphite on the nose, tight with teeth coating tannins at the end.

2014 Chimney Rock Cabernet Sauvignon “Ganymede” (Napa Valley). Black, warm cooked fruit on the nose, concentrated and thick with green herbs on the finish, moderate tannins and acids.

2013 Chimney Rock Cabernet Sauvignon “Tomahawk” (Napa Valley). Black, crushed black fruit and sage on the nose, concentrated with firm tannins, moderate acidity.

2013  Chimney Rock “Elevage” (Stags Leap District). Bordeaux blend, Black with a sweet perfume of violets and cooked ripe fruit, tight and concentrated black fruit with a good grip on the balanced finish.

2015 Clos du Val Cabernet Franc (Napa Valley). Black, dark chocolate on the nose, chewy, dark chocolate fruit with silky, firm tannins.

2015 Clos du Val Cabernet Sauvignon “Hirondelle Estate” (Napa Valley). Black, green vegetable nose, black fruit, firm finish, nice balance

2014 DuMol Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley). Dark purple, green herbs on the nose, concentrated with nice balance.

2011 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon (Howell Mt). Dark red to black, green herbs on the nose, moderate fruit with tobacco notes on the nicely balanced finish.

2012 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon (Howell Mt). Black with green herbs and dark chocolate on the nose, dusty, firm, with cocoa notes on the balanced finish.

2015 Gemstone Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon “Alluvial Selection” (Napa Valley). Dark purple with tobacco and green herbs on the nose, chewy with moderate tannin and acids.

2013 Hertelendy Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley). Black in color, cinnamon spice on the nose, tight and concentrated with silky tannins and coffee notes on the nicely balanced finish.

2014 Hertelendy Audère Red Blend (Napa Valley). Black, sweet black cherry on the nose, concentrated and tight with big tannins.

2014 Joseph Phelps “Insignia” (Napa Valley). Black in color, roasted nuts on the nose with tight, silky red fruit with tobacco notes on the firm and balanced finish.

2013 Laurel Glen Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon “Estate” (Sonoma). Black with a perfume of black leather, chewy and chunky with a nice balance.

2014 Larkmead Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon “Solari” (Napa Valley). Black, closed nose of tree bark, concentrated and juicy with a balanced finish.

2013 Louis Martini Cabernet Sauvignon “Lot 1” (Napa Valley). Black, dark chocolate and dark red fruit on the nose, dusty, cocoa and nice silky tannin on the fruit.

2014 Martin Estate Cabernet Sauvignon “Collector’s Reserve” (Napa Valley). Dark red with graphite and fresh herbs on the nose, dusty slate notes on the concentrated fruit, nice grip.

2015 Michael Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon “Animo” (Napa Valley). Dark purple, plum and green herbs on the nose, deep red fruit with a moderate to long finish.

2013 Michael Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon “M” (Napa Valley). Single vineyard Cabernet, dark purple to black, graphite and dark chocolate on the nose, firm and balanced on the long finish.

2013 Mauriston Wines Cabernet Sauvignon “Suther” (Sonoma). Dark purple with a perfume of smoky violets, dusty black cherry fruit ending with teeth coating tannins.

2014 Newton Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon (Mt Veeder). Dark red to black, sweet black fruit on the nose, green herb notes on the concentrated fruit, drops a bit at the end.

2004 O’Shaughnessy Cabernet Sauvignon (Howell Mtn). Black with a perfume of mint, tar and crushed sweet black fruit, juicy, crushed fruit, moderate acidity, tasty.

2004 O’Shaughnessy Cabernet Sauvignon (Mt Veeder). Black, sweet perfume of plums and toast, dusty concentrated, firm finish.

2014 Quintessa Winery Red Blend (Napa Valley). Bordeaux blend, dark purple, green herbs on the nose, juicy fruit with nice balance and a long finish.

2013 Sbragia Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon “Monte Rosso” (Napa Valley). Black, camphor, black fruit on the nose, chewy black licorice fruit ending with firm tannins.

2013 Sbragia Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon “Godspeed Vineyard” (Sonoma). Black, big perfume of mint, tight and concentrated with toast notes on the firm finish.

2013 Sojourn Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon “Beckstoffer Vineyard George III” (Napa Valley). Dark red, fresh herbs on the nose, dusty black fruit with a nice finish.

2014 Sojurn Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon (Oakville). Medium red, closed nose of spice with dusty red fruit and a long finish.

2010 Whitehall Lane Cabernet Sauvignon “MM Vineyard” (Napa Valley). Black with tobacco and red cherry on the nose, chewy tobacco notes on the balanced fruit.

Others

2010 Chateau Phelan-Segur (St-Estephe). Dark red, nice perfume of tar, tight dark fruit with silky tannins on the moderate to long finish.

2008 Ducru Beaucaillou (St-Julien). Dark red, camphor and petroleum on the nose with concentrated dark fruit with a grip of bitter black cherry at the end.

2014 La Croix de Beaucaillou (St-Julien). Medium red with herbs and toast on the nose, bell pepper notes on the moderate fruit and firm tannins.

 

Italian Holiday Tasting

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Another Thanksgiving Day has come and gone and we are now on the home stretch of the holiday season with Christmas right around the corner. Italian Wine Merchants, a wine shop specializing in Italian wines located at 108 East 16th Street in Manhattan, threw a “mini grand” tasting on Saturday November 25th.

The wine shop throws many wine themed events throughout the year and their tastings are usually pretty solid with quality wines poured. This was their Black Friday edition which meant a nice discount from the regular price.  It was a walk-around tasting featuring 26 wines from an all Italian list (and one Champagne). It was a well thought out list with a nice variety of premium wines.

The wine shop is just down the block from Union Square Park, an historic intersection where New York City’s first commercial theater district was located. At this time of year a Christmas market is set up in the park and during the day one of the best farmers markets in the city selling local produce and products.

 

What I sampled:

NV Barone Pizzini Brut Franciacorta “Aminante” (Lombardy). Gold in color, honey, floral nose with green apple notes on the fruit.

NV Roger Coulon Brut Reserve de l’Hommée (Champagne). The non-Italian outlier of the tasting, light gold with green vegetable and bread dough on the nose, crisp.

 

2015 Antinori Castello della Sala Pinot Nero (Umbria). Medium red, spicy cinnamon on the nose, leather fruit with some tar on the finish.

2014 Antinori Chianti Classico Riserva (Tuscany). Medium red, tar, leather  on the nose, tight fruit with green herbs, firm finish.

2012 Badia a Passignano Chianti Classico Gran Selezione (Tuscany). Medium red, tar, leather, violet on the nose, tight, bitter cherry fruit, firm finish.

2011 Castello dei Rampolla “Sammarco” (Tuscany). Dark red in color, nice perfume of pencil shavings, tar and red fruit, dusty crushed black fruit with a long, firm finish.

2015 Tenuta San Guido “Guidalberto” (Tuscany). Medium red, green bell pepper on the nose with tart red cherry fruit.

2014 Cerbaiona Rosso di Montalcino (Tuscany). Medium red, tar and crushed red cherry on the nose, dusty, black licorice fruit, balanced with tar notes on the finish.

2015 Guado al Tasso “Il Bruciato” (Tuscany). Medium red, red cherry and green herbs on the nose, tight, tree bark notes on the fruit, big astringent at the finish.

2014 Cerbaina Rosso IGT (Tuscany). Medium red, tar, graphite on the nose, red licorice and dusty tar on the firm, moderate to long finish.

2014 Le Mortelle “Bortrosecco” (Tuscany). Medium to dark red, green herbs, sour green bell pepper of the nose, tight with herb and leather notes, toast on the firm finish.

2012 Pian Delle Vigne Brunello di Montalcino (Tuscany). Medium brick, tar on the nose, silky fruit with bitter cherry and crisp acids on the finish.

2012 Cerbaiona Brunello di Montalcino (Tuscany). Medium brick, tar, graphite on the nose with silky tar and toasty notes on the medium fruit.

2013 Poderi Aldon Conterno Langhe Rosso (Piedmont). Medium red, cooked fruit notes, couldn’t get a handle on this wine, not sure if the bottle was bad or not.

2014 Prunotto Barbera d’Alba “Pian Romualdo” (Piedmont). Medium red, closed, plummy nose, tight and tart.

2010 Prunotto Barolo Bussia Riserva “Vigna Colonnello” (Piedmont). Light brick, big perfume of tar, camphor, tight and firm, tart finish.

2012 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo “Colonnello” (Piedmont). Medium brick with a sweet perfume of tar, graphite and sweet cherry, tight and dusty with big tannins at the end.

2013 Ada Nada Barberesco “Valeirano” (Piedmont). Brick in color with a pretty perfume of violets and roast meat, tight, roast nut notes on the fruit, ending with firm tannins.

2011 Bruno Giacosa Barberesco “Santo Stefano” (Piedmont). Light brick, tar, red cherry on the nose with dusty red cherry fruit ending with moderate tannin and acids.

2014 Nicolis Valpolicella Classico (Veneto). Medium brick, red flowers on the nose, moderate to light, tart fruit.

2011 Brigaldara Amarone “Casa Vecie” (Veneto). Medium amber, green fruit on the nose, bitter plum and dusty bell pepper on the fruit.

2012 Tormaresca Bocca di Lupo (Puglia). Medium red, crushed black fruit on the nose, concentrated, dark and dusty fruit ending with bitter black cherry notes.