Sicily and Alto Adige

Two of my favourite wine regions in Italy are Sicily and Alto Adige. And this time all three wines are from these regions.

The first bottle is the wine Chardonnay from Planeta. It is from 2012 and the grapes came from Cantina Ulmo which is near Marsala in the southwestern corner of Sicily. On this wine they have tried to make an unmistakably Sicilian Chardonnay. I have to agree with this as it tastes a bit different from other Chardonnays that I have drunk. The taste is of apricots, citrus and some tropical notes. The colour is very straw yellow. It is good with food but also good to drink as it is.

The next wine I have tried before and it is from producer Donnafuga in Sicily. It is the wine Kabir which is a Moscato Di Pantelleria from the island of Pantelleria. It is vintage 2012 which the last time I tried it was very aromatic. With one more year in the bottle it has become more well rounded with the aromatic note still there but now with more smooth style. Very good and I think it will be even better with some more storage, luckily I have several bottles at home.

From Alto Adige comes the wine Winkl  Sauvignon from 2013. It is produced by the one of Alto Adiges leading wine growers’ cooperatives. The colour is straw yellow with and almost green tint. The taste is as usual with Sauvignon full of gooseberrys and some elderberry. Very aromatic and a good wine. Tasted it last year and it still is very good.

Ca' del Bosco Curtefranca Bianco

A wine that I have tasted is Ca' del Bosco Curtefranca Bianco from Lombardy in Italy. It is produced in the same region as the more famous sparkling Franciacorta wines but due to the elevation of the sparkling wines to the Francicorta DOC the still wines had to choose the name Curtefranca DOC. The Ca' del Bosco Curtefranca Bianco is fro 2013 and contains 80% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Bianco. It has a taste of apples, pears and minerals and is very good. Highly recomended.  Ca' del Bosco also produces a sparkling wine which unfortunately I cannot buy at this moment.

Back to normal

Over five weeks since my last blogpost. Visits to Italy and Japan took has taken a lot of my time but now it is back to normal. A longer report from Italy will come one of these upcoming days but until then some wines that I have tasted.

White wine from Spain is something that I almost never drink and the wine Rueda by Marques De Riscal is a new experience. This wine is made from the Verdejo grape which is also new for me. It is grown in the Ruedo region in Spain. This wine is aromatic, but for me a bit single minded and lacking some freshness. Definitely needs food with this wine.

My favourite wine region in France is the Alsace region. They produce very good white wines. Turckheim is a small commune in Alsace that produces very good wine. Their Pinot Gris from 2012 is very good. It has a freshness and acidity that makes it so easy to drink. Highly recommended wine.

I like red wine from the Veneto region in Italy and one wine is the Millefiori by producer Traditional Wine Innovations. It is made by using the appassimento method, which means drying of the grapes like they do for Amarone wines. It has a strong taste of cherries but also feel a bit simpleminded. It lacks something and there are better red wines from Veneto region to buy.