Two older red wines, Tancredi 2012 and Adanti Sagrantino di Montefalco 2008

Two older red wines from Italy. First is the wine Tancredi from the Sicilian producer Donnafugata. The vintage is 2012 and the ABV is 13,5%. It is made of several grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Nero d'Avola, Tannat and several other varieties. It has been aged 14 months in a barrel before being bottled. The taste is deep and I get leather, oak, black currant and some dark cherry. This is a lovely wine that is very well structured and is complex and elegant. So far Donnafugata has not produced a wine which I have not loved.

The next wine is a Sagrantino di Montefalco from the producer Adanti in Umbria. It is made of 100% Sagrantino grapes. The ABV is 14,5% and the vintage is 2008. It has been aged in casks for two years before being bottled and then it has been aged in the bottle for 10 years before being opened. But still after 12 years of ageing this wine is very strong. A lot of cherry, plum, black currants and some leather tones with strong but balanced tannins at the end. Excellent wine from Adanti

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Sedura from Donnafgata and two other red wines from Italy

Finally I have found a different wine from Donnafugata which is not usually available and it is the wine La Bella Sedara.  The ABV is 13,5% and the vintage is 2017. This wine is made from several different grapes with the main grape being Nero D'Avola blended together with Cabernet Sauvigno, Merlot and Syrah.In the taste I get black currant, cherry and some spices and black peppar. A very nice easy drinking wine.

The wine Aglianico is from the producer Fattoria Pagano in Campania. It is made from 100% Aglianico grapes. The vintage is 2017 and the ABv is 14%. The vineyard lies at 270-300 meters above sea level in Casale Carniola in Campania. The taste is of black currant and plum with some tannins which some are a bit unripe. It is a decent wine which gets much better when paired with spicy food.

The last red wine is from the producer Bepin De Eto in Veneto. I have tasted the wine Cabernet earlier and still my thought is that it is a decent wine but I prefer the other red wines from Bepin De Eto which in my mind are better.

Going back

It is fun to go back and try different vintages of wine that I liked. Will it still be good or has something changed.

From one of my favourite producer Donnafugata in Sicily comes the wine Anthila. It is a white wine of vintage 2016, Cataratto is the main grape but is complimented by various other grapes. The taste is of pear and peaches with  crispy fresh taste. As good as I remembered it. Definitely a wine for the Swedish summer.

Then we move on to producer Piersanti and the wine Zecci which is a white wine from Marche in Italy. It is made of 100% Verdicchio grapes and is from the DOC Verdicchio Dei Castelli Jesi. The vintage is of 2015. This is a full bodied wine. Pears and apples in the taste. A very good food wine.

Very good to see that both producers has good quality over the years.

Take it easy and just enjoy

There are many wines that are very good and not overly complex. One such wine is the wine Lighea from the producer Donnafugata. It is made with Zibibbo grapes ( the grape is called Moscato d'Alessandria outside of Sicily). These grapes are grown on the island of Pantelleria south of Sicily. I have only drank sweet wines from Pantelleria such as the Passito so this is something new for me. The alcohol level is 12,5%. One can feel on the smell that it is Zibibbo. The taste is aromatic. Not strong aromatic as a Gewürztraminer but more gentle. The taste is hard to describe but has notes of grape, almonds and fruits. A very good easy wine perfect to have a glass and just sit back and enjoy. Another good wine from an excellent wine producer.

I really like the paintings that Donnafugata has on their wines. Reminds me of Sicily.

SurSur and Lugana

This time I have tried two different white wines from Italy. One in the extreme north while the other from Sicily in the south.

From producer Donnafugata I have drank several wines and they have all been excellent. Their white wine SurSur from 2013 is a new experience. It is made of the grape Grillo which is a grape widely used in Sicily and is used also for the production of Marsala wine. SurSur has a good smell and the taste is excellent. It has notes of grapefruit, peaches and some aromatic notes and has an excellent structure. Goes very well with seafood. Very good wine and the white wines from Sicily continues to impress me.

From the south to the north of Italy. The wine Lugana from producer Casello Bondoni on the western side of lake Garda in the Lombardy region. Very close to Switzerland. The grapes used for this wine is the grape Trebbiano di Lugana and the alcohol level is 13%. The colour is yellow with almost greenish tints. The taste is of peaches, pears and herbs. Good structure and very fresh. A nice wine.

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.

Birthday and good wines

When it is time for my birthday it is always nice to celebrate it with good food and wines. This year the food was four cheeses from Italy, a tuscan brasato and a lemon meringue pie.

The first wine of the day were a Rotari Millesimato from 1999. This sparkling wine has character and tasted of citrus and bread. A strong vintage that worked very well with the cheeses. Next wine up was a Taurasi from 2003 from producer Di Prisco in Campania. Has a misfortune with the cork but after some struggle I could decant the wine. It is interesting how the older wines change their character with decanting. Just poured into the container it tasted very closed and not that good. But after an hour it had completely changed character. Now it was very elegant with notes of tobacco and liquorice. Very good. To finish the evening off were the sweet wine Kabir from island Pantelleria from producer Donnafugata. As usual one can through the smell say that this wine is from Pantelleria. Very good and full of flavour. Since this was from 2010 it didn't have the strong perfume tones of the 2012 vintage.

Sicily and Verona

I stay with Italy when trying out new wines and this time it is two new red wines and one old acquaintance.

Sicily should be more famous for it wines which are of good quality as well for the nature and food.

Above picture is from Mozia near Marsala and in Marsala the wine producer Donnafugata has their historical cellars. This time I tasted their wine Tancredi again but now the vintage 2009. The colour is dark ruby. Strong taste of cherries with strong notes of cacao and liquorice. The same strong taste as last time. Goes very well with strong food. Very nice.

A new acquaintance is the wine 6 Sesta by producer Cantina Valle Dell'Acate in Sicily. It is made by Frappato and Nero d'Avola grapes. The colour is not as deep red as the Tancredi wine but lighter. The taste is of black berried with some chocolate. Very good and after tasting these two wines I should explore Sicilian reds more.

The last wine tasted is the wine La Grola by producer Allegrini near Verona in the Veneto area of Italy. It is strong and could have probably been stored for another year or two. The vintage is 2008. It tastes of black currants and with some cherries. Definately a wine for strong food such as red meats or pasta dishes.

Yet another three Italian wines

It is interesting to see how a wine varies between different vintages. This time I had the chance to try two wines and see what one or two years difference makes.

The Kalis Cardonnay Grillo wine I had tasted the 2012 vintage and now I had the chance to taste the 2013 vintage. My recollection of the 2012 wine was that it was a decent drinking wine. But the 2013 vintage is something different, this is very light, not much flavour. A true table wine for those who like their wines simple and with not much taste. Not to my liking.

Each time I get to taste a Donnafugata wine is a good time. I had sampled their sweet Kabir wine from 2010 (Moscato di Pantelleria) and it was excellent. Now I have tasted the Kabir from 2012. I have to say that the 2012 vintage is very aromatic, much more than the 2010. Not to everyone's liking I would think due to the strong aromatic taste but for me this is paradise. Together with some sweet desserts like almond cake this would be a match in heaven.

The last wine is Manzone Bianco from the Veneto region by producer Cantina la Salute. I read a bad review of this in a magazine, but how they described it sounded like a wine for me. The smell is very good, almost fruity. The taste is almost like a pignoletto wine, some citrus and honey. I like it.

When in Siciliy drink Sicilian wine

During my recent Sicilian trip I had the chance to sample some Sicilian wine. In Trapani I had the chance to sample some wine from my favourite Sicilian producer Donnafugata. The wine in this case were the white wine Anthilia from 2013. This wine has the main grape of Catarratto and is complemented by other grapes. The smell is very fresh. The taste is very fresh with pear notes and some grapefruit. It is a delight to drink and I wish I could find bottles of it in Sweden.

Donnafugata Tancredi and two other Italian wines

The wineproducer Donnafugata from Sicily makes an excellent passito wine from Pantelleria and that got me interested in Donnafugata. Unfortunately their wine has been hard to find in Sweden but finally I found their wine Tancredi for sale. Tancredi is a powerful red wine. It is from 2008 and the grapes used is a mix of Cabernet Sauvignon, Nero d'Avola and some other grapes. The alcohol content is around 13%. Has a very strong nose and the taste is of cacao and red cherries. This strong wine goes well with meats or flavourful pasta dishes. Will be interesting to taste the other wines from donnafugata if I can find them. Next time I will try to find one of their white dry wines.

When in Bologna I bought a bottle Chardonnay made by producer Cossentino in Sicily. It is from 2010 and the nose is of apples and some hints of herbs. The taste is very sharp and dry at first but the sharpness goes away and leaves almost an oxidised taste. Should it be like that or is it a defect? Will never know as I only have one bottle. But this wine would have worked very well with seafood which would have takes away some of the sharpness.

And finally I have tasted a bottle from Collis, an extra dry Prosecco.Works well as an apeteriff and the taste is dry with notes of apples.

Kabir, Moscato di Pantelleria

From my previous tastings I know that the island Pantelleria near Sicily makes very good sweet wines, especially the passito wines that I have tasted. Moscato di Pantelleria is an Italian DOC for Moscato wines made in the island of Pantelleria. This Kabir wine is made by the producer Donnafugata, http://www.donnafugata.it/pagine/Homepage-ITA.aspx. This is the second wine I have tasted from this producer. Kabir is from 2010 and has an alcohollevel of 11,5%.
The wine smells heavenly. Almost like a fruity herbalgarden. The colour is a bit pale compared to the Pantelleria passito wines I have drunk. The taste is of melon and pineapple and has  very long delightful aftertaste, It worked very well together with a strong blue cheese. I will buy a couple of bottles more of this wine and store them and see how they age. Will be interesting.