Montefalco rosso from Colsanto and Dolcetto d'Ovada from Tachino

One of my favourite wineregions in Italy is Montefalco in Umbria, especially their Montefalco Rosso and the Sagrantino di Montefalco. These wine can be quite strong but balanced by a lot of flavour. This time I am tasting a Montefalco Rosso from a producer that I have never tasted anything from before, the producer is Colsanto. The ABV is 14% and the vintage is 2014. The grapes used are Sagrantino and Sangiovese. This wine has a lot of red and dark berries on the nose. There is deep structured tannins which linger for a long time and combines well with the dark cherries and black currants in the taste. This is a very good wine which I think that will age well for a couple of more years gaining more complexity. But beware, It is a very strong wine.

Next wine is made from one of the lesser known red grape varieties from Piemonte, namely Dolcetto. The wine is Dolcetto D'Ovada from producer Tachino. The vintage is 2015 and the ABV is 14%. In the taste I get black berries, viol, plum and some black currant. A very nice Dolcetto that shows that Dolcetto is under appreciated grape.

Two red wines from Adanti in Montefalco

Cantina Adanti is a family owned winery near Montefalco in Umbria, Italy. This winery started in the sixties and nowadays they own 40 hectars of land of which 30 is used for vineyards. They make several wines, both red and white wines. When I visited Umbria in 2016 I bought several of their wines typical of the region. One each of their Montefalco Rosso, and Montefalco Rosso Riserva. Both of these winetypes must contain 60-70% Sangiovese, 10-15% Sagrantino and the rest of the grapes can be any red grape variety. For the Montefalco Rosso it must be aged for 18 months before being sold, while for the riserva it has to be stored for 30 months being sold with at least 12 months in wood.

First up is the Montefalco Rosso from 2011. It has an ABV of 14,5%. It has the following grape composition: 70% sangiovese, 15% sagrantino, 5% barbera, 5% merlot, 5% cabernet. This is a rich red wine with some strong tannins. In the taste I have cherries, some earthy notes and rich black currants. Very good but you need some strong food with it.

Next up is the Montefalco Rosso Riserva from 2011 with an ABV of 14,5%. It has the following grapes: 70% sangiovese, 15% sagrantino, 15% merlot. On the nose a lot of cherry. The taste is of dark cherry and some black currant with some plum and some lingering tannins. Very good and feels very elegant. I could have mistaken this for a very good Brunello in a blind tasting. This is a wine which would have been fun to have 12 bottles of and drink one each year just to follow the progress of the wine.

Two very good wines from Cantina Adanti. Both highly recommended.

Three Sangiovese from Italy

Three different Sangiovese blends from three different regions in the central Italy wine growing regions. Let's start with the northern most region which is Emilia-Romagna. Here the producer Nespoli makes a Romagna Sangiovse Superiore Riserva wine made of 100% Sangiovese grapes. The vintage is 2013 and the ABV is 13,5%. I find this wine to be very full bodied oaky wine with a taste of tobacco and dark cherries. A very good wine which will become better with a couple of years storage.

Next we move south to Tuscany and the wine la Bestia Governo which are made from the grapes Sangiovese and Colorino. The vintage is 2016 and the ABV is 14%. I get red fruits on the nose and the taste is of red cherries, vanilla and some coffee. A nice rich fruity wine. Almost ripasso like in the style.

The last wine we find in Tuscany's south eastern neighbour Umbria. The Montefalco Rosso from producer Arnaldo Caprai I have tried before but this time it is their new vintage from 2016. It consists of 70% Sangiovese grapes, 15% Sagrantino and 15% Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon. It is strong with cherries with spice and tannins. Almost tastes like the 2015 vintage but I think that this vintage won't get much better with storage, very good to drink right now.

Umbria, the region of good red wines

Umbria in Italy may not be that known but it is a very good wine producing wine region. Beautiful landscapes and the rolling green hills and not so many tourists.

Several of the wines I review here I have tried earlier but there are some new vintages for sale.

First up is a lighter red wine from the producer Lungarotti in Torgiano. It is a Rosso di Torgiano DOC wine consisting of Sangiovese and Colorino grapes. The vintage is 2012 and the ABV is 13,5%.  I get red fruits on the nose. Cherries and black currants in the taste with soft smooth tannins that linger in the mouth. This one is better than the 2015 vintage that I have tried. This is a wine that gains by storing it for a couple of years. A wine that is very good year from year.

Next up is Arnaldo Caprais Rosso di Montefalco of the vintage 2015. Now it has been stored for another year so let's see how it is. The ABV is 2015 it is a combination of Sagrantino, Sangiovese and some Merlot grapes. This wine is strong with cherries, tannins and spices. It could be stored for several more years before drinking. A good wine now and will last for several more years in the cellar. The vintage 2016 is now available to buy.

The third wine is from producer Sportoletti and this wine focuses on the international grape varieties merlot, cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc. the grape blend is as the following: Merlot 70%, Cabernet Sauvignon 20%, Cabernet Franc 10%. The name is Villa Fidelia Rosso and the grapes are grown on the Spello and Assisi hills. The ABV is 15%. This is quite a heavy wine. Strong taste with tobacco, dark cherries and black currants. Should be stored a couple of more years before drinking.  After aerating the wine it got smoother and more black currants. This confirms that this wine should be stored for a longer time. A good wine today and will be even better in a few years time.

Two Italian red wines

In this review I will visit Tuscany and Umbria.

Tenute Lunelli is an Italian wine producer in Italy and they have estates in Tuscany, Trentino and Umbria. Their Umbria estate is called Tenuta Castelbuono and is near Montefalco. Their wine Ziggurat is a Montefalco Rosso and contains 70% Sangiovese, 15% Sagrantino and the rest 15% is Cabernet and Merlot. The ABV is 15% and the vintage is 2015.There is a strong smell of dark fruits In the taste I get dark currants, spices and dark chocolate with strong tannins that integrates well. A good wine that will become better with a few more years of aging.

The last wine is Vernaiolo from producer Rocca della Macie from Tuscany. It is a Chianti wine and contains 85% Sangiovese, 10% Caniola Nero and 5% Merlot. The ABV is 13% and the vintage is 2015. I find it to be a light fruity Chianti with some red fruits and some tannins in the end. The wine for for food when you want an easy drinking wine.

From rock to Montefalco

Rock is a Valpolicella Ripasso from 2015 from ITALIANS. Bought in Germany so a strange producer and also the text on the label is all about rock in various forms. So how does it taste? It is spicy with some liquorice and a lot of tannins. Feels a bit unbalanced and after my trip to Verona I can say that there are much better Ripassos.

I have tried the Montefalco rosso from producer Arnaldo-Caprai earlier. This time it is the vintage 2015 with and ABV of 13%. It is a combination of Sagrantino, Sangiovese and some Merlot grapes. It is aged 12 months in wood and then four months in bottle before being sold.  The taste of dark fruits and cherries and the tannins are in a very good combination. It is an excellent food wine.

Birthday and wine from Montefalco

For my birthday I always try to celebrate with good food and wine. This year I choose wine and food from Italy and especially Umbria. All the wine were from Umbria and from the town of Montefalco. The town Montefalco is famous for their Sagrantino ´grapes that are used in the Montefalco wine. Sagrantino is a grape that is indigenous to Umbria and has a very high tannic level. First up for the evening were the the Montefalco Rosso DOC wine Cocchino from producer Podere Castorani and the vintage 2006. The taste is of spices and richness with huge tannins that are well structured. A very good wine.
Next up were the Sagrantino Di Montefalco DOGC wine from producer Cantina Fratelli Pardi and the vintage 2011. This wine is made with 100% Sagrantino. Like the previous wine one can feel the tannins and in this wine they are even stronger but the tannins are very well structured and the taste goes very well together. One could always store this wine for several years. An excellent wine.
The last wine were the Sagrantino Di Montefalco DOGC passito wine from Cantina Fratelli Pardi from 2010. This passito wine is quite a rarity and is very hard to find outside of Umbria. This wine is spicy, sweet but still a bit tannic and is very interesting. A lovely passito wine that is a must if one can buy it.

And if you happen to be in Umbria. Take the chance to visit Montefalco as it is a lovely small medieval town.

From Montalcino to Montefalco

Montalcino is famous for their red wine. But in the area there is also production of White wine. Sant'Antimo is a monastery close to Montalcino which has given the name to the denomination Sant'Antimo DOGC. In this DOGC several white and red wines can be produced. One wine that can be produced is a Pinot Grigio wine. I was lucky to find a bottle from producer Col D'Orcia. I quite like this wine as it is fresh and elegant and is perfect for a warm summer day.
Also take a chance to visit the monastery of Sant'Antimo. The church there is very beautiful and one can still see Carolingian parts.

In nearby Montefalco, their red wine is also the most famous and probably the most famous producer in Umbria is Lungarotti. They produce three different wine from the Montefalco region and one of them is Rosso di Montefalco. I bought the 2009 vintage but the one featured on Lungarottis website now is 2013. The mix of grapes are Sagrantino, Sangiovese and Merlot. It is stored for 12 months in barriques and then 10 months in the bottle before being sold. It can be drank young or stored as the one I bought. The colour is a good ruby, it looks very nice. It has soft tannins, black currants and dark cherries and has some spices in it. A very good wine.
Montefalco is also a nice place to visit. Beautiful medieval town.

Montefalco vs Chianti

This time I have tried one wine from Chianti and one wine from Montefalco. Chianti is situated in Tuscany while Montefalco is in Umbria which is just east of Tuscany.

The wine Brolio from 2013 by producer Barone Ricasoli is from the Chianti Classico region. It contains 80% Sangiovese grapes and The rest Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The taste is of cherries and herbs but I found it lacking a bit. Not as powerful as I wanted it to be.

The wine Montefalco rosso is from 2011 by producer Antonelli in Montefalco. It contains 70% Sangiovese, 15% Sagrantino and 15% Montepulciano. It tastes of cherries and has tannins but these tannins are soft and good. A wine that can be stored for several more years and will age well due to the Sagrantino added to the wine.

For more about Montefalco see my blog post about Montefalco.

The wines of Montefalco in Umbria

Umbria is a province in Italy lying east of Tuscany. Umbria reminds me a lot of Tuscany with the food and the nature but still it is very different. For example Umbria is less famous so it is less tourists there and there are some high mountain ranges. Maybe Umbria is most known for the town of Assisi which is the birthplace of Saint Francis of Assisi.

Assisi is a very beautiful place. But maybe to much tourists at some times.
Another very beautiful place in Umbria is Castelluccio near Norcia in Umbria. It is a small village situated at 1350 meter height in the plains of Castelluccio. Pictures cannot describe how beautiful and tranquil this place is.

The food is a bit similar to Tuscan cooking with some big differences. One is the use of black truffles, which is delightful part of the Umbrian kitchen.

The most famous wines of Umbria comes from the small town of Montefalco. This town is quite interesting as it is very medieval and has small narrow winding streets with good view of the surrounding countryside due to the height of 473 meters.

The wine of Montefalco were not much known to me before I visited Umbria. First there is the wine called Rosso di Montefalco which must contain 60-70% Sangiovese with some 10-15% Sagrantino and the winemakers other choice of red grapes. And then the wine must be aged for 18 months. Since Sagrantino has a lot of tannins it makes for a wine with more tannins than the usual wine.
Then there is the Rosso di Montefalco riserva which must be aged for 30 months. This wine is quite rare since the wine producers tend to focus aging for their Sagrantino wine. The Montefalco Sagrantino must contain 100% of Sagrantino and must be aged for at east 30 months. Sagrantino is an indigenous grape to Umbria and is grown primarily around Montefalco. This grape has one of the highest tannic levels in the world and in the restaurant in Assisi the waiter warned us that we would be looking like that we had eating a lemon if we were not used to it.

Back to the wines that I tasted during this trip. Tabarrini Rosso di Montefalco from 2012 were very good.

The first ever Sagrantino di Montefalco that I tasted were a wine from 2011 by Cantina Fratelli Pradi. The waiter warned us and it is strong in tannins but went very well with the strong food. Can be stored for many more years.

At a ristorante in Noria I tasted a Rosso di Montefalco by producer Arnaldo Caprai from 2012. Very good.

For the last evening in Umbria I has the wine Rosso di Montefalco by producer Tenute Delcerro from 2012. Yet again a very good wine.

There is also one more wine from Montefalco that I didn't have the chance to taste and it is a passito wine made from the Sagrantino grape. That will be a thing to be done in the future.

When leaving Umbria I felt a bit sad as I felt really t home there. Leaving Norcia and the beautiful town square. I will be back one day.

Franciacorta, quality sparkling wine

Franciacorta is a sparkling wine from Lombardy. These are made almost exactly like champagnes and the only one I have tried so far were very good. Now I have finally found some more of these Franciacorta sparkling wines.

The wine Animante is from producer Barone Pizzini. It is a non vintage Franciacorta made of the famous grapes Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Blanc with the Chardonnay dominating. It has an alcohol level of 12%. This is a good wine. The smell is very nice and smells apples and pears. The taste is of Bread, citrus, minerals and with a long strong after taste. Yet another good wine from this area. Unfortunately I cannot find this producers wine in Sweden. I bought this wine on a ferry.

Moving away from the north of Italy towards the centre of Italy and the region Umbria and the area Montefalco. Here I find the wine Montefalco by producer Arnaldo Caprai. It is vintage 2012 and the wine consists of the grapes Sangiovese, Sagrantino and Merlot. It has a very deep colour, almost blue reddish colour. The taste is strong with notes of Violet, Black Currants and liquorice. A good wine.