Champagne and more champagne

For new years eve I had the chance to sample several champagnes.

Baron Fuente is a brut vintage champagne from 2002. I bought it several years ago and I had almost forgotten that I had it. When pouring this champagne it were not so much bubbles any more but it smelled nice. The taste were still strong but I had the feeling that this champagne were on its last legs and would probably become worse in the upcoming years.

Next champagne were the vintage champagne Comte Audoin de Dampierre from 2002. This one still had all the bubbles left and the smell of this were very strong. It had an elegant taste and I think this champagne can be stored for several more years.

I also had the chance to try a brut nature champagne, which is a champagne with no added sugar. Very good and dry.

Rubesco and Ferrari

For my birthday I always serve wines that I have never tasted before. As an aperitif was the sparkling wine Riserva Lunelli from producer Ferrari in Trento. The vintage is 2006 and it consists of only Chardonnay grapes. It has spent seven years on the yeast. The alcohol level is 12,5%. The taste is deep and one can feel apples and bread. A powerful vintage, I think that this one will be better if stored for a couple of years more. A long aftertaste. An excellent vintage.

The next wine were the Rubesco Vigna Monticchio from 2005 by producer Lungarotti in Umbria in Italy. The grape is primarily Sangiovese with up to 30% of the grape Canaiolo. It is from the DOGC Torgiano Rosso Riserva. I have heard that this wine is made for storing and can be stored for a long time. The smell is nice but the big surprise is the taste. I had expected a strong wine with a lot of tannins. But I got a very elegant wine which were surprisingly very easy to drink but with a great character. Yet another excellent wine from Italy.

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.

France vs Italy and some Prosecco

Been a while since the last update as a cold has put the blog on the backburner.

First up is two very different white wines. The first wine is from Languedoc in France. It is called Fleur de Vignoble from the AOP Picpoul de pinet. Picpoul is a grape in this region. The color is very light. Almost water like. A bit sharp and fruity in the taste, some hawthorn.
The next wine is the wine Falanghina from producer Villa Schinosa in Puglia, Italy. It is made by 100% of Falanghina grapes. The color is straw yellow and the nose is very strong. It smells delicious. The taste is strong and it has some acidity. Citrus and fruits in the taste.

Lastly I have tried yet another Prosecco. It is Prosecco Extra Dry by producer Farina. It is as a Prosecco should be, Good, light and well tasting,

Bambino Bianco and Tocai Friulano

Italy has many different grape varieties and many of them only grows in Italy. This time I have had the chance to try two, Bombino Bianco and Tocai Friulano.

The wine Marese from producer Rivera is made from the grape Bombino Bianco. It is from the DOC Bombino Bianco Castel Del Monte in Puglia. This grape is mostly grown in Puglia but can be found in several other regions in Italy. This wine were very nice to drink. Interesting and I have to try more of this grape.

The second wine I had the chance to try is the wine Friulano from producer Guerra Albano, whose winery Guerra Albano is located in the DOC Colli Orientali del Friuli area in Montina, near Cividale del Friuli. The wine is very strong and tastes like green apples, pear, grass some citrus and is very intense and fresh. Quite interesting wine and needs some food with the wine. The grape used for this wine is called Tocai Friulano. These wines were also called Tocai Friulano earlier but had to change the name due to name regulations of the EU to Friulano. This grape is mostly grown in Friuli Venezia Giuli and recently scientists have found out that the grape Sauvignon Vert is the same grape. For more information about this grape I recommend the book "Native Wine Grapes of Italy" by Ian D'Agata.

Two different Vermentino from Tuscany

It is fun to try different wines of the same grape from the same region to see the difference from different producers. This time I had one wine each from Bolgheri and Mazzei.

The Bolgheri Vermentino is called Solosole and is from 2014. For me it is definitely a foodwine. It has a strong taste of citrus and a strong acidity. It need food to make it shine like a sun.

The Mazzei Vermentino is called Codice V and is from 2014 also. This is more fruity with some citrus and pear in the taste. The acidity is there also. Goes also very well with food but also good on its own.

Verdeca wine from Puglia

Verdeca is an Italian indigenous grape to Italy. It is mostly grown in the region of Puglia i Italy. It is only in the last couple of years that Verdeca has been used to make monovarietal wines. I have tried the white wine Askos Verdeca from the producer Masseria Li Veli. Askos is the name that they have given to the selection of ancient Apulian grape wines. It is a good wine.The colour is bright yellow. The taste is very fruity and strong. Very good and interesting. Would buy it again if I have the chance.

I have also tried two more "normal" Italian white wines. One made by Pinot Grio by producer Tenuta Ca'Bolani. It is a good Pinot Griogio. The other is a Vermentino called Prelius from Maremma in Tuscany. It is very fresh and very good.