Blind tasting time again, and my better half once more obliged. After popping down to the cellar he whisked himself off to the utility room to open the bottle in secret.. He left the wine to gasp for 10 minutes in the glass and then I was allowed at it.
Immediately it was obvious that the legs on the rich ruby wine were slow and thick - and really obviously spoke of higher alcohol wine. The wine had garnet tints at the edge of the glass, and the core of the wine was deep ruby. Aromas of rich red fruits drifted from the glass, old mature spices enveloped them and there was a mushrooms edge that hinted at an aged wine ( along with the garnet tint).
The sweet red fruits continue on to the palate, bitter, sour cherries, spice once more plays a very strong role, with a bitter pithy edge to the overall flavour. The alcohol is slightly spirits and not well integrated and overplays its role, but the wine has great breadth, broad range of intertwined flavours and enough acidity to carry the fruit successfully. The texture is silky and mouth coating with the body being quite full and rich. Great length, red pithy bitter cherries but the alcohol leaves a memory of warmth and richness.
Overall the wine is rich, higher in alcohol than I would want, the bitter pithy fruit and a slightly nutty, mushroom flavour leads me to surmise that the wine is from an old world region, but warm as the alcohol is high and the flavour compounds full and rounded. It has some age, probably 6 years+ and has that sour cherry edge........
I would think that it comes from the veneto region in Italy and is a Valpocello Ripasso, or a Amarone della Valpolicello......
Watch out for the results posted later...... What do you think?
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