Score 84 and only about a fiver from Tesco's. I bought 6, so more for a rainy day...... Or should I say days as we have had a few in the last year.
Showing posts with label supertuscan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label supertuscan. Show all posts
Sunday, 6 January 2013
Puccini Toscana 2008
This Super-Tuscan ( I feel in the loosest sense of the word ) from Piccini is a rounded cherry and plum mix, with a good lick of Oakey vanilla. Rich and silky, and it went soooooo well with our roast beef and Yorkshire pud, something we have not had for 5 years+. Bonus - alcohol was only 13%, so no aftereffects!
Score 84 and only about a fiver from Tesco's. I bought 6, so more for a rainy day...... Or should I say days as we have had a few in the last year.
Score 84 and only about a fiver from Tesco's. I bought 6, so more for a rainy day...... Or should I say days as we have had a few in the last year.
Monday, 29 October 2012
Tesco Wine Fair London - what did we like
I went to Tesco's Wine Fair in London over the weekend - our 2 grown up boys came with us ( first-timers) with their girlfriends.
We all tried alot of wines, some of us remember alot of them, some recall few......But- life is a learning curve, lots of time and lots of things to learn along the way....... :)
What we liked -:
Firstly - Zinfandels - the Bonterra is an Organic Zin from California, full bodied, juicy, fresh and lots of character, the Ravenswood we have drunk for a number of years and admired the wines that Joel Peterson ( Ravenswood's founder) made - but since it was bought by Constellation Brands 2 years ago have felt that the quality and distribution has changed, but Tesco are now stocking the 'Old Vines - Lodi region Zinfandel again at a cost of £9.99 per bottle ( much better than their base Zin which lacks depth, character, length and is a poor example - but cheaper ), while the Bonterra one came in at £11, for me the Ravenswood was rich, juicy, sweet and fresh, ready to drink now, while the Bonterra one was slightly over extracted and would suit a food match better ( venison, beef, hearty stews, veggie dishes with punch..... all go well ). Another option would be Dancing Bull Zinfandel at £8 per bottle .
Toward the end of the day we tasted 2 delish wines - but at a higher price - sorry - but it had to be done!
We tried many more wines - but these are the ones that stood out - and the ones that I will think about when I order, there were some lovely Pinot's especially the Tesco's Finest Central Otago Pinot Noir, smooth, fresh, fruity but with that great animal nuance that alot of the Pinot's have - and what I like, we also had some lovely Rieslings.....Alsace, Clare Vally......Too many wines to mention, but it is a great way to try lots of different wines in an easy atmosphere, try and walk away - or ask questions, or......
We all tried alot of wines, some of us remember alot of them, some recall few......But- life is a learning curve, lots of time and lots of things to learn along the way....... :)
What we liked -:
Firstly - Zinfandels - the Bonterra is an Organic Zin from California, full bodied, juicy, fresh and lots of character, the Ravenswood we have drunk for a number of years and admired the wines that Joel Peterson ( Ravenswood's founder) made - but since it was bought by Constellation Brands 2 years ago have felt that the quality and distribution has changed, but Tesco are now stocking the 'Old Vines - Lodi region Zinfandel again at a cost of £9.99 per bottle ( much better than their base Zin which lacks depth, character, length and is a poor example - but cheaper ), while the Bonterra one came in at £11, for me the Ravenswood was rich, juicy, sweet and fresh, ready to drink now, while the Bonterra one was slightly over extracted and would suit a food match better ( venison, beef, hearty stews, veggie dishes with punch..... all go well ). Another option would be Dancing Bull Zinfandel at £8 per bottle .
Tim Adams - such a delightful, down to earth, charming guy - and a brilliant wine maker, he makes wine from his heart - we tasted a few on his stand, my favourite that I have bought before ( and will buy again) is The Fergus from the Clare Valley 2007, it is a blend of Grenache, Tempranillo and Shiraz( or Syrah), it was a silky charming elegant wine which had amazing length and persistence, a stunner at £8.99 - a wine to buy - great! - Other Tim Adams wines that are great - The Semillon 2008 - and the Pinot Gris 2009/10 - I loved them both - do go and try them.
- If you are looking for some wines to see you through the Christmas period - we found 2 that we all loved and nearly fell over at the price, the first was Aguila Coleccion Reserva Carinena 2007 at £4.50 a bottle, and Gran Fabrica Carinena Gran Reserva 2001 at £5.00 a bottle - and this won a silver medal at the IWSC and 91 /100 Parkers wine guide - amazing value - but you have to like Oak in your reds ( though this was not oak heavy I felt, balanced, but the oak was part of these wines character).
- We also tried a McLaren Vale 2009 Wirra Wirra Church Block blend, it was Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot mix and the price was £10, full bodied, juicy fruit and lovely oak in the spicy mix, well balanced, but the alcohol was high - as they often are from this area.....14.5%, but a lovely rich wine!
Toward the end of the day we tasted 2 delish wines - but at a higher price - sorry - but it had to be done!
- Villa Antinori Toscana 2008 - basically a SuperTuscan ( though not called so on the bottle/site) , Sagiovese and then Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, there were lush black and red fruits, juicy and full on the palate, like a new world Chianti, great fresh acidity, amazing long length with dark fruit and spice at the finish - charmming elegant, crafted..... all words that could be used in this wines description..... £14.99 a bottle - but worth it - I think!
- Tesco's Finest Hermitage 2007 - a wine that was silky, fresh but had grippy tannins, lovely syrah character and the length was amazing, fine tuned, elegant and gentle, lovely - at £20.99 - a treat! Enjoy!
We tried many more wines - but these are the ones that stood out - and the ones that I will think about when I order, there were some lovely Pinot's especially the Tesco's Finest Central Otago Pinot Noir, smooth, fresh, fruity but with that great animal nuance that alot of the Pinot's have - and what I like, we also had some lovely Rieslings.....Alsace, Clare Vally......Too many wines to mention, but it is a great way to try lots of different wines in an easy atmosphere, try and walk away - or ask questions, or......
Saturday, 27 October 2012
Blind Tasting Result - MmmmH..... Not quite right....!
Well - I was quite surprised when I saw what it was - but there again maybe not!
I said Italian / Spanish at a first snifter - and you should always go with your first thoughts ( esp when you find out they were right later.......) !
The wine was a Supertuscan ( actually not so super in this case), and was a mix of 70% Sangiovese, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot......
It was ' Piccini Supertuscan 2008 IGT' made by Antonella Conti, who is a good maker. It came from Tesco (and is exclusive to Tesco's I think ) on a special offer at under £5 when I bought it.
A Super tuscan wine is a relatively new concept, and it is a Chianti wine ( made in Tuscany's Chianti wine region ) but uses grapes that have not been allowed within the wine rules of the region, they use Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and / or Syrah in alot of the cases. The see a more detailed description of the term SperTuscan follow this link. There have been alot of very, very good and expensive SuperTuscan wines that can age for decades, but I am sad to say this was not one of these. It was a watered down version where alot of the fruit was overshadowed by the clumsy oak used in the maturation of this wine - what a shame. When the fruit did show through it was a fresh cherry with a hint of plum, but thin in flavour.
I guessed a right bank Bordeaux - so Merlot dominant - but with Cabernet ( Sauvignon and /or Franc in it as well)..... So nearly there - I think as it often said on my report - 'must try harder' and 'a bit sloppy in the final details'.....How the truth hurts!
A bit about IGT on the label - what does it mean.
The letters IGT mean Indicazione Geografica Tipica and this certification fits producers who were not creating wines within the standard DOC ( Denominazione di Origine Controllata ) and DOCG ( Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita ) regulations. Many producers who did not agree with the rules that the regulations imposed on them when producing DOC and DOCG wines, chose to make wine their own way ( often involving non-Italian grapes ) and now the IGT designation has become a well respected certification, and it is definitly one I look for when wanting something a little bit special in Italian wines - and I will say a few Italian waiters in Italy are impressed that we drink IGT wines knowing that they may be a bit of a 'find'!
Similar moves have been made by Southern French wine producers, they have moved out of the Vin d'Appellation d'Origine Controlée ( AOC or AC ) regulations and make wine under the Vin de Pays more relaxed rules.
This wine currently retails at about £6 at Tesco's - when in stock. But if you like Italian wines - try Piccini Memoro, it is an interesting wine made in a New World way, grapes from different areas brought together to make a homogenous un-Italian blend ( I feel ) - do try it and email me with what you think.
It is again the same wine maker Antonella Conti, and the blend of grapes is Montepulciano, Nero d'Avola, Primitivo and Merlot, all grown in different Italian regions. It is also non-Vintage cuvee, this means that the grapes have come from different vintages, stored carefully and used when needed. Described as ' 12 months oak casked Montepulciano from Abruzzo, the solar Nero d’Avola from Sicily, the colder climate (Veneto ) merlot and the Primitivo wine from Puglia ( some of this has been made in the passito way ) ' and was produced by Tenuta Piccini to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Italian unification. It has fresh and plush red fruits, ripe and tasty tannins, juicy and delicious - and goes really well with alot of Italian / meat / vegetarian dishes.
I said Italian / Spanish at a first snifter - and you should always go with your first thoughts ( esp when you find out they were right later.......) !
The wine was a Supertuscan ( actually not so super in this case), and was a mix of 70% Sangiovese, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot......
It was ' Piccini Supertuscan 2008 IGT' made by Antonella Conti, who is a good maker. It came from Tesco (and is exclusive to Tesco's I think ) on a special offer at under £5 when I bought it.A Super tuscan wine is a relatively new concept, and it is a Chianti wine ( made in Tuscany's Chianti wine region ) but uses grapes that have not been allowed within the wine rules of the region, they use Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and / or Syrah in alot of the cases. The see a more detailed description of the term SperTuscan follow this link. There have been alot of very, very good and expensive SuperTuscan wines that can age for decades, but I am sad to say this was not one of these. It was a watered down version where alot of the fruit was overshadowed by the clumsy oak used in the maturation of this wine - what a shame. When the fruit did show through it was a fresh cherry with a hint of plum, but thin in flavour.
I guessed a right bank Bordeaux - so Merlot dominant - but with Cabernet ( Sauvignon and /or Franc in it as well)..... So nearly there - I think as it often said on my report - 'must try harder' and 'a bit sloppy in the final details'.....How the truth hurts!
A bit about IGT on the label - what does it mean.
The letters IGT mean Indicazione Geografica Tipica and this certification fits producers who were not creating wines within the standard DOC ( Denominazione di Origine Controllata ) and DOCG ( Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita ) regulations. Many producers who did not agree with the rules that the regulations imposed on them when producing DOC and DOCG wines, chose to make wine their own way ( often involving non-Italian grapes ) and now the IGT designation has become a well respected certification, and it is definitly one I look for when wanting something a little bit special in Italian wines - and I will say a few Italian waiters in Italy are impressed that we drink IGT wines knowing that they may be a bit of a 'find'!
Similar moves have been made by Southern French wine producers, they have moved out of the Vin d'Appellation d'Origine Controlée ( AOC or AC ) regulations and make wine under the Vin de Pays more relaxed rules.
This wine currently retails at about £6 at Tesco's - when in stock. But if you like Italian wines - try Piccini Memoro, it is an interesting wine made in a New World way, grapes from different areas brought together to make a homogenous un-Italian blend ( I feel ) - do try it and email me with what you think.
It is again the same wine maker Antonella Conti, and the blend of grapes is Montepulciano, Nero d'Avola, Primitivo and Merlot, all grown in different Italian regions. It is also non-Vintage cuvee, this means that the grapes have come from different vintages, stored carefully and used when needed. Described as ' 12 months oak casked Montepulciano from Abruzzo, the solar Nero d’Avola from Sicily, the colder climate (Veneto ) merlot and the Primitivo wine from Puglia ( some of this has been made in the passito way ) ' and was produced by Tenuta Piccini to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Italian unification. It has fresh and plush red fruits, ripe and tasty tannins, juicy and delicious - and goes really well with alot of Italian / meat / vegetarian dishes.
Enjoy!!
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