Vino Italiano! Wines from the North of Italy - WSET 3.8

Courtesy Wine Folly

When your wine's on your lips,
And you're having some sips,
That's Amoré....

Ah, Italia!

This week was the first of two classes on one of my favourite places to visit, Italy. The focus was on Northern Italy, home of some pretty incredible wines.

First, though, we had another blind taste test and some questions. I think I did well on the taste test which was a 2016 Domaine de la Mordoree Cote du Rhone........ but I might have been a bit too generous with my overall assessment. We also had three short answer questions and I think I nailed two of them and guessed on one....

Now, back to Italy!

Italy is in a yearly neck-in-neck battle for the most wine produced - with France, of course. There are over 2000 varietals (many which never leave Italy), and 20 wine regions.

Northern Italy has a moderate climate with short, hot summers. Altitude is very important here because, together with a fairly large diurnal range, it slows the ripening which keeps the acidity high in the wine. Northern Italian wines are famously high yielding with low densities.

Trentino-Alto Aldige was the first area we looked at and this region has a lot of Pinot Grigio. Alto Adige grows mostly Pinot Grigio but some of it can be actually quite good (if you like Pinot Grigio). Trentino has higher yield Pinot Grigio (which means it's not as good) as well as a red grape called Terlodego which has deep colour, medium to high tannins, high acidity, a medium to full body, and black fruit.

Friuli Venezia Giulia is in the eastern corner of the country, The northern vineyards have a moderate continental climate while the southern vineyards have a warm maritime climate. The big white grape is Pinot Grigio (Oh no! Not again!) which is the richest in Italy with juicy peach and tropical flavours. There's another popular white grape called Friuliano which has aromas of red apples and pear. There are some DOCs (which are the second tier of their highest wine qualification) including Friuli Grave DOC (fertile soil on a plain - white and fruity wines), Collio (means hill) DOC (whites and reds), and Collio Orientali DOC (reds - and premium reds, at that!).

We didn't try anything from either of those two regions but we did try some from the next one - Veneto.

Veneto is the largest region in Northern Italy and is home to two famous appellations, Soave and Valpolicella. This area has a warm climate with moderate rain and sites benefit from the altitude and large diurnal range. Many of these wines are grown on flat plains, especially the more inexpensive Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Merlot, Corvina, Garganega and Trebbiano.

Soave has two areas - the Soave DOC and the Soave Classico DOC. There are also some Soave DOCG wines which are the highest classification in Italy. The vineyards on the foothills have limestone, clay and volcanic soil which are cool so the wines can fully ripen slowly which increases acidity. The vineyards on the flat plains to the south, on the other hand, have sandy soils (that are warmer) which speeds up ripening creating young, fruity wines that have medium acidity. The grape used to make Soave is Garganega and makes wines tasting of pears, red apple, stone fruit, and white pepper which can develop almonds and honey as the wine ages.

The Soave we had was a 2016 Pieropan Soave Classico ($26)  made from the Garganega grape. This wine had aromas of pear, peach apricot, nectarine and apple and had tastes of lime and wet stone. It was a dry wine with high acidity, medium intensity of flavour, and a medium finish. This wine was described to us as a 'simple' wine and garnered a Good rating with a drink now advisory.

Northwest of Verona is Valpolicella where the main grape is Corvina. Again, in the foothills there are limestone, clay, and volcanic soils which contribute to higher acidity while on the flatter areas, warmer gravel and sandy soils dominate.

The Corvina grape can make a pretty simple wine, as shown by the 2017 Folonari Valpollicella ($18) that we had. It had both red fruit and black fruit aromas and sour cherries, cranberries, and plums on the palate. This dry wine had high acidity, high alcohol and a short length. It wasn't a terrible wine and actually had some nice complexity and so, it earned a Good rating - drink it now, though!

Valpolicella can make good wines - but the Italians have done some other things with the Corvina grape - and these things are wonderful!

Amarone wines are made from the Corvina grape but the grapes are picked and then left put in racks in a drying building (called the passito method) and allowed to dry out (this drying out is called appassimento). The grapes basically turn to raisins, which really concentrates their flavours. The drying out averages around 120 days and then the grapes are made into a rich, deep, wonderful wine.

Ripasso wines are made by taking a regular batch of Valpolicella wine, adding the leftover grapes (called the pomace) from making the Amarone wine, and letting the grapes soak or macerate in the wine.  Ripasso basically means 'repassed' and that's what is happening to the grapes.

Recioto wines are basically Amarone wine that has stopped fermentation early - either by running out of nutrients, the alcohol getting to high, or being affected by noble rot. Although we didn't taste one of these during today's class, I did have one when we went out to a restaurant in Vancouver called "Ask for Luigi" where I finished off an amazing dinner with a small glass of Recioto. It was amazing!

The Amarone we had was a 2013 Tommasi Amarone  ($63) - the exact wine I had given a friend recently (which he shared) as a gift for his retirement. This wine is wonderfully rich had medium plus tannins, medium plus acidity, and a great full body! There were tastes of black cherry, black currant, fig, raisins, smoke and even some chocolate. It tastes dry but actually has some residual sugar. A high alcohol wine, this is balanced, complex in taste, super intense in both flavour and aroma, and has a superbly long finish. An Outstanding wine that is great to drink but could age some more.

We also had a Ripasso which is sometimes called the poor man's Amarone as it is cheaper but you get a bit of the taste of an Amarone. This one was a 2015 Tommasi Ripasso ($37) that had aromas and tastes of black plum, black cherry, cedar, tobacco, and raisin. The Ripasso was dry with medium plus body and intensity and medium tannins, acidity and finish. A Very Good wine that is a tasty drink now and could age for a few years longer.

The final region of northern Italy that we covered was Piemonte. This region in the northwest of Italy makes high quality wines and all are at the DOC or DOCG level - there are no IGP (2nd overall tier) wines. The mountains in the north provide a rain shadow for the area which experiences a moderate continental climate with long, cold winters and stormy, foggy summers. It's really a miracle that there is such wonderful wine made here!

In the south east of the region, Gavi wine is made from the Cortese grape. This high acid grape has floral aromas and tastes of citrus, green apple and pear. We tried a 2017 Michele Chiarlo Gavi ($27). This wine was a 'simple' wine with aromas and tastes of apple, peach, apricot, lime and wet stone. There's nothing wrong with a simple wine - it's just not that complex and not that intense. It did have a balanced taste and the finish was OK. Overall, a Good wine that should be consumed now.

Nebbiolo - the dog, not the grape...

In the northwest corner of Piemonte is the home of two regions that make Nebbiolo. Not only is Nebbiolo the name of my grand-puppy, but it is also a wonderful, high acid, high tannin, full bodied grape that can really surprise you the first time you drink it as the colour is quite pale. The two regions that are famous for Nebbiolo is Barolo and Barbaresco.  Barbaresco wines are a bit fruitier and less performed as they ripen a bit earlier. Agieng is different, too, as Barolo has to be aged 3 years (5 for Reserva) and Barbaresco has to only be aged for 2 years (4 for Reserva).

We were fortunate to have a 2010 Giribaldi Barolo Nebbiolo ($115). This wine had aromas of roses, tar, red currant, smoke, cedar and black cherry and had similar flavours on the palate.There were intense aromas and flavours as well as a long finish. Overall, the Barolo was balanced and complex and earned an Outstanding rating - you could drink this now or you could age this for a few years at least.

The last two areas we looked at was Asti and Alba.

Barbera is a grape that is made in either place, although Barberas made from Asti are considered better. This high acidity wine is good with duck which is what I would have had with the 2014 Boffa Barbera D'Asti ($33). This wine had aromas and tastes of red cherry, red plum, pepper, raspberry, and liquorice. It was a fairly balanced wine with good intensity and we rated this one as Good.

The final wine was a Dolcetto from Alba. This wine is sometimes described as being bitter or having a taste of cough syrup. It usually has medium to high tannins and medium acidity. We tried a 2015 Gresy Dolcetto ($35). The Dolcetto did, in fact, have aromas and flavours of cough syrup as well as black plum, black cherry, toast, dried herbs, and an overall earthiness. Although the length was a bit short, it was balanced, complex and had very good intensity, especially on the nose. This was rated as Very Good with potential for ageing.

I really enjoy wines from Italy. I am so looking forward to next week when we taste wines from Central and Southern Italy.

Ciao!

I wish it were not a Zin to have liked it so. WSET Class 2 - Part 2

Ah, the wines of my youth.

I know, I keep going back to such incredibly sweet wines that helped me learn to drink. Wines like Hochtaler (they had a killer good commercial with a Marlene Dietrich type character) and Schloss Laderheim.

 One of my dad's other celebratory favourites was Baby Duck which, like Fuddle Duck, I was allowed to have on special occasions when I was a teenage but mixed with ginger ale.

These were all from the beginnings of the Okanagan wine industry when it was just fledgling. Now, things have improved mightily (even though some or all of the wines listed are still available).

One of the wines that is still available that has a bit of a bad name is Zinfandel - specifically White Zinfandel.  As Dr. Vinny from Wine Spectator notes "White Zinfandel is maligned by some wine lovers because it has a reputation as the wine people drink when they don’t actually like wine." 

This leads me to part 2 of WSET class number 2.

After the break, the main topic was how wine is made. Not too worried about that part as I made enough plonk in the basement to have a pretty good knowledge of how to make it - or, at least, how not to make it.

Then it was time for the first post break tasting. The two wines were poured and we were told that they were the same grape. One was a rosé and one was a red.

The first was the rosé and it was a Beringer Main and Vine (California) White Zinfandel - 10% alcohol ($8!).

It was pink, medium  intensity, and actually had a few flavours in it including raspberry, strawberry and cotton candy. It had medium acidity, medium body and a short finish (I was a bit off on those last three).  It was rated a Good wine.

 

The second was a Zinfandel that was a red wine. This $55 bottle was from Sonoma Country Ridge Vinyeards (California) and was a staggering 14.9%! It was medium ruby in colour.  On the nose were black fruits as well as stewed fruits and had medium + intensity. The palate included both red and black fruit with medium tannins, oak tastes such as vanilla, and a medium + finish. This was rated as Very Good.

One of our group absolutely nailed the grape as Zinfandel! I was thinking Cabernet Franc....

A note on the tasting notes. I am still really new at this so I am, for the most part, putting down either what I thought if it agreed with Dave or what Dave thought if I was way off the mark. The Acceptable, Good, Very Good, or Outstanding ratings are basically what Dave has come up with after explaining the reasons why.

Basically, he uses the BLICE method - which stands for balance, length, intensity, complexity and expressiveness. If a wine has one of these characteristics, it is Acceptable, if it has two it is Good, if it has three or four it is Very Good and if it has all five characteristics - a rare occurrence - it is Outstanding.

The last two wines of the evening were reds. They were from the same region and were the same basic grape. And they really varied!

Both were from the Veneto region of Italy. Both were predominantly Corvina grapes. But both were not the same wine! By the way, our little group struggled trying to figure out what varietal the wines were - there were some good guesses - and I didn't have a clue - but nobody hit the mark on this one.

The first was a basic 2015 Valpolicella from Folinari which priced out at $17 (12.5%). It was clear and pale ruby in colour. It had red fruit on the nose and on the palate but seemed rather simple in taste - not a complex wine. There were light tannins and a light body with a short or medium finish. This was not a great wine and was rated Acceptable.

In contrast, the second wine was actually an Amarone from Valpolicella - and a Classico at that!  The producer was Zeni and the cost was $65.  It was a ruby wine, deep in colour. The nose was definitely pronounced with complex fruits such as black currant, black cherry, cedar and charred wood. On the palate, I tasted the same black fruit as well as tobacco, toffee, and even farmyard! It had high acidity and medium tannins and a definite long finish.

Amarone is a unique wine. The grapes are picked as late as possible and the put in drying racks so the grapes begin to dry and become desiccate. This 'raisin' phase takes about 3 to 4 months and the method is know as 'passito".

This wine would be rated between Very Good and Outstanding! A great wine to finish off the night!