I stopped by Fuel Co. as I was finishing up my day yesterday, figuring that I could relax a little with Nick, the wine buyer there, before heading home.
I tasted Nick on a couple of vini, leading off with a Primitivo from Apulia by a winery called Vigne & (appropriately) Vini. This outfit does a couple different cuvées of Primitivo, but I had the "Papale" 2003 with me, a leftover bottle from a staff training at the soon to open all Italian wine bar on the downtown mall, enoteca (purposefully left in lower case). Papale means papal. and as I understand the story, Pope Benedict XIII favored the wines of his home region of Apulia, especially those from around Taranto. In honor of him this wine region is unofficially known as Papale.
The wine is distinctively old world, but has some attractive new world characteristics. It has a well defined black cherry and dried cranberry nose with a deep, ripe black raspberry component that is borderline jammy. It is well structured however, with a solid entry and mid palate of red fruits and a finish of cranberries. Great acidity and grippy tannins. This is a solid bottle of Primitivo for around $13.
I also showed him the single vineyard 2005 Merlot from Tommasi, a large family owned estate in the Valpolicella region of the Veneto. "Le Prunée" is the name of the parcel of vines and, from what I understand, this refers to the severe pruning practiced by the viticulturalist in order to concentrate flavor in the remaining bunches so as to make a richer, more complex wine. It is typical Merlot with big juicy red fruits on the nose and a distinctive Italian edge that always reminds me of licorice and tree bark. Something earthy. On the palate it is lush, full and incredibly juicy and friendly, like a labrador liking your face. A really nice wine, but a hard sell (Italian Merlot around $16 on the shelf).
Lastly, I tried him on the Tommasi Recioto della Valpolicella from the stellar 2003 vintage. Word on the street is that '03 was one of the few vintages that the Rondinella and Molinara grapes actually achieved full phenolic ripeness and the wines from this vintage (made by quality conscious producers) should be extraordinary. As is the Recioto from Tommasi. Weighing in at a mere 13% abv this luscious wine smells of candied black cherries, prunes, and raisins. It has a distinctive woody smell but in a way that is quite complementary. On the palate it sings with vibrant acidity, sweet, lush fruit, and some bitter tannin. Caramel, licorice, raisins, and prunes are all singing in accompaniment to the intriguing mouthfeel. Not super svelt, but very, very well done. At about $28 for a half bottle I still think it is a good value, as usually these wines sell for a lot more.
Nick had just received his allocation of the 2006 Torbreck Woodcutter's Shiraz from Barossa, Australia and wanted to taste it so we unscrewed that sucker and gave it a whirl. Very primary at the moment. And quite hard to go from old world to new so dramatically. Oak on the nose. Oak. Oak. More Oak. Think of a plank of toasted oak with raspberry jam spread on top. Now bite into it. Yum. Ugh. Sadly this is not a great combination in my book. Of course, it is fresh off the boat and bottling line so maybe this assessment is unfair. Give it some time and see if it pulls its totally unfocused self together. I should mention that there were secondary notes of leather sweet spice from the oak that were attractive. I tried to like it, but I ended up loving to hate it. Hopefully, I wil have the opportunity to retaste this monster. For those of you who like this sort of oak bomb ringed with fruit style of wine buy it before Parker gives it 93 points.
Nick remembered that he had some stellar primitivo on his store shelf so wanted to see how it was developing. He opened a bottle only to find it cooked. He opened a second and discovered it to be cooked and corked. I told him to save the rest and return it to the purveyor from which he purchased it.
Needing to recover from the onslought of unpleasant wine experiences, we finished the evening with the sumptuously elegant 2006 Domaine du Dragon Rosé courtesy of the D-man (Derek). He called after finishing his route and wanted to have a drink before heading to Richmond to pick up Brad McCarthy of Blenheim Winery fame. We shared a salmon special and drank this wonderful rosé, itself salmon colored with hints of a brighter setting sun colored orange . It smells of lime blossoms and white peaches, but doesn't advertise. This wine is all about subtlety and refinement. It is so elegant and beautiful I might nearly fall in love with it. The 2006 is a blend of 87% Grenache, 8% Syrah, and 5% Rolle. But this is not your typical Grenache based rosé usually so full and forward and often clumsy, no, this is super sexy and inviting. Red fruits, florality, and freshness on the nose. The palate is well textured with a vibrant acidity and similar fruit and floral notes as noted on the nose. For about $13 a bottle, this Provençal rosé is nearly unbeatable. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it Domaine Ott.
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