Wine Tasting April 17 ’10

Posted at April 15, 2010

By far the most memorable aspect of last weekend’s tasting was a little wine called Palama Arcangelo Salice Salentino, selling for $11. The wine region is way down on the boot of Italy. The grapes are Negro amaro and Primitivo, a predecessor of the fruit-intensive zinfandel. It’s not complicated, but it is quite enchanting. The wine is expansive, rich, and robust, with aromas of steeped plums, cracked pepper, blackberry confit and cinnamon. What was memorable was our first group of guests, three couples and a couple of small children on the Island (Willows) celebrating a birthday. (somehow in the excitement I didn’t get a picture of them…doh! )They ALL liked this wine, to the extent that early on they had decided as a group to buy all I had (13 bottles). What ensued was a long conversation about who would get how much. Trust me, it was  VERY Confusing, but somehow they worked it all out, and all of our little supply Went Away. Working on getting more….stay tuned!

All YOU need to know is that they cleaned out every bottle. and YOU might have missed the Wine of your LIfe! Ha!

The other interesting theme was that one of the women in the same group made an absolutley Wonderful Face when I said the word “chardonnay” (Extreme Distaste).  In particular we were tasting the Byron chard, which I happen to like Very Much– it IS from California, and it IS on the oaky side, but it also has rich, ripe fruit, a very seductive mouthfeel, and, well, is deeply satisfying. So this guest (I am SO bad with names!) was in Disbelief that she actually enjoyed a chard…I LOVE it when that happens! They may even have bought a couple…!

Then AFTER that a whole bunch of other stuff happened, something of a blur, with some lovely and zany people who really seemed ( I am not making this up!) to be having a really good time, and as everyone knows, that is the ONLY criterion for getting your picture in this strange little blog!

This week’s wines:

Martorana Insolia White 2008  (Italy)  $16
Lush, aromatic, crisp, and lovely with fish, fowl, or pasta…I know we just poured this a few weeks ago, but I just found the next wine buried in the cellar….

Martorana Colonna nero d’avola/syrah   Italy $13
Lush, ripe, fleshy aromas and flavors of ripe plum, Moroccan spice, mincemeat, and sweet ginger.

Apaltagua Envero carmenere 04  Chile   $14
Deep ruby. Explosively fruity, with strong raspberry, cherry jam and redcurrant scents, with a complicating note of cinnamon. Lush and silky on the palate, with a pure raspberry quality that’s extremely easy to like. Pliant, suave and elegant, with a long, sweet red berry tone to the finish and very soft tannins.

Alto Moncayo Veraton ’04   Spain      $28

100% Grenache ; A brilliant wine, reminiscent of  a top-notch Chateauneuf du Pape. Full-bodied, with gamy, meaty notes, hints of roasted herbs, plenty of kirsch liqueur and blackberries, and loads of glycerin and alcohol…a stunning wine.

Wine Tasting

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