Wine Of The Week

WINE OF THE WEEK

Greenstone Rosso di Colbo Sangiovese 2011

The Greenstone vineyard is the result of a lot of know how, experimentation and breaking a few 'rules'. There is a strong focus on producing good quality Sangiovese (to good results it would appear!) but of course in Heathcote you have to give Shiraz some floor space too.



A great example of Sangiovese.

This wine was one of the highlights from Saturday's tasting at Mezzo. It is everything I want from a great Sangiovese. This could give more than a few Chiantis a run for their money! It is savoury, dry and lean with a nice acid backbone. It shows dark fruits, a hint of oak and a light floral note. Brilliant drinking! It went particularly well with Mezzo's wild boar ragu!

$31ea - Cheaper by the dozen. Email me philip@thewinedepository.com.au for more info or orders.

Italian Varieties in Australia Tasting @ Mezzo Restaurant 28/07/12



The place to be on this cold afternoon.

Having done quite a focus on Italian wines over the last few months, I thought it was time to bring it closer to home and show some Australian interpretations of Italian varieties. Teaming up with Silvio at Mezzo Restaurant we selected seven wines from interesting Australian producers making excellent examples of Italian varietals. The team at Mezzo put on a spectacular spread of food and so all we needed is some willing participants! On a cold and rainy Melbourne afternoon we were warm inside Mezzo munching on amazing wild boar ragu, mussells, arancini and salmon tartare and sipping on some Australian wine gems.
You can see the notes I made for the tasting and if you are keen the order form is here.

The challenge for those who attended.

Three whites and four reds was the assignment. We started off with a new wine from the Chalmers Heathcote Vineyard Montevecchio Bianco 2011. A field blend of Vermentino, Fiano and Moscato Giallo this wine was crisp, clean and dry with nice amount of yellow fruits, floral notes, grapiness and citrus. Perfect for uncomplicated but satisfying drinking. Next up was Mac Forbes Arneis 2010. From the Yarra Valley, this Arneis showed all the hallmarks of great examples of the style; lovely aromatics, textural mouthfeel and clean finishing. It was very hard to have just one glass of this wine (luckily I got to take home the 'dregs'). The final white was the Freeman Fortuna Pinot Gris Plus 2010 a wine that manages to straddle the rich and textural side of Gris while avoiding oily/cloying characters. Melons, grapes, fleshy stone fruits and a nice hint of spice. The addition of small amounts of Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Aleatico seem to be a masterstroke!


Me (Phil) setting up. So much romantic screwcap crackle!

While the whites were well received the red bracket was definitely the favourite of those who attended. We tasted Montevecchio Rosso 2011, also from Chalmers' Heathcote vineyard this was a field blend, containing Shiraz (yes there is some Shiraz in Italy), Lagrein, Nero d'Avola and Sagrantino. It was spicy, red fruited, mid weight and a hint savoury. Nice easy drinking and really showed well for the price. Staying  in Heathcote we tasted Greenstone Rosso di Colbo Sangiovese 2011. The Greenstone story is fascinating to hear but the wines are just delicious! This is their entry level Sangio and it had all of the cherry, earthy and hint of meat and oak characters with the clean and dry elements celebrated in Chianti. This is an excellent wine! Building up in weight we went to Freeman Secco 2008, made in the style of Valpolicella and Amarone this uses Rondinella and Corvina grapes that are run through a prune dehydrator to concentrate the flavours (Amarone use an air drying process to achieve a similar result). There was plenty of red and blue fruits, a full weight in the mouth but a nice freshness and great balance with the acid and tannin elements and a dry finish. Finally we had a variety that I think has a lot of potential for Australia Beach Road Aglianico 2010. Beach Rd make a great range of Italian varieties from Langhorne Creek and McLaren Vale, This is one of their best (in my opinion). I've recently been getting excited by Aglianico and this offers a lot of their big red and black fruit, leather notes, spice and a herbal edge. Nice palate length and very drinkable.

This is one of the most interesting tasting I've hosted as all these wines were so different from what we normally taste in Australia. There was almost a dead heat between the last three reds for most popular wine with Mac Forbes Arneis following close behind. Thanks to those that came out and hopefully we can top this tasting next month.

A Tale of Two Regions: Piedmont at Chianti Tasting 30/06/12

Mezzo in all its glory

Yep, it has been a busy week and very much focussed on Italian wines, it has been fun and informative.

On Saturday TWD teamed up with Mezzo Restaurant to host a tasting that featured wines from two of Italy's premier red wine producing regions. Piedmont – the foggy, hilly region in the North West and the centrally located Chianti which has captivated wine lovers for many years. It was a free event that saw us taste six wines that represented the regions.

Farnetella - My favourite of the Chianti wines.

From Chianti we had a lovely progression that featured an entry level IGT wine Il Corzanello 10 - a blend of Sangiovese with Cabernet and a hint of Merlot. This wine showed some nice juicy red berry fruit, mid-weight palate and generous flavours. It really highlighted the fantastic savoury and clean nature of Sangio with the plump and vibrant Cabernet. Next we had a fantastic wine from just South West of Chianti Classico being Farnetella 2009 from Chianti Colli Senesi. This is my sort of wine. 95% Sangiovese with a little bit of Merlot this is dry, savoury, clean, refreshing, elegant and with just a hint of dry tannins on the finish. This wine is really drinkable and the sort of wine that sees you finishing the bottle and looking for a second before you realise. The third wine from the line up was Rocca di Montegrossi Chianti Classico 09. This was quite well received at TWDs recent Chianti dinner and showed the Chianti Classic style really well. A bit more flesh and vibrancy than the Farnetella but still having that savoury, cleansing charm that is the hallmark of great Sangio. The journey from entry to Chianti Classico was great fun. Check out the dinner notes to see where the next stops on the journey take you. Mmmmm Brunello!

My wine of the day. I do love Barbaresco.

Next we switched to wines from Piedmont. Some of these we had already featured at TWD's Piedmont Dinner. First up we had the delicious Brezza Dolcetto d'Alba 2008. There is a lot to love about Dolcetto, it is fruity and aromatic with a savoury and structured palate. It goes great with slow cooked meals in winter! Brezza is a seriously good producer of Piedmont wines and this was a highlight. After Dolcetto we tasted the seriously amazing Produttori del Barbaresco DOCG 2007. I've recently tasted a range of their single cru wines. This was my favourite wine of the day but it was also the youngest and most ungiving. I had more than a few people almost choke on their wine when I suggested it needed another 15-20 years. Even after they confirmed I said 15-20 I think they still thought I was pulling their legs. I think Barbaresco (and its close cousin Barolo) are some of the best wines in the world and should be part of everyone's cellar. And of course, if you are tasting Piedmont wines you have to have Moscato. Patrizi Moscato d'Asti is one of the best because it is so clean and fresh with nice light bubbles that dance on your tongue. This is a wine of balance and charm not overt sweetness.

Of course all of these wines are available for sale if you are keen to taste them. And if this sounded like fun, TWD and Mezzo should be teaming up regularly for tastings of this style. Email me for more information

Chianti Dinner and Masterclass at Scopri 26/06/12

This was only the second dinner I hosted for the The Wine Depository so there was a lot of fussing to make sure I was on top of everything. I wonder if Led Zeppelin felt this much tension for their second outing?
Luckily I had a team of seasoned veterans around me who made everything run smoothly. They being Alison and Anthony at Scopri and Michael Trembath of Trembath and Taylor, wine importer and Italian wine encyclopedia.

This event was flagged at the end of my first dinner featuring Piedmont and Michael and I nutted it out over a glass or two of Chianti. The centre piece of the tasting would be three Chianti Classico producers with three different philosophies. We would show a 'normale' and Riserva from each producer which would cover four recent vintages. As a contrast we would show a Brunello and a Super Tuscan type wine.

I created some notes for the night and you can take a peek at the order form.
Michael really nailed Chianti and the Sangiovese grape by describing it as a really "winey" grape and a style of wine that you could drink every day of the week. This showed through in the Chianti wines, so savoury, refreshing and subtle.

Once again Scopri came to the party with a brilliant menu and some of the best wine service I have experienced in Melbourne. I cannot recommend them highly enough.


Yummy Prosecco leading the charge.

On Arrival Mozzarella In Carozza - Mozzarella skewers

Canella Prosecco NV Not from Chianti, Tuscany or Sangiovese. But the perfect way to start a meal. Canella is crisp, clean and vibrant, nice amount of fizz. Great balance and very enjoyable to drink. There were no complaints (maybe because we opened a second bottle?)

Entree Pappardelle al cacao con ragu di cervo - Our handmade chocolate pappardelle with slow cooked venison ragú, fresh parmesan

2009 was an excellent year in Chianti (and large parts of Europe too). It has made Chianti of great balance and depth.


All Class(ico)

Rocca di Montegrossi Chianti Classico 09 These guys were flying the flag for high altitude, stoney soil, traditional production and low oak style of Chianti.
It had lovely red and blue berry fruits, savoury/earthy notes with tea leaf and liquorice. The palate was dry, clean and bright. Showing the typical Sangio red cherry fruit and sour acidity. So much harmony.

Poggerino Chianti Classico 09 From right smack in the middle of the region on Volcanico soils and using biodynamic principles. This wine showed more savoury/minerally on first look but opened up with some dense blue fruits and pepper to support it. For me this wine had the most silk and flesh with a great mouthfeel. There was a hint of plums and prunes on the palate and the flavours showed incredible persistence. This was a wine of finesse and elegance.

Felsina Chianti Classico 09 Felsina is situated about as far South as you can get in Chianti Classico and has the warmest vineyards of the three we tasted. It is also probably my favourite Chianti producer. It showed dense and deep characters of red fruits, rose petal, fruit cake and aniseed.
The palate was long, clean with a hint of oak. It is a focussed and structured wine. The one I would most likely age of the trio.

Main Agnello brasato su polenta al pecorino e funghi - Lamb neck braised in red wine with grilled polenta and Mt Macedon pine mushrooms


The Riservas

Rocca di Montegrossi Chianti Classico San Marcellino 06 This is made as per Riserva laws but does not use the term on their labels. The fruit here comes from their oldest vineyard. 06 offered classic growing conditions in Chianti.
This wine offered spice, aniseed, pip/stalky notes, chocolate and oxy fruits. In the mouth it was rich and silky with a plummy, dense mid palate, good length and pretty, floral finish. A clear step up and a wine that needs a bit more time in bottle to show its very best.

Poggerino Chianti Classico Riserva Bugialla 07 Poggerino try to make a softer style that will improve over 8-15 years. 2007 was a warmer and riper year in Chianti, which explains the extra silk and power here. Chocolate, rich, fruitcake a hint new worldly fruit, caramel/oaky notes. There is so much flesh and silk here. Great mouthfeel, vibrant flavours and good tannic stucture. It is easy to see the family resemblence! So drinkable but so much promise to be even better it time.

Felsina Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia 08 Another vineyard oriented selection with the aim to make a tannic wine that will improve in the bottle and be amazing in 20 years. 2008 was similar to 2006 in offering classic conditions for growing. Rich, ripe, oxy fruits, minerally, red berry, spice. The palate was dark, tart, tea leafy with a good balance of bright fruits, savoury elements, clean acid and fine tannic structure. Beautiful.

Cheese and Coffee Formaggi Misti - Selection of Italian cheeses with Mallee honey from Kangaroo Island, plum jam, potato bread & Happy fruit

If you want to contrast, why not start with the best?

Conti Costanti Brunello di Montalcino 07 There is an aura around Brunello wines and I swear there was a little halo above my glass. This wine did not disappoint. Again 07 was a warmer year in Brunello but it did not detract from the wine. The intensity was certainly increased but not at the expense of subtly and freshness. Very savoury, almost gruyere cheese like, meaty, spice nose. Lots of silky fruit, caramel oak, clean acid with hints of cola. This wine is finely structured, boney and youthful. It needs time.

Brancaia Il Blu 08 A look at the Super Tuscan style. This is a blend of 50% Sangiovese, 45% Merlot and 5% Cabernet. It was clearly different with the Sangio definitely taking a back seat to the Cab family. Very vibrant and dense nose of blue and black fruits, floral hints, caramel oak, spice, tart, fruit cake, and terracotta like notes.
The palate is rich, silky with a fair whack of young cabernet like tannins. The core of the wine had a great intensity and the wine lingered for a long time. Again, this is just a baby.

After some discussion we moved on to traditions and what you would traditionally finish a meal with in Tuscany. So Michael generously shouted us some Vin Santo - A sugar rich, high intensity wine that was as fascinating to drink as hear about how it was made. Then some unusual wine/grappa macerated with herbs from Piedmont which seemed to divide the table. It was compelling but hard to imagine when you would drink it.

And because more is more up came a two litre bottle of Nonino Grappa for those who were brave (or fool hardy?).  As it turns out it was a lovely, cleansing and fitting end to a great night.