Supper with Daniele Cernilli “Doctor Wine”

One of the highlights of my visits to Rome is the opportunity to see old friends like Daniele Cernilli (Doctor Wine) and Marina Thompson, his wife.  This year, they invited Michele and I to their home for a light supper with some special wines.

Daniele is one of the world’s foremost experts on Italian wine and is the author of The Essential Guide to Italian Wine which is updated annually.  Pictured above is the 10th edition, published for 2024. The book is my go-to reference book for Italian wines since, as Daniele said, “All the wines worth drinking are in the pages of this guide.”  Both Italian and English versions of the book are available.

GT Ravenna Bianco 2011 “Tergeno” Fattoria Zerbina made from 6% Albano late harvest, 34% Albano secco, and 50% Chardonnay from different vineyards with different training systems and different quantities of vines per hectare. Part of the Albano is fermented in barriques while the remainder ferments in stainless steel. The wine was aged for 12 months in stainless steel and barriques and then 6 months in bottle before release.

The wine was not showing any signs of age. It was rich and opulent with hints of citrus and tropical fruits.  Daniele picked this vintage to go with our foie gras appetizer, a perfect match.

The style of this wine has been changed over the years.  Since 2014, it is a completely different wine and even the label is different from the bottle we tasted.

Tergeno was introduced in 1991 as a blend of three wines: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Gewürztraminer. After five years as a dry wine they found the results achieved with the Albano grape affected by noble rot was very good.  So they decided to  produce a version in the late harvest style, using a selection of Albano harvested late with  botrytis combined with a part of Chardonnay and vinified as a dry white.

Thanks to botrytis, the wine acquires a very distinct and unique personality. Starting from the 2014 harvest this wine is 100% Albano, with 30% late harvested.  Today the fermentation is in stainless steel and the wine is aged in stainless steel and 6 months in bottle before release.

.Castellucci Miano DOC Valledolmo-Contea di Sclafani-Sicily “Shiara” Bianco 2012  made of 100% Catarratto from 30/40  years old vines located on the slopes of the Madonie Montains at 700/900 meters.   Training system is alberello and sapling, the pruning is guyot and spur.  Soil is half sand and clay with an alkaline reaction due to active limestone. Harvest takes place in October. White wine vinification with fermentation at a controlled temperature. Malolactic fermentation does not take place. The wine remains in stainless steel for 6 months and then in bottle for 4 months before release. The wine has hints a citrus fruit, apple, and pear with a touch of cantaloupe and crisp acidity $35.  Catarratto is a grape indigenous to Sicily. I tasted the 2019 last year with the US importer, Tony Margiotta of Gladiator wines. As Daniele said, this is a white wine that can age.

Smoked salmon served with toast points and French butter

Foie Gras Bloc

Roasted Marinated Yellow  Peppers

Barbaresco DOCG 2016 ‘Manzola”   Nada Fiorenzo made from Nebbiolo (Lampia and Michet) from Manzola in the commune of Treiso in Piedmont. The vines were planted in 1998 and the soil is calcareous-clayey with sandy outcrops. Exposure is  southwest at 230 meters. Manual harvest followed  by a soft pressing of the grapes and separate vinification for each single parcel. There are no herbicides and other invasive vine protection products used and a return to old practices such as hand-hoeing.  Aging is in oak for 24 months and in bottle for 6 months before release.  The wine has hints of cherry, licorice, leather, tea and a hint of spice. It is a wine that can age.

Baked eggplant with tomato and mozzarella was our main course.

Vinsanto del Chianti Classico 2013 Fontodi in half bottle made from Malvasia and Sangiovese from various vineyards within the property.  There are 3,500 to 6,000 vines per hectare and the training system is guyot. The grapes are naturally dried for 5 months after harvest. After the pressing, the must is racked into chestnut and oak barrels of 50 and 110 liters where aging takes place for at least 6 years. There are only 3,000 bottles produced. Fontodi is located in Panzano in Chianti. This is an excellent dessert wine with hints of hazelnut, dried apricot, honey and a touch of caramel.

Tiramisu — A classic version that Daniele highly recommended

I always enjoy seeing Daniele and Marina and I always learn something new.

Old and New Italian Red Wine with Daniele Cernilli aka Doctor Wine.

A few weeks ago I wrote about a Zoom tasting with Daniele Cernilli (aka Doctor Wine).  In the blog I wrote about the white wines that we tasted.  In this blog I will write about the red wines.  The wine came in very small bottles with twist off caps.  Representatives of the wineries joined the webinar.

The Red Wines

Cantine Iorio (Campania) Sannio Aglianico DOP 2020 made from 100% Aglianico. The vineyards are at 250/350 meters. The soil is limestone and clayey and the training system is guyot. There are 3,000 plants per hectare. Hand harvest takes place the last week of October. Maceration takes place at a controlled temperature followed by malolactic fermentation. Aging is in wooden barrels for 6 months and then in bottle before release. The wine has hints of blackberries, black cherries and a note of spice.

Tenuta Falezza (Veneto) Valpolicella Ripasso DOC Superiore 2020. The wine is made from 50% Corvina, 20% Corvinone 25% Rondinella and 5% Oseleta. The first fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks for 20 days. In the second fermentation the new wine is poured onto the pomace of skins and seeds of the Amarone or Recioto. This second fermentation is in stainless steel tanks and lasts for 10 days. This is a full bodied  wine that has hints of black cherry, plums and spice. Daniele said that after a few years of aging it begins to resemble Amarone.

Vinera Domani (Lazio) Roma DOC Rosso 2019 made from 100% Montepulciano. The soil is volcanic and tufaceous clay and the training system is spurred cordon. The wine has hints of cherry jam, plum and blackberry.

Casale della Ioria (Lazio) Cesanese del Piglio DOC Superiore  2018. Made from 100% Cesanese di Affile. The vineyards are at 400 meters, the soil is clay, sub-acid and the training system is spurred cordon. There are 4,500 plants per hectare and the average age of the vines is 16-17 years. Grapes are hand picked in October and the stalks  are removed before pressing. Maceration on the skins for 15 days. Aging is in 20hl oak casks for 6 months and in bottle for 6 months before release. The wine has hints of currents, blueberries, morello cherries and a hint of violet.

Uvamatris (Piedmont) Sagitta Barbera del Monferrato Superiore DOCG 2018 made from 100% Barbera. The vineyard is at 230/250 meters, the exposure is south and the training system is guyot. Heaviest is at the end of September. The wine ferments only using wild yeast in stainless steel tanks with maceration lasting for two weeks. After malolactic fermentation the wine is racked into 660 gallon French oak botti for 24 months. The wine remains in bottle for 6 months before release. The wine has hints of cherry  and raspberry with good acidity.  Daniele said that in Monferrato Barbera has the best position in the vineyard. He also said that Barbera has more acidity than tannin which makes it a very good food wine.

Bocale (Umbria) Montefalco Sagrantino 2016 made from 100% Sagrantino. The vineyard is treated with natural grass regeneration techniques (land planting), using only organic and mineral fertilizers without the use of chemical products or herbicides. Fermentation is with natural yeasts and the wine is produced without microfiltration and thermal stabilization. Manual harvest takes place the second half of October. Vinification: maceration for at least 40 days with natural enzymes. Stabilization and filtration do not take place. The wine is aged in 1,000 liter French oak barrels for 24 months and in bottle for 12 months before release. The wine has hints of blackberries and currants with a touch of spice. I was very impressed with this wine.  This wine will age and Daniele said Sagrantino has the highest polyphenols and tannin of any grape.  Above is a picture of the 2015 I have at home.

Next time, another webinar with Doctor Wine.

Old and New Italian Wine with Daniele Cernilli aka Doctor Wine

Old and New Italian Wine with Daniele Cernilli, aka Doctor Wine.

I always enjoy the Zoom tastings with Daniele Cernilli.  Even under difficult circumstances, Daniele has a way of making his talks and presentations very interesting and informative.  This time, representatives of most of the wineries under discussion were present. 

There were 10 wines: 3 whites, 6 reds and a Moscato d’Asti.  The wines to be tasted were in miniature bottles with screw caps except for the Moscato d’Asti which was in a 750 ml bottle.

The White Wines

Lugana Monte Lupo DOC 2020 (Lombardy) Cobue  made from 100% Trubiana from vineyards in the localita Cobue blended with other grapes from other vineyards in the same area owned by the winery. The soil is limestone and clayey and the training system is Guyot. There are 4,500 plants per hectare and harvest takes place in the middle of September. Fermentation takes place in steel tanks with batonnage and the wine is on the lees for six months. Malolactic fermentation does not take place. This is a fresh dry wine with hints of citrus fruit, peaches and apricots.  Daniele said the Turbiana (Trebbiano di Lugana) grape is related to Verdicchio. $12

Breganze Vespaiolo DOC “Brenta” 2020 made from 100% Vespaiolo (Veneto) Le Vie Angarano. “Brenta” is the name of the river that crosses Bassano del Grappa and whose right bank borders the vineyard. The vineyard exposure is north south and the vineyard was planted in 2006. The soil is alluvial and clay of medium texture. Training system is single and double curtain overturned guyot with 8 /10 buds. There are 4,400 wines per hectare and the grapes are harvested and sorted the third week of September. Sur lees fermentation in steel tanks at a controlled temperature for at least 4 months. Then cold pressing and alcoholic fermentation at a controlled temperature for 2 months. This is an aromatic fresh wine with hints of pink grapefruit and tangerine peel with excellent acidity and minerality. Daniele said the vineyards are organically certified.  This wine can age. $15

Friulano Vigneto Storico 20 DOC Friuli Colli Orientali  Gigante made from 100% Tocai Friulano coming from a 75-year-old vineyard on the hillside of Rocca Bernarda in the village of Corno di Rosazzo. The vineyard is 1.4 ha at 190 meters with a south-east exposure. The soil is predominantly marl. There are 3,500 plants per hectare  and the training system Cappuccina or Friulan short double guyot. Grass cover and no herbicides are used. This is their second year of organic conversion. Harvest and grape selection by hand takes place the last week in September. The grapes are destemmed and crushed at 14 degrees C. Maturation is for ten months on the lees with frequent battonage. The wine is aged for a time in bottle before release. This is a full bodied, complex, intense and well-balanced wine with hints of apple, citrus, wildflowers, lavender and marine notes. It has a very long finish with notes of almond. Daniele said this is a wine that can age 10 to 15 years or more. $38. Daniele was very impressed with this wine and with the winery.

Moscato d’Asti DOCG NV made from 100% Moscato di Canelli (Piedmont ) Luca Bosio. The vineyards are at 200/300 meters and the training system is guyot. Soil composition is clayey calcareous. Vinification takes place without the skins for 5 days in steel tanks at low temperature (15 C) The wine ages for 2 months on its own yeast. Total residual sugar is 130g/l. The wine has hints of citrus fruit, apricot, pineapple, peach and honeysuckle. $18

Another time, the red wines…

Lunch in Rome with Daniele Cernilli (Doctor Wine)

It is always a pleasure to see Daniele Cernilli (Doctor Wine) and his wife Marina Thompson in Rome. We have been friends for a long time.

I always look forward to discussing wine with Daniele while enjoying a delicious meal.

This time, Daniele brought me  a copy of his book The Essential Guide to Italian Wine 2022.  It will be my go-to reference book for Italian wines since, as Daniele said, “All the wines worth drinking are in the pages of this guide.”

Daniele also brought me a copy of his new travel guide book, Mangiare e Dormire tra i Vigneti, Eating and Sleeping in the Vineyards, which should be essential for anyone traveling Italy’s wine roads.  This is one in a series of books on travel and wine.

Daniele suggested we have lunch at La Ciambella Wine Bar with Kitchen.  This stunning restaurant is built on the ruins of Agrippa’s baths.  It is painted white with very high ceilings and our table was under a very large skylight so you could see the sky.   The restaurant served some traditional Italian dishes but for the most part they went off in many different direction adding little twists of their own. All the wines were selected by Daniele

The food and Wine

Little choux pastry puffs filled with ricotta, tomatoes and basil

“Animelle–sweetbreads with wild chicory and brie cheese sauce

Sauteed Lamb Offal (Coratella) & Roman artichoke

“Coda in Carrozza”– fried sandwiches with braised oxtail

“Porchetta” pork roast wraps with marinated cherry tomatoes and yogurt sauce

Spaghettone carbonara — the classic Roman pasta

Falanghina 2018 Campi Flegrei  DOC “Cruna de Lago  La Sibilla made from 100% Falanghina. The soil is sandy and volcanic and the training system is guyot. The exposure is south-west and the vineyards are over 60 years old. Fermentation is in steel vats. For six months the wine remains on the lees and remains in the bottle for 6 months before release. Daniele said the wine has hints of yellow citrus,  chamomile, saffron, pepper a touch of smoke, good acidity and a long finish. I found the color of the wine to be almost grey but it went very well with the Offal.

Cheese – We finished the wines with a variety of cheese, chestnut honey and fig jam.

Fiorano Vino Rosso 2013 Alessandrojacopo Boncompagni Ludovisi. Made from 65% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot. The vineyard is at 130 meters and the soil is of volcanic origin. Exposure is north west-south west. There are 3,700 vines per hectare. The training system is espalier, spurred cordon pruning and the vines are 19 years old. Harvest is the third week of September.  Whole grapes are destemmed and are gently pressed, maceration takes place for at least fifteen days in oak vats with manual punching down. The wine is then drawn off and immediately put into 1,000-liter Slavonian oak barrels, in which the wine rests for maturation for at least 30 months. This is followed by two years of refinement in glass before being marketed. The wine has hints of red berries, sweet spice, a touch of balsamic herbs and a note of coffee.

Barolo 2010 “Sarmassa” Marchesi di Barolo made from 100% Nebbiolo. The vineyard exposure is south-east and the soil is clay and limestone with many stones. There are 4,000 vines per hectare and they are trained on a vertical trellised guyot system. Harvest is manual.  The grapes are destemmed and softly pressed. Fermentation at a controlled temperature in thermo condition tanks. Maceration lasts for 10 days. The wine is regularly recycled during this time. Racking takes place when the natural sugars are totally converted to alcohol. The wine is then racked into cement tanks, lined with fiber glass and insulated with cork. Malolactic fermentation is spontaneous and lasts for two months. The wine is aged in Slavonian oak barrels of 30 0r 36 HL and in medium toasted French barriques of 225 liters. The wine is the blended into traditional big oak barrels and remains in bottle before release. This is a full bodied wine with hints of licorice, spice, tobacco, pine resin and a touch of vanilla. It is a wine that will age.

Dessert — Dark and white chocolate mousse

Crostata of Ricotta and Visciole Cherry Jam

Colli Piacentini Vin Santo di Vigleno 2010 Colli Piacentini DOC  Az. Agr. Lusignani made from Beverdino, Santa Maria, Melara, Trebbiano and Ortrugo grapes. The vineyard is at 300 meters. Only the very best bunches of grapes are picked and are laid on a trellis in “fruttai” a specially built aerated drying room to assist in the maturation of the grapes for 3 months. After the pressing of the grapes (which takes place from December to February), the wine must matures for 6 years in small oak caratelli and barriques each time in smaller barrels (like the traditional balsamic method).  Daniele described the wine as having extraordinary complexity with aromas of dried dates, coffee liquor, antique wood, and eucalyptus and he compared it to a Madeira. This is truly a remarkable dessert wine. Daniele said only 1,000 375 ml size bottles were made.

Talking about Vino Nobile

Daniele Cernilli, aka Doctor Wine, has hosted a number of zoom webinars from Italy on Italian wine. I attended most of them at IL Gattopardo restaurant in NYC. The latest one was on Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, a wine that does not get the attention it deserves.

Many years ago, a wine writer said that the problem with Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is that it is “caught in the shadow between Chianti and Brunello.” This is a marketing problem because Vino Nobile was the first DOCG to appear on the Italian market and is a renowned red wine that stands on its own.

There is also some confusion because of the name.  Montepulciano d’Abruzzo wine is made from the Montepulciano grape variety in Abruzzo. Vino Nobile  di Montepulciano can only be made from grapes grown around the town of Montepulciano in the province of Siena in Southeast Tuscany in the hills around the Chiana Valley. The soil here is sandy and rich in clay with many rocks and the climate is temperate.

Vino Nobile is made mostly from the Sangiovese grape variety known locally as Prugnolo Gentile (at least 70%) and other approved red varieties. Many producers are now making it from 100% Prugnolo Gentile. Vino Noble is aged for a minimum of two years, including one in oak barrels or casks and three years total in order to be called a Riserva.

At the Zoom webinar there were 9 wines in total. Listed below are 4 wines from the 2018 vintage which one of the producers said was a classic vintage, with the right amount of rain in the spring and summer. The wines are balanced and elegant.

 In another blog, I will discuss wines from the 2016 and 2017 vintage, Pugnolo Gentile, and older vintages.

Salchetto “Nobile” 2018 made from 100% Prugnolo Gentile on 15 ha. Each plant makes one bottle. Manual harvest, sulfite free vinification with native yeasts takes place.  The wine ages for 18 months, 70% in bottle and 30% in tonneau. Then 6 months in bottle before release. The winery is organic certified. The wine will age for at least 10 years. This is a full bodied  wine that has hints of cedar, tea, nuts, red forest fruit with balsamic nuances and a touch of violets. Salchetto is one of 6 producers that joined together to make a Vino Noble di Montepulcino with the word  Nobile in big letters which most be made from 100% Prugnolo Gentile. The winery is organic.

Le Bèrne 2018 made from 100% Prugnolo Gentile at 350 meters. The training system is double guyot and balanced bilateral cordon..Harvest takes place the second week of October. Alcoholic fermentation with indigenous yeast, long maceration on the skins and frequent punching down and pumping over.  The wine is aged for 24 months in 25 HL oak battles (60%) and 40% in small French oak barrels. After a minimum of 6 months in bottle the wine is released. The wine has fruity notes, with hints of cherry, blackberries, spice and a touch of vanilla.

Gracciano Della Seta 2018 made from 90% Prugnolo Gentile and 10% Merlot. The vines grow in clay and silty soil on the hills of Gracciano at 300/350meters. Fermentation and maceration on the skins in stainless steel vats at a controlled temperature with local yeasts for about 20 to 25 days. Aging is for 24 months, the first 12 months in French oak tonneau, and the remaining months is Slavonian oak casks. Then aged for at last another 6 months in bottle before release. The wine has hints of violets, cherry, ripe plum with a touch of spice and a note of leather. After racking, the wine is transferred into big oak barrels where malolactic fermentation takes place. The wine is then aged for 18 months. The wine has hints of dark cherry, plums and raspberry, violet notes and a touch of spice.

Tenuta del Cerro “Silìneo” 2018 made mainly from Prugnolo Gentile . Fermentation and maceration at a controlled temperature with daily pumping over. After racking, the wine is transferred into big oak barrels where malolactic fermentation is carried out. Then the wine is aged for 18 months. The wine has hints of little red berries, cherry, strawberries and a note of violets.

Daniele Cernilli on the Perfect Wine

Perfect wine

by Daniele Cernilli 06/07/21 | AKA DOCTOR WINE

Knowing how to evaluate a wine in perspective, imagining what will foreseeably happen to that wine with the passing of time are indispensable skills to define its greatness, even by means of a score.

The famous American wine critic James Suckling has awarded a 100/100 rating to Barone Ricasoli Chianti Classico Gran Selezione CeniPrimo 2018.This was the first time a Chianti Classico has received the highest rating and is a further confirmation that Francesco Ricasoli, the estate’s current owner, is back on top in the area in terms of quality and this is totally in line with his family’s tradition.

It should be noted that by awarding this rating, James Suckling has defined this as a perfect wine, despite its youth. For sure he assumed a great responsibility by doing this but one of the tasks of a wine critic is to draw the attention of their followers to such wines en primeur. Among other things, Suckling is also a great expert in Bordeaux wine and for years has frequented the en primeur tastings that are organized every year there and that determine the value of certain vintages and wines which gives a heads up to sector operators so they can acquire the more prestigious wines before they come out on the market. Thus he has a vast experience in tasting very young wine and is able to properly evaluate them, almost wagering on the future.

But exactly what is a “perfect wine” and how does one define “perfection”? And how can you explain this to those who object that it is inappropriate to give such a high rating to a wine that could evolve and improve with aging? Tasting experience, the ability to imagine what will likely happen to a certain wine with age and skill in recognizing the organoleptic properties of the wine all contribute to being able to reasonably pick a winner. In the case of wine, and here I perfectly agree with Suckling, one can recognize a superstar early on.

The wine in question here is the result of a project involving the planting of the right Sangiovese clones and rootstocks for the composition of the soil of a specific vineyard. This is the third vintage of the wine to be produced, after 2016 and 2017 which were very good in their own right, and the harvest in 2018 was very favorable in the area of Brolio. From an organoleptic standpoint, the rapport between the particularly velvety and composed tannins, the typical acidity of the varietal and the excellent amount extracts in the body was truly outstanding from the start and was a clear indication of how this wine will very favorably mature over many years to come. Being able to understand and recognize this is the result of having a specific expertise in this type of wine and great tasting talent, both of which Suckling undoubtedly has.

I am, personally, very pleased with his verdict. Castello Brolio and its wines have played a fundamental role in the history of Chianti Classico and Italy as a whole. They can be considered the Chianti equivalent of the great Bordeaux Chateaux and in different eras have served as authentic reference points. Francesco Ricasoli has personally run the estate since 1993, with the technical collaboration of Carlo Ferrini, and he has restored the quality of the wines back to their previous, top level after the complicated years of the 1970s and ‘80s. The “cru” wines, CeniPrimo, Colledià and Roncicone, are all formidable and territorial wines that, in their own way, are “perfect”. And so, hats off to Francesco Ricasoli and also to James Suckling, who has recognized this and stuck his neck out, taking a risk but doing so with foresight and competence.

* * *

MY THOUGHTS: After reading this article I went back to look at my notes from a Chianti Classico tasting I went to last month with almost 300 wines. There were a few  Ricasoli wines, but not the the one mentioned in the article. I have not tasted that wine. It sells for around $80, and 6,000 bottles were produced.

Also, Eric Asimov’s article in the New York Times entitled “This Summer,Make It Chianti Classico”   is excellent and I am in complete agreement with what he has to say.

---

Enological License by Daniele Cernilli

When I drink the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo of Edoardo Valentini, I can never find the words to fully describe it.  I can say it has hints of this, notes of that, and undertones of something else, but I never feel as if I am doing the wine justice.  The article below, written by Daniele Cernilli, expresses my opinion of the wine perfectly.  Thank you Daniele, for giving me the words that I could not find.

by Daniele Cernilli  aka Doctor Wine  05/17/21 | 

Just as there exists poetic license, there exists “enological license” which can transform what may be technically considered an error into a trait of quality in a wine.

Everyone knows what poetic license is. William Shakespeare was a master of it, disregarding historical facts in the name of plot, inventing words or contractions to obtain an iambic pentameter rhythm to his verse and even ignoring the laws of nature to create the desired effect. In Sonnet 29, for example, he wrote:       “…and then my state, like a Lark at break of day arising from sullen Earth, sings hymns at Heaven’s gate“. The license he took here was that the lark is a bird that only flies short distances and flying to Heaven would be quite a hike for it.

I

I began thinking about enological license a few days ago when, with a group of friends, we opened some excellent bottles at the Goccetto wine bar in Rome. We had a Pinto Noir 2019 La Pinta, a Morey Saint Denis Premier Cru 2016 Domaine Dujac, a Barolo Riserva Vigna Rionda 2012 Massolino and a Brunello di Montalcino 2011 Capanna. These were all splendid wines, technically well-made, very precise and representative of their respective origins. We then opened the last bottle the shop had of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo 2016 Valentini and there was a sea change. Croce Taravella, the famous Sicilian artist, wine lover and historic Goccetto customer, declared that “this wine does not have the delicate perfection of a Raffaello and reminds me more of Tintoretto’s impetuous style”.

On a previous occasion, my dear friend and great connoisseur Silvano Prompicai defined this wine as “the greatest peasant wine in the world”. Let me explain why.

The wine we had the other day had a very intense, almost impenetrable, garnet color and showed all its 14 years. The aromas were the typical ones of black cherry with some hints of combustion, like those that develop when you make homemade jam and some of it sticks to the bottom of the pot, creating a subtle burnt note.

But it was through tasting the wine that we understood how it was on a different level than the other excellent wines we had sampled. The tannins were lively, distinct yet not aggressive. The right definition would be that they were “authentic”, grapey and with very little wood. Then there was that tad of carbonation, perhaps the product of the “remnants” of the initial malolactic fermentation in the bottle, which was so fine and composed it was hardly noticeable. This aspect may cause some rather orthodox tasters to turn up their noses but it had the same justification as Shakespearean poetic license had in obtaining the desired effect.

When I pointed this out to Edoardo Valentini, he replied: “Of course there’s a bit of carbonation. My wines are alive and so they have to breathe”.

In the end, we were all very impressed by this wine, which once again demonstrated how it was in a league of its own. This was underscored by Luciano Lombardi, AKA Vignadelmar, when he wrote about our tasting on his Facebook page. And what he said was that this wonderful wine demonstrated all the “enological license” needed, without taking anything away from science and technique, to become the stuff of poetry.

A Taste of Italy with Doctor Wine, Part II

This is Part II of the Zoom tasting A Taste of Italy with Doctor Wine that  took place last week hosted by  Daniele Cernilli (aka)Doctor Wine  There were 9 wines and in the first blog I wrote about 4 wines.  Here are the other 5 wines.

The samples were in very small 5 cl bottles with twist off caps. Each bottle had a label and a number so there would be no confusion. The whole program was well organized and very informative.

The Wines

Doc APE 2018 Cantine Romagnoli (EMILIA ROMAGNA) made from 55% Barbera, 45% Croatina (Bonarda). The soil is calcareous, medium texture tending to sandy. There are 3,600 plants/hectare and the pruning system is simple guyot. The exposure is south. The grapes macerate for 9 days with a daily pumping over. Fermentation with selected yeasts. The wine ages in first and second passage barriques for 12 months. Then there is the assemblage, a light clarification and a final filtration. The wine has hints of ripe fruit, licorice, leather and a note of wood and tobacco.

A.A. Pinot Nero Riserva “ Zeno” 2018 Cantina Merano made from 100% Pinot Nero (Trentino-Alto Adige, South Tyrol). The vineyards are at 500-700 meters and the vines are 15 to 20 years old. The soil is morainic, light, permeable, decomposed slate, granite and gneiss, barren and sandy. There is a cold fermentation for 5 days, then controlled fermentation with stirring for about 12 days. Aging is in new and used tonneaux. This is an elegant wine with hints of wild berries like strawberries and cherries and a long finish. Daniele liked the wine and included it in the current edition of his The Essential Guide to Italian Wine.

Barberasso 2018 Castello Cigognola (Lombardy–Oltrepo Pavese-Pavia, across the Po) made from 100% Barbera. This is a new wine made from experimenting in the vineyard with cuttings of the branch of the vine. This is an ancient technique, which allows for a light drying of the grapes while keeping the bunch on the plant and in the sunlight. The grapes increase their concentration and continue to develop substances in the peel, which intensify the aromas. They combine the raisin grape and the natural acidity of Barbera with partial whole bunch fermentation to create a new wine. This results in a wine where fruit and acidity are counterbalanced by a soft light note of ripe fruit. Half of the wine is aged for 10 months in 600-liter tonneaux. Because of the raisin fruit, the wine has about 7.5% grams of natural sugar making it softer. The wine has hints of ripe red fruit, strawberries, raspberries and a touch of raisins. This is the first time I have tasted a wine made in this way.

Lazio IGP 2017 Montiano Cotarella (Lazio) made from 100% estate grown Merlot from Montefiascone and Castiglione in Teverina. The vineyard is 86.4 acres at 300 meters. The soil is volcanic and rich in fine gravel (Scheletro). There are 1,700 vines per hectare and the training system is guyot. The average age of the vines is 16 years. Only the best clusters are harvested by hand during the first week of September. A second selection takes place at the winery. Maceration on the skins takes place for 10 days with numerous punch-downs. Temperature controlled fermentation is in truncoconic stainless steel tanks and malolactic takes place in barrel. The wine ages for 12 months in new French oak. It has hints of red and black berries, spice and vanilla with a touch of cedar. Daniele was impressed with this wine.

Daniele Cernilli -Doctor Wine

Primitivo IGP Puglia 2018 “Ipnotico” Terre Dei Vaaz (Puglia) made from 100% monovarietal Primitivo. Production area is the Murgia plateaux. The soil is medium textured and the elevation is 340 to 380 meters. There are 2800 plants per hectare, the planting system is sapling vineyards and the average age of the wines is 60 years. Fermentation takes place in steel tanks. The wine is aged for 12 months in stainless steel, 4 months in French barriques and a minimum of 8 months in bottle. The wine has hints of sour cherries, prunes, a touch of pomegranate and a note of chocolate with a long finish.

A Taste of Italy with Doctor Wine

Daniele Cernilli, aka Doctor Wine, hosted “A Taste of Italy” session on Zoom.

Nine wines from different regions of Italy arrived so that participants could taste and discuss. The samples were sent in very small bottles with twist off caps.

I guess this method was chosen since it was easier and less expensive to ship. The name of the wine and a number was on each bottle so there would not be any confusion.

There will be two blogs focussed on these 9 wines. The first blog will concern the 4 wines from wineries I have visited or have hosted tastings for. The next 5 will follow in another blog.

The Wines

Caprettone “Ayete” 2019 Vesuvio Caprettone DOC Casa Setaro (Campania) made from 100% Caprettone. The production zone is at 250/300 meters in the Trione della Guardio in Vesuvius National Park.

Massimo Setaro, owner of the winery, was one of the speakers. I met Massimo in Rome where I tasted his wines and also visited the winery. He spoke about the soil and said it is volcanic and sandy with a layer of lava on the surface and volcanic stone. Because of this there is a mineral character present in the wines. This composition of the soil makes the vines immune to phylloxera so the vines are not grafted onto American rootstock. If phylloxera  attacked a plant it would destroy it but would die in the soil before it reached another plant. The training system is guyot. Vinification: Maceration in steel tanks at a controlled temperature and fermentation lasts for about 20 days in amphora and tonneaux. The wine remains in steel tanks for about 6 months and then in bottle for two months before release. The wine has hints of citrus fruit, herbs, and cedar with balsamic notes, nice minerality, soft acidity and a long finish.

Le Sabble dell’Etna Rosè DOC 2019 Firriato (Sicilia) made from Nerello Mascalese from territory of Castiglione (Catania, Sicily). Cavanera Etnea Estates. Grapes are from different vineyards on the North side of Mt. Etna. The soil is loamy-sandy of volcanic origin with good drainage. Exposure is northeast and the vineyard is at 720 meters. The training system is Cordon Royat. There are 4,000 to 4,500 plants per hectare. The grapes are hand harvested the first week of October. Fermentation is for 15 days. Soft pressing for about 2 hours, slight skin maceration and static sedimentation. The wine spends 3 months on the fine lees in stainless steel tanks with daily shaking. After 3 months in bottle the wine is released. This is a fruity wine with hints of strawberry, raspberry, and a hint of citrus fruit. I visited the winery a number of years ago and more recently hosted a lunch and tasting of the wine at Norma Restaurant in NYC.

Chianti Classico DOCG Gran Selezione “Don Tommaso” 2016 80% Sangiovese and 20% Merlot Principe Corsini, Villa Le Corte (Toscana). The winery is located in San Casciano Val di Pesa. The vineyards are at 270-350 meters and have a southern exposure. The Pilocenic hills are rich in river stones. There are 5,800 plants per hectare. The training system is low-spurred cordon and the average age of vines is 25 years. This is a selection of the best grapes. They are hand harvested, destemmed and put in pen frustum, cone–shaped stainless steel tanks at a controlled temperature. After 24 hours at 20°C the grapes are inoculated with selected indigenous yeasts. Fermentation for the Sangiovese is 18 days and for the Merlot is 16 days at a max temp of 28°C. The wine is aged in 70% in new barriques and 30% in used barriques for 18 months and 12 months in bottle before release. The wine has hints of blueberries, cherries and lavender with a touch pepper and a note of wild fennel. Daniele said 2016 was the best vintage in Chianti in over 10 years. I did not visit this winery but hosted a dinner for them a few years ago in New York City and really liked their Chianti Classico.

Montepulciano d’’Abruzzo “Toni” 2017 Cataldi Madonna (Abruzzo) Made from 100% Montepulciano D’Abruzzo from the Cona vineyard near Ofena. The soil is clay loam rich in calcareous skeleton. Elevation is 1,250 feet with a Northwest exposure. Vines were planted in 1990 and the training system is spalliera. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel and the juice remains in contact with the skins for 20 to 25 days with regular delestage and pumping over. The wine is aged in French oak barrels for 12 months and in bottle for 18 months before release. This is wine with body and hints of dark fruit, black cherries, prune and a touch of smoke. It has a long finish and pleasing aftertaste. Daniele really liked this wine and said it was real Italian wine.

I visited the winery twice the last time in 2019 and always enjoyed their wines. Giulia Cataldi Madonna now runs the winery. She is the fourth generation of here family. She was present on Zoom.

Wines of Romagna Part II

Marina Thompson, of Rome-based Thompson International Marketing, is a wine marketing expert and a long time friend. She invited me to attend two Zoom telecasts to discuss the wines of Romagna. The telecasts took place a few days apart in the middle of December

The speaker for both was her husband Daniele Cernilli.  Daniele Cernilli, aka Doctor Wine, is the author of The Essential Guide to Italian Wine 2021 and one of the foremost authorities on Italian wine.  Daniele pointed out that Emilia-Romagna is considered one region, but as far as wine and food are concerned they are very different. See Wines of Romagna Part 1

Daniele said the three most important grapes in Romagna are Albana (the first Italy white to be awarded the DOCG), Sangiovese, and Trebbiano.

He also spoke of one of my favorite Italian restaurants San Domenico in Imola where I had a wonderful lunch in November 2019. He also mentioned one of my favorite cites to visit, Ravenna because of its long history and wonderful mosaics

All these Romagna wines are available in the US.

Albano Secco “ I Croppi” 2019 Celli made from 100% Albana. Production area Bertinoro. The soil is a clayey mixture with limestone and the exposure is east-south east. There are 3,000 to 500 plants per hectare and the training system is double guyot. Harvest was the first week of September. Fermentation is in stainless steel tanks as is the aging. The wine has hints of yellow peaches, apricots, a touch of citrus with salty and mineral  notes.  Imported by SolStars Inc.

Albano Secco “Bianco Di Ceparano” 2019 Fattoria Zerbina made from 100% Albano. The vineyard is high-density bush vines trained to a single stake which is a return to the tradition of the Romagna hills. There is the advantage of a 360 degree exposure of the canopy to direct sunlight and harvesting can be in any direction. Six months in cement tanks and then in stainless steel. The wine has hints of ripe citrus fruit, apples, pears and a touch of honeydew. Daniele said all of their wines are top quality and some are among the best in the country.  Imported by Sussey Wine Merchants.

Romagna Sangiovese Predappio 2018 Notturno Drei Dona – La Palazza made from 100% Sangiovese from the best grapes in their vineyards. There are 3,300 and 5,000 plants per hectare. Fermentation is in steel and concrete at a controlled temperature. The grapes are harvested, vinified and aged separately then assembled to complete the wine. The wine is aged for about one year is 15 and 25HL traditional casks and 500 liter tonneaux. The wine is bottled unfiltered. The wine has hints of dark red fruit, blackberries and blueberries, a touch of sweet spice and a note of caramel. Daniele said this estate is a point of reference not only for wine lovers but also for other producers. Imported by LNJ Brands, Inc

Sangiovese Superiore I Diavoli Le Rocche Malatestiane made from 100% sangiovese from vineyards between San Clemente and Gemmano in Rimini. The soil is tinted clay and chalk adjacent to the town of Gemmano at 250 meters. The wine is aged for six months in concrete tanks and one month is steel tanks. The production area for I Diavoli is close to the Natural Reserve of Onferno, called inferno (hell), because of the vapor rising from the crevasses and the bats, “the devils,” who lived in the underlining karst caves. The wine has hints of black cherry, blueberries, wildflowers and a touch of spice. It is part of the Cevico Group with 5,000 suppliers-partners that offers well-made wines at affordable prices.  Imported by Terre Cevico

Sangiovese Riserva Bertinoro 2014 Fattoria Paradiso made from 100% from the Vigna Delle Lepri Sangiovese Grosso. The wine is aged in cask for 18 months and 6 months in barriques followed by 12 months in bottle before release. I visited the winery a number of years ago and was impressed by this particular wine. The wine will be available in the US early this year.   The wine has hints of blackberry, black cherry, licorice, dried roses and a touch of chocolate. Imported by Panebianco LLC

Romagna Sangiovese Predappio 2018 Noelia Ricci La Pandolfa 100% Sangiovese large berried type (Romagna biotype) from the Godenza vineyard in San Cristoforo in Foli. The vineyard is at 300 to 340 meters and the soil is ochre-colored clay and calcareous marl, with traces of sand. Vines were planted in 1999. There are 4,500 plants per hectare and they are spurred-cordon trained. Manual harvest the second week of September. Grapes from different clones are harvested together for fermentation. Fermentation and maceration take place on the skins in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. Skin contact for about 28 days followed by 8 months in steel tanks and 12 months in bottle before release. The winery is converting to organic farming. The wine has hints of red fruit, raspberries and with a hint of spice.

They owners have a fascination with the animal world and went through illustrations from late 19^th century archives to illustrate their labels.  These figures lend themselves to a certain freedom of imagination. The most advanced of animals, the monkey, is represented on the oldest wine, Godenza. Imported by Artisanal Cellars