Northern Italian Wines at Fayetteville Wine Society Meeting

[wondersofwine]

Our February meeting featured wines from Northern Italy. (In order of serving, not order of preference.)

1. 2006 Wilhelm Walch "Prendo" Pinot Grigio
Pear and apple on nose. To me this had a heavy taste. Minerally. Not a variety that really appeals to me.

2. 2006 Alois Lageder Pinot Bianco from Alto Adige. Quite acidic. I liked this somewhat better than the Pinot Grigio but was not nearly as enthused as Kristine Miller, a sommelier and one of the founders of the organization.

3. 2003 Caterina Zardini Valpolicella Classico Superiore. Leggy, bright ruby color and semi-transparent. Tart cherry/red berry flavors. I felt this went well with the piece of grilled chicken on my plate.

4. 2004 Luigi Righetti "Capitel de Roari" Amarone della Valpolicella. Deep ruby color, semi-transparent. Floral and plum scents. Medium body. Not as full-bodied or raisiny as some Amarones but priced accordingly. At discount rate, members could purchase for less than $29 and I ordered two bottles to be picked up later.
My favorite wine of the evening.

5. 2005 Seghesio Dolcetto d'Alba "La Chiesa"
Vineyard near a monastery. Now we are in the Piedmont region. Some acidity. Better with the cheese than on its own. Dolcetto and Barbera were described as the everyday grapes of the Piedmont while the more revered Nebbiolo grape is used in the Barbaresco and Barolo, the top wines of Piedmont.

6. 2003 Beni di Batasio Barbaresco. This was a lighter color than the Dolcetto. Partly transparent. Raspberry nose? Quite tannic but good sipping it after a bite of cheese.

7. 1998 Azelia Barolo
Appears lighter than the Dolcetto and is fading on the rim of the glass. Smelled quite alcoholic to me but was labeled at 14%. Traditionalist winemaker. Long aging in wood. Prune or raisins on the nose. Approachable at ten years.

8. 2007 Bosio Moscato d'Asti
Popular afternoon wine in Italy, Kristine says, often consumed along with a fresh fruit or as dessert wine. It is supposed to be frizzante but the bubbles were a little dissipated, maybe it had been open for awhile. Too sweet for me although I enjoyed a Moscato from the Northwest on my 2005 trip and like those that are a bit less sugary.

9. 2006 Banfi "Rosa Regale" Brachetto d'Acqui. Served with a piece of extra dark chocolate. Raspberry/strawberry essences. Rose petal also used as one of the descriptors. I have had this on several occasions and find it consistent in style. A good Valentine's Day choice for a couple that don't have lots of experience with dry wines. A fun drink for a party (bridal shower or summer patio party.)

[TheEngineer]

Sounded like a very nice lineup to try out. Wish I wasn' t this sick so I could pop a few myself.

Mike

[wondersofwine]

Mike,
I hope you feel better soon. Dan of Dananne too.

[dananne]

Thanks -- finally feeling like a human being again.