Italian Wines | WineSkinny.com ? Wine, Food, Life, Travel

So, in case you hadn?t guessed, I drank a bunch of wine while in Rome recently. And I kept that Italian wine train rolling for several weeks after that. So here are my?notes from Rome, with a few other Italian wines I?ve recently enjoyed thrown in for good measure. I?m just guessing on some of the pricing, but think I?m in the ballpark. Enjoy!

WHITE

Vesevo 2010 Falanghina Beneventano ($16). Beneventano is an IGT from the Campania region of Italy, and?this Falanghina offers a lemony tart accent to the juicy apple and green pear character, with mineral and light fig notes through the sleek finish. Very nice. Ready to drink now. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Feudi di San Gregorio 2010 Falanghina Serrocielo ($33). Bright, crisp and lemony, with lovely layers of fresh citrus, stoney mineral and date notes and a smooth finish. Very nice ? one of the best examples of Falanghina I can remember tasting. Ready to drink now and over the next couple of years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Marchesi di Barolo 2010 Gavi ($20). Fresh and floral, with a light peachy character accented by Granny Smith apple, light citrus and mineral notes. Crisp finish. Ready to drink now. Worked beautifully with a marinated antipasti di mare featuring calamari, octopus, sliver of fish, carrots, radicchio and more. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Marchesi di Barolo 2009 Gavi ($20). Nice acidity here, with straw and mineral accents to the mouthwatering lemon zest, lemon flesh and ripe, smooth apple fruit. More mineral on the clean finish. Very food-friendly. Ready to drink now. Locate this wine online or in your area. (2012-01-31)

La Giustiniana 2010 Gavi Montessora ($25). Pale, with greenish tints, offering aromatic camomille accents to the juicy golden apple and white peach fruit, picking up smoky mineral and bitter almond notes through the fresh finish. Ready to drink now and over the next couple of years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Colli di Lapio 2010 Greco di Tufo Alexandros ($18). Very nice, with pretty layers of ripe apricot and nectarine, plenty of gravel notes, and a touch of floral aromatics. Lush and smooth on the palate, with a crisp, refreshing finish. Food friendly. Worked nicely with?fettuccine with porcini and chicory and a glorious gnocchi alla Romana. Ready to drink now and over the next couple of years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Ciccio Zaccagnini 2009 Trebbiano d?Abruzzo San Clemente ($35). This was just a little slice of heaven paired with a platter of fried anchovies. Seriously one of the culinary highlights of the trip. The wine is mineral-laden and not shy on the lemon zest either, with a core of polished apple and a crisp finish. Ready to drink now. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Colli di Lapio 2010 Fiano di Avellino ($30). Smooth and pretty, with fresh layers of white peach, light apricot and almond notes. Finishes with touches of mineral. Ready to drink now. Locate this wine online or in your area.

RED

Masi 2006 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Costasera ($65). Still showing youthful intensity to the blueberry, plum and cherry fruit when first opened. But after a while, a hint of what?s still to come ? roasted, raisiny aromas and flavors, earth, meat ? began to emerge. Really, really good. Loved it with an array of strong, hard cheeses. Ready to drink now but should continue to age beautifully for another decade or so. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Marchesi di Barolo 2005 Barolo ($55). Just starting to show some age on the finish, making this prime for drinking now. With wild strawberry aromas and flavors, notes of tea and dried roses, this is a graceful, elegant wine but by no means a lightweight. Plenty of tannic structure under all that finesse. Excellent value ? find some if you can. Ready to drink now and over the next 3-4 years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Marchesi di Barolo 2005 Barolo Sarmassa ($80). If you?re fortunate enough to put your hands on a bottle of this wine, just know that once you taste it, it will be hard to move on to another wine. So plan your evening accordingly! Offering elegant layers of delicate strawberry, sour cherry, wild blackberry, aromatic violet, clove, spiced tea, vanilla, I could go on? Lovely acidity belies powerful structure. Needs decanting in the short term. Best from 2014 and for another 10+ years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Camigliano 2009 Rosso di Montalcino ($25). Ripe, concentrated cherry aromas and flavors are accented with generous vanilla, clove, toast and cigar box notes, building through a generous finish. Easy to like. Ready to drink now and over the next couple of years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Melini 2010 Morellino di Scansano ($N/A). A fun wine that I?m pretty sure doesn?t make it into the U.S., but worth noting. Playful tart cherry and pomegranate flavors give a tangy character and finish, with amaretto, allspice and mineral notes through the finish. Made to go with food. Ready to drink now and over the next 2-3 years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Tenuta di Poggio Uliveto 2008 Vino Nobile di Montepulciano ($40). Ripe, full-bodied, intensely flavored, offering cassis, boysenberry and dried blueberry flavors that stay focused and rich, with accents of toast, briar and smoke. Finishes with a burst of fresh acidity. Ready to drink now and over the next 4-5 years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

La Valentina 2008 Montepulciano d?Abruzzo ($14). A simple, serviceable, everyday red, with light plum and cherry notes accented with touches of herbs and black tea. Ready to drink now. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Gianni Brunelli 2004 Brunello di Montalcino ($110). This was our ?last night in Rome? wine and it was well worth the pricetag. Delicate rose petal aromas, raspberry and wild cherry character, polished and elegant with underlying tannic structure and a complex, generous finish. Tea leaves, pipe tobacco, dried lavender, currants ? it?s all there. Delicious now but should age beautifully for another 10+ years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Source: http://www.wineskinny.com/2012/02/19/italian-wines/

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