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When Valpolicello grows up …
2006 Luigi Righetti Capitel de' Roari Amarone della Valpolicella
With more than 100 wines on offer, it’s hard to single out one but my singular thrill came toward the end when I stumbled onto a shamelessly ripe Amarone from Luigi Righetti. Amarones have come out of the raisin closet in the last decade; younger and yummier all the time. This one makes up for a lot of Valpolicella that’s gone down the drain. The aroma and the texture are big, jammy and lushly easy to drink. No dust, no rust, no wood.
Amarone used to be an acquired taste. And not a cheap one.
But at $27.99, anyone can acquire the 2006 Righetti Capital de’ Roari Amarone and fall deeply in love with one of Italy’s mysterious beauties.
Italy’s great white hopes
2009 Vietti Roero Arneis (Piedmont)
Before our grand tasting we alerted you that Vietti’s fresh 2009 Arneis ($19.99) would be on hand and it was a crowd pleaser indeed. It was the top selling white wine of the day thanks to its clean crisp essence of pear and almonds.
If whites were in the minority, they were not short on quality, for far more than fridge quaffers.
The 2008 Alois Lageder Riff pinot grigio showed p.g. at its crisp northeastern best, full and aromatic, only $9.99 which should shame plonck producers on both sides of the ocean.
For pinot bianco, a dear favorite of mine. The 2007 St. Michael-Eppan Schulthauser had full body and Germanic complexity, crisp minerality, great aroma of peach and flowers, with earthy fruitiness of apricot. Rich for $15.99
Best deal of whites from Planet V, the 2009 Marchetti Verdicchio for Castelli di Jesi in the Marches, crisp, fun and more character than you ever found in a fish bottle ($12.99).
2007 I Greppi Greppicante (Bolgheri, Italy)
2007 I Greppi Greppicante (Bolgheri) On Sale: 19.99
Here’s a great Tuscan value and one of the top 100 wines of the year according to The Wine Spectator at a new low price for a limited time. For the month of July B-21 is offering the 2007 Greppicante for only 19.99 (a two dollar savings from our already low everyday price of 21.99). This Cabernet Sauvignon based blend is loaded with fruit complemented by toasty oak in a very polished and seamless style. It offers considerably value in the Super Tuscan category where that can be hard to come by.
91 Points, Steve Rayman
Staff Selection, July 2010
2007 Col D’Orcia Rosso di Montalcino (Tuscany, Italy)
2007 Col D`Orcia Rosso di Montalcino (Tuscany) On Sale: 15.99
An Italian for Pinot Noir lovers!
The grape Sangiovese Grosso (of Brunello di Montalcino fame) from a great producer in an special vintage like 2007 will surprise you as it did me. What struck me was its silky purity of fruit with a Tuscan inflection: rare find these days. Sure, Italy makes Pinot Noir. They will not provide this level of pleasure/satisfaction.
90 Points, Bob Sprentall
Staff Selection, July 2010
Lucky Sunday the 13th: Italian vinapalooza
Is there any country blessed with so many wines? Let alone a steady stream of great vintages since 2004?
The glories that are Italy’s wines will be the feature of another classic B-21 Sunday tasting with dozens of great wines (no junk), brainy seminars and special guests. The headliner this time is Aldo Zaninotto, whose Vietti winery in Piedmont is one of Steve’s favorites.
So cancel your golf date for June 13 and reserve a spot for $25.
That includes your choice of seminars with Zaninotto and Vittorio Marianecci who will be comparing vintages of Casanova di Neri’s Tenuta Nuova and Pietradonice: The best of Tuscany and Piedmont.
I know I’m going to sit in on explication of barbera, as translated by the winemakers in Asti and Alba, barely 25 miles apart in Piedmont, just south of Torino. The big spumante factories give Asti a bad name, and the truffle markets give Alba status, but what ’s that matter to their barberas? It’s one of my favorites grapes and I can’t wait for the debate.
Viticcio can do no wrong.
2006 Viticcio Chianti Classico Riserva (Tuscany) $24.99
Their wines continue to garner top scores and yet their prices remain very sane, making these must-have incredible values. Proprietor Alessandro Landini had two wines featured in the top 100 from the Wine Spectator (2006 Viticcio Chianti Classico Riserva and I Greppi Greppicante) and these aren’t even the highest scoring wines they offer. Not only are the current releases excellent but we tasted with Alessandro in Italy last month and are happy to report that upcoming releases will be even better. Viticcio’s wines are tasty on release but seem balanced and deep enough to cellar beautifully for 10 years.
- Steve Rayman, B-21′s Director of Wine
2006 Castello Monastero Chianti Classico (Tuscany, Italy)
2006 Castello Monastero Chianti Classico (Tuscany) $13.99 - May 2010 Special
“Castello di Monastero’s 2006 Chianti Classico is one of the most textbook classic Chiantis one could ask for. It is darkly colored and intensely flavored with much room left to develop. It is an amazing value not to be missed. The Wine Spectator says ‘It shows Indian spices and ripe berries on the nose. Full-bodied, yet refined and very polished.’ You’ll want to have a case to enjoy over the next ten years. ”
91 Points, Steve Rayman
Staff Selection, May 2010
Brunellos, Pasta Cars & VinItaly
A Pasta Car at VinItaly
Our first day at Vinitaly was a full one with 140 plus wines tasted. Of that group we were fortunate to find almost 10 that will probably appear on B-21 shelves in the future. It may not sound like much but that is well above the average!
We completed tasting around 5:30pm after 8 hours with barely a break. Bob commented that we were lucky because in Bordeaux they usually continue tasting right through dinner.
- Steve Rayman, B-21′s Director of Wine and Italy Correspondent
About 1/3 of the Brunellos at Vin Italy.
Reporting LIVE from Vin Italy 2010
Arriving in Verona for Vin Italy
I arrived in Verona today and the weather is tropical. The town is full of students on Easter break and the wine trade. An odd combination to say the least. Bob is here too having driven in from France where he was tasting 2009 Bordeaux.
Tomorrow I begin serious tasting. But today I’m relaxing on the piazza and enjoying the view.
- Steve Rayman, B-21′s Director of Wine & Italy Correspondent
2007 Petrognano by Selvapiana (Tuscany, Italy)
2007 Petrognano by Selvapiana (Tuscany) $19.99
“A blend of Sangiovese (60%), Cabernet Sauvignon (20%) and Merlot (20%), Petrognano is vinified partly in steel and partly in wood and then aged for 18 months prior to release. It exhibits great elegance and purity as well as concentration and length. Pomino, a subsection of Rufina where Petrognano originates, is reknowned for top quality red varietals grown on its limestone hillsides. The 2007 Petrognano is an exceptional Tuscan red that overdelivers for the price.”