With the extremely high prices we pay for California wines, I find this a relative bargain. It’s from Sonoma and shows rich black cherry, concentrated blackberries and integrated herbs and spices on the nose. It’s bold and tasty on the palate with a core of cherry, currants and blackberries all bolstered by lovely spice and supple tannins. Good-value Cali.
Comfortably worn leather, dried raspberry and dried cherry pervade this Barolo from the commune of La Morra. Worn leather, worn cherry, ripe and savoury and finely salted on the mellow palate, showing much more age than its age. Tannins are softly buggy, and dried rose petals linger on the finish. This is from Ciabot Berton’s 8 ha of hillside Nebbiolo on sandy, marl and calcareous clay soils. After maceration on the skins for 16 days in concrete, this spent 18 months in Slovenian oak casks, followed by a tightening 6 months in stainless before bottling.
From a west facing limestone and granite layered slope on lower Black Sage Road. Lifted waxy, nutty and floral notes precede a taut, focused palate with keen acidity, well textured with citrus, orange and mineral undertones. A superb example of what the Okanagan can do with this variety.
Located in Tokaji-Hegyalja in northeastern Hungary, the Megyer estate was classified as “First Growth” in 1772 by royal decree. Furmint, so often associated with the legendary long-lived Tokaji dessert wines, is capable of making complex, bone-dry, phenolic, mineral-laden and herbal dry white wines, which is certainly the case here. Hay, salted lemon, green fig, pear skin, green apple blossom, wild herbs and broken stone fill the medium-bodied frame. 8 months in stainless steel preserve the freshness, while a thin cushion of oil-slicked lees provides grounding. A striking intro to dry furmint and a brilliant value too.
The wine is very pale in colour with a lifted floral, grapefruit nose; it’s fresh and lively on the palate with an engaging honeyed note to offset the zesty grapefruit flavour. Serve it with pork loin or onion tart.
SAS’s rosé is a singular blend of 92% Riesling and the remainder Cabernet Franc. Lime, raspberry, strawberry, grapefruit, green apple and peach are all present. Refreshing and off-dry, the fruit dances on the tongue for a long time. Pair with terrines or tuna steaks.
This is a wine that belongs on one of those outdoor Italian tables served in glasses that could hold toothbrushes. It’s hearty and rustic, full-bodied with a sweet plum and black cherry flavour with a floral note.