Italian Rosato for Summer!

​As the title says, this 100 Sangiovese saw just a "few hours" maceration on the skins.  It is fresh and bright and made from certified organic grapes by Vittorio Navacchia and family.  Vittorio is here in town this week so ask me if you want us to come by and taste it with you.  And it is so inexpensive!

This has rapidly become our best selling rosato in just its second vintage back on the market after a long hiatus.  Crunchy is the new word for this type of ultr-light but flavorful rose`.  Or as the Italians say, "Crispy!".  The GD Vajra wines are still getting better every year and we are so happy that they are part of our family.

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​The Rosacherosanonsei Rosato from Favaro is a perennial favorite.  This one is no exception.  Nebbiolo rosato with a few other grapes thrown in, this is a rose` de saignee that is produced in miniscule quantities.  So little in fact that you can't find it anywhere else in the United States but through Rinascimento Wine Company.

Favaro ROS

"La vigna è a 400 mt su terreno ripido e con tanti sassi di granito."
The vineyard is at 1200 feet on steep terrain and with lots of stones of granite.

"La vinificazione è fatta in tonneaux aperto e macerato per 3 settimane. Solo follature delicate e nessun rimontaggio."
The vinification is in open topped wooden fermenters and macerated on the skins for three weeks.   only delicate punch downs and no pumpovers.

"Poi rimane 14 mesi in barrique di 3 o 4 passaggi, nessun travaso."
Then it remains 14 months in three or four year old barrels, no racking.

"Messo in bottiglia senza stabilizzazione e filtrazione."
Bottled without filtration and cold stabilization.

"Un vino dove cerco eleganza e purezza."
A wine where I am searching for elegance and purity.

"Spero piacerà anche in California!"
I hope they like it also in California!

300 bottles made 

Camillo Favaro

The real rose` season is upon us!

It is boiling out there and the best thing I can think of to cool down is to drink lots of Italian Rosato by the pool.

I have just a few cases left of the following:

Favaro 2013 ROSACHEROSANONSEI Rosato (VdT) 180/15

90% Nebbiolo, 10% Syrah Hand-harvested grapes are fermented at cool temperatures and aged in stainless steel tanks for four months. This wines has great acidity and nice tension that backs up a fullish rosato with nice mineral notes. Aromatics are floral with strawberry and raspberry flavors seasoned with mint.

or the

This is a picture of 2012 vintage.  The 2013 is even better!

Cirelli  2013 Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo DOC 144/12

The Cirelli Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo 2013 is tasting great right now.  Lots of cherry fruit and acidity and a little bit of that salty terroir thing going on, too.  It is also a critter wine, notice the beautiful butterfly, which I am sure is recognizable to all as the sign of freedom and transformation (okay, I am reaching here . . .) but whatever.  The wine is good.

The grapes for this wine were grown specifically to be direct press rose` and that has some advantages.  Lower alcohol and higher acidity would be the most obvious.  And now that the weather is getting really hot, and our rose` season is finally upon us, this is a great wine for those hot days.

Ask for them from your local retailer or email me and I can tell you the best way to get them to your door..

Cheers.

Justin

Around Italy in 6 days . . . can I make it?

Az. Ag. Favaro gets 3 Glasses for 2nd straight year for their Erbaluce di Caluso Le Chiusure!

Az. Ag. Favaro gets 3 Glasses for 2nd straight year for their Erbaluce di Caluso Le Chiusure!

Az. Agr. Favaro Benito ~ Caluso

(sustainably farmed)

The small family-run Benito Favaro estate was established in 1992.

"My father, Benito, as well as being the one who had the intuition 15 years ago that this adventure was worth embarking upon, still looks after the vineyards and is the real heart and soul of our operations. My brother Nicola helps him in the highly complex and fundamental work of tending the vines. I do my best in the cellar, steering our wines in what we are convinced is the right direction. Mama Rosanna, like all mothers, does a bit of everything, always with great enthusiasm. She's our jack-of-all-trades, without whom the squaring of the circle would be missing. My sister Elena, with her partner Claudio, cultivate all the vineyards planted with red grapes that are then vinified in our cellar. It may seem like a fairytale existence, but it is really just the simple story of a family who produces wine and firmly believes in what they do, following sound and healthy principles. Our vineyards are located in Piverone on a hill of glacial origins, the true home of our vines." Camillo Favaro 

2009 Harvest at Favaro, Piemonte

La Famiglia Favaro

Le Chiusure. Notice the trellising in the vineyard? Pergola Veronese (arched over the heads of the pickers like they do in Verona). This provides for more air to circulate around the bunches of grapes so there is less opportunity for fungus and rot.

Erbaluce grapes ready for harvest. Erbaluce literally translated means "grass of light".

Everything is done by hand at Azienda Agricola Favaro.

Benito and Camillo Favaro hard at work during harvest.