Pre-Harvest G.D. Vajra walking in the vineyards

Ready or not ready?  Looks like lots of variation in the bunches.

Aldo and Giuseppe Vaira

Riesling or Moscato

Aldo Vaira

Sinio- Roddino e Novello

Giuseppe, looking very Roman.

Aldo checking the grapes out.

Giuseppe working hard to get up those steep slopes.

What do you think?  Dolcetto?

Son and father, Aldo.

Just about ready.

2012 Garlic Harvest at Agricola Cirelli

As I am sure I have let you know many times, Agricola Cirelli does not only make wine. They grow garlic, figs, wheat, geese and olives.  It is one thing after another from now until the end of the year.  Strangely enough, or maybe not so strange, but Francesco doesn't even eat garlic as it doesn't sit well with his stomach.  So proud to be representing Agricola Cirelli.

Raw garlic: così è dopo la raccolta e l’esiccamento di circa 10 giorni 
This is how it is after the harvest and drying for around 10 days.

Per un prodotto eccellente occorre pulire e selezionare l’aglio migliore!
For an excellent product, you need to clean and select the best garlic!

Dopo la pulizia, le teste dell’aglio vengono immesse nella macchina “calibratrice” che serve a dividere le teste dell’aglio a seconda della loro dimensione.
After the cleaning, the heads of garlic are put into the calibrating machine that serves to divide the heads of garlic by their size.

The final result: nearly 100 quintals (100kg) of beautiful, organic garlic.

Si festeggia la fine della raccolta! Michela con i nostri cari collaboratori
Celebrating the end of harvest.  Michela, Francesco's new wife, with their dear collaborators.

Musto Carmelitano - Aglianico di Vulture in purezza!

Francesco - Elisabetta - Luigi

Let me introduce you to the fantastic wines from Musto Carmelitano.

Elisabetta Musto Carmelitano’s family has been making wine for four generations in the DOCG of Aglianico del Vulture. For much of that time the production had been mainly selling grapes but also wine in demi-johns. Elisabetta began in this way as well, though in 2006 she began building the current winery and created Azienda Agricola Musto Carmelitano. She directs the winery with help from her father and brother. She gives great thanks to her father and uncle who each believed in her and continue to give her great support.

Aglianico

They have 14 hectares of land – both vineyards and olive groves. The total production of wine, however, is a miniscule 1700 cases! Part of the land is from her father, part is from her uncle – also a small part from her great-grandmother. They have vines that are as old as 100 years. The vines of their top cru – Pian del Moro have an average age of 90 years. Their other cru Serra del Prete has vines with an average age of 45 years. They have been farming organically since the beginning and have been certified organic since 2010.

Aglianico thrives on volcanic soil. The winery is in Maschito, just south of Monte Vulture, the extinct volcano that provides mineral-rich, volcanic soil for the great wines of Basilicata. For a grape that can have such power and structure, these wines have tremendous grace and finesse as well as a refreshing underlying minerality from the volcanic soils. The two cru’s are vinified in stainless with 20 day macerations, after which the Pian del Moro spends a year in used tonneaux and the Serra del Prete spends six months in stainless steel and six months in cement. The fresher, younger Maschitano rosso is vinified in stainless with a short maceration and then spends just six months in stainless steel. We also receive small quantities of their Maschitano Bianco, a dry Moscato which is vinified in stainless followed by six months in cement. It shows a striking minerality as well as refreshing acidity.

While relatively new as a winery, they are producing classic, traditionally-made wines that showcase the best of what Basilicata has to offer!

Monte Santoccio from Valpolicella . . .

I would like to introduce to you some great new wines from the Valpolicella region in the Veneto that should be arriving this week (crossing my fingers that my container makes it out of the terminal!)

I met Nicola through Francesco Cirelli at VinItaly this year and his wines impressed me so much, that against my better judgement (meaning that I had no extra money), I brought them in.  These wines are fresh and exciting with great acidity.  So much acidity, in fact, that it completely changed my mind about Ripasso wines and Amarone.  Usually these wines leave me cold with their somewhat flabby acidity and high alcohol, but these reminded me of nothing like the monoliths I have had in the past.

Looking down from one of their vineyards onto the winery.

Monte Santoccio pride itself on the fact that the Winery owns the vineryards that produce the grapes for its wines as this help Monte Santoccio have the control over all the stages of production. The cellar stand alongside (actually underneath their house) and the winery vinifies grapes only from the family’s own surrounding vineyards. Everything is organized so as to obtain maximum quality and done by gravity.

Nicola's father picking some grapes at harvest.  Look at the old Pergola Trentino style of trellis

Monte Santoccio covers a total of over 3 hectares planted with vines. Located in Fumane, Monte Santoccio winery is in the heart of the Valpolicella Classico area and at an altitude that makes for a completely different micro-climate as almost anywhere else in Valpolicella.

Nicola Ferrari, winemaker, was only 26 years old when he started working at Giuseppe Quintarelli winery, one of the most prestigious Valpolicella/Amarone producers. He immediately recognized the importance of exercising control over the whole production process, by owning one’s own vineyards and vinifying one’s own grapes, so as to guarantee the quality of one’s wines and the credibility of one’s brand.

They make Valpolicella Classico, Valpollicella Classico Ripasso, Amarone della Valpolicella Classico and of course a Recioto della Valpolicella Classico.  The last three wines are from partially dried grapes or have had some partial dried grapes added to the wines, giving them their distinct flavor.

I am so excited to show these wines around.

Domaine de Montille Buys Château de Puligny-Montrachet

I found out about this a few months ago at VinItaly as one of my producers there had just been to the domaine and chatting with Etienne had learned of the purchase.  But because it wasn't public yet and the deal wasn't signed, I wasn't able to talk about it.

This is big news.  Maybe not for the end consumer but to do a deal like this in this economic climate is pretty hard.  Chapeau to Etienne for making it happen.

And for all the champions of low alcohol, high acid, long lasting wines, it is only going to get better.

Read more about the deal at the link below:

http://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/id/47032

Etienne de Montille and his father, Hubert de Montille, making the "de Montille" face!

Francesco Cirelli and Michela Palazzo Adriano (of Agricola Cirelli) are married. Tanti Auguri!

The Wine Group tasting 06.26.12 . . . epic? Not so sure . . .

Nine wines from around the world (mostly France) all from 2000 and older.
2000 Goisot Sauvignon St. Bris "Fie` Gris"
1993 Domaine Michel Juillot Mercurey Rouge
1994 Domaine Michel Juillot Mercurey Blanc
1996 Paul Chapelle Puligny-Montrachet Champgain
1991 Chante Perdrix Saint Joseph
1999 Domaine de Fauterie Cornas
1995 Canoe Ridge Merlot Columbia Valley
1998 Goisot Cotes d'Auxerre Corps de Garde Bourgogne Blanc
1993 Domaine Hubert de Montille Bourgogne Rouge
19997 Ferreira Vintage Port (375 ml - not pictured)

Had the guys over to the house to taste through some old wines from Beaune Imports and wines that have been hanging around in the garage for years off and on and it was a hit and miss affair.  Two and maybe possibly three of the wines were corked, some more than others and of course no one could agree on which ones were corked but there was some definite effect of the cork on all the wines whether it was the musty cardboard of classic corked wines or if it was just the muted fruit, slightly off of mildly corked wines.  All I know is I am hoping and praying for a time when this can't happen to any wine, but it won't be in my lifetime, that's for sure.  Too many people stuck on tradition.

The highlights of the night:

1998 Goisot Cotes d'Auxerre Corps de Garde Bourgogne Blanc (100% Chardonnay): Clean with pale gold core out to a watery rim, clean in the nose with fresh granny smith apples and custard and lemon zest with flavors to match.  Creamy and textured in the mouth but no overt wood flavors and it finishes really long and persistent with tangy acidity.  Excellent

1991 Chante Perdrix Saint Joseph: Clear and bright with a medium ruby core out to an orange rim.  Spicy white pepper and smoked meat in the nose with hints of cranberry sauce.  Smoked meat and blueberry/boysenberry balsamic vinegar reduction in the mouth with super fine tannins.  Long, long finish with medium plus acidity, definitely what has kept this lovely wine alive.  Excellent.

Others in the group loved the 1999 Domaine de Fauterie Cornas and the Goisot Fie` Gris.  The Michel Juillot wines were over the hill be still interesting wines for what I am sure back then (and probably now) some really inexpensive off the beaten path Burgundy.  The Canoe Ridge was disjointed and not fun.  The Hubert de Montille 1993 Bourgogne opened up with time but was showing a definite cork issue.  The 19997 Ferreira had maybe stayed too long in the garage . . . . and the Paul Chapelle was corked.

A fun night.  The cheeses from the Cheese Store of Beverly Hills were delicious.  Five guys must have eaten about 3 lbs of  Selles sur Cher, Comte`, Ossau-Iraty and more thanks to Erik Kelley.

So the question: is it worth it to cellar wines for 15 to 25 years before drinking?  Obviously, there needs to be a good place to keep the wine (cool, dry, dark, slightly humid but not too much) and the quality of the wine needs to stand up to the test of time (lots of acidity is needed to last 20 years, folks, lots and lots of acidity), and lots of luck that you don't have crappy cork that effects the taste of the wine and lets in just the right amount of oxygen so the aging process can percolate along.  So I am not sure . . . after all these years in the business, if the rewards of long term cellaring outweigh the risks.

Enjoy.