Tasting Notes

The tasting this week marked the one year anniversary of the Wine Warehouse in our area. Wines from South Australia and Italy were both featured.

Pino & Toi 2005
60% Tocai, 25% Pinot Bianco and 15% Pinot Grigio. A super crisp white with loads of peach and pear. Quite pleasant but not extraordinary, the $10 price tag was even better.

Heartland Viognier/Pinot Gris
What a rare blend! This was wonderful with lots of full flavors of melon and pear. I don't think I've ever tasted such a complex white before. The finish was lovely after it danced on your palate layer after layer

Almondo Roero "Sparse" Arneis 2004
This one we liked the least. It was the most mineral of the three whites with flavors of citrus peel, peach, and apricot. The low $10 price tag made it more desirable.

Heartland Cabernet Sauvignon 2004
Another Heartland wine from South Australia winemaker Ben Glaetzer. Glaetzer was voted winemaker of the year this year by Robert Parker. Excellent on the nose and wonderfully minty on the finish. Velvety tannins with dense blackberry and cassis flavors. Another bargain and truly excellent.

Heartland Shiraz 2004
At the tasting I found this wine to be extra, super spicy and lovely. When we took it home, got the right temperatures and tasted it last night it was even better, with a perfect balance of spice, chocolate, and fruit. This is quite possibly the best Shiraz I've tasted (dare I say it!). For under $20 each, this and the Cab are a must buy.

Barbera d'Alba 2004
The first of the Italian reds from the Piedmont region produced by Bruno Giacosa. This one was 100% Barbera d'Albe which I had never tasted before. Because of that, I found this to be unlike any wine I've tasted before. With an excellent balance of flavors and a nice finish, I enjoyed my first Barbera experience. For $25 though I was reluctant to give in to it.

Dolcetto d'Alba 2005
All of the Bruno Giacosa wines have been rated 93 which I could probably appreciate after tasting the Barbera but after tasting the Dolcetto I was confused. This it described as 'the little sweet one' with rich grape and spice. I couldn't see it. Sure I'm no wine connoisseur but this one I found rather plain, and so did my other friends tasting it. A good nose is about all I could give it -- weak on the palate and even weaker on the finish.

Nebbiolo d'Alba 2004
All of these wines had rich colors and this one was particularly violet in color. Nice and fruity on the nose but overall still pretty unimpressive for a 93 rating. These last three Italian wines are probably best as food wines. I would much rather enjoy them with food than in the tasting setting.

After the tasting, Amber so graciously made the five of us dinner -- a wonderful tapas style post-tasting treat of fried plantain latkas and buffalo empanadas. We enjoyed the Heartland Cab with these tasty treats.