On Jan 11, 10:51�am, DaleW > wrote:
> Jay Miller (aka The Good Jay Miller, Jay "Pointless " Miller, Our Jay
> Miller, Jay "FruitsNotNeccesarilyAFlaw" Miller) organized and hosted a
> tasting of the wines of Montevertine last night (well, afternoon and
> night). A good crew of 8 gathered in Jersey City to taste through 18
> bottles, with examples of all of the Montevertine lineup, with
> vintages from 1978 to 2007 present. If you don't know the story of
> Sergio Manetti and Montevertine, the ultra-short version is this is an
> estate in Radda in Chianti. Back in the 60s/70s DOC rules required the
> use of white grapes (Malvasia and Trebbiano) along with Sangiovese and
> Canaiolo. Manetti chose to forego the Chianti designation rather than
> have to use white grapes he thought inferior. Since then, rules have
> changed and these could be labelled Chianti, but Montevertine decided
> to keep bottling as Toscano IGT or Vino de Tavolo.
>
> John and I made the long trek from Westchester to Jersey City on a
> cold day, arriving at Jay's apartment to find a nice spread of cured
> meats, and with the smell of gougeres and lamb welcoming us. As the
> crew gradually arrived, we enjoyed a couple of bottles of
> Montevertine's base bottling:
>
> 2007 Montevertine Pian del Ciampolo
> Pretty, lovely, clean, bright red fruits, a bit of spice. B/B+
>
> 2004 Montevertine Pian del Ciampolo
> Quieter, a slightly subdued nose, fuller bodied than 2007, nice. B
>
> It was easy to almost forget about these as their bigger, more
> "serious" brethren made the rounds, but I'd happily have on my table
> any day.
>
> Next up were the Montevertine/Montevertine Riservas. I had always
> thought these separate bottlings, but Greg (talk about someone who
> really knows Italian wines) says there's only one. I'm pretty sure
> I've had one without Riserva notation,but Greg says maybe they didn't
> use in weaker vintages. They used to pay a fine since they weren't DOC
> and weren't supposed to use Riserva, but with EU rules the fine got
> higher, so from now on just "Montevertine." We also tasted several of
> the Sodaccios, a separate vineyard on the estate.
>
> 2004 Montevertine (Toscano IGT)
> Well balanced, young, raspberries and earth. A bit of herb. Lovely
> wine in the making. B+/A-
>
> Somewhere about here we made our way to table. Jay had made a perfect
> leg of lamb along with nice cauliflower, accompanied by Scott's
> delicious potato gratin. Yum!
>
> 1990 Montevertine Il Sodaccio
> This was a minor pouring mistake, slightly out of order. I held this
> for a long time, checking occasionally while saving to taste with the
> other Il Sodaccio bottles.Sweet, soft, even lush, nice depth and
> length. I really quite enjoyed, though a retaste at end of evening was
> fading a bit. A-/B+ at peak.
>
> 1990 Montevertine Riserva
> You could really see the vintage here, with the softer acids and
> rounder feel. Still some tannins, lots of earth, the fruit doesn't
> have the freshness of its '88 flightmate. Still, drinking very well. B
> +
>
> 1988 Montevertine Riserva
> This was just drinking superbly. A little animal note on nose,
> focused, bright, black raspberries and cherries, long. Beautiful wine
> that holds well for hours. A/A-
>
> 1998 Montevertine Il Sodaccio
> Ripe, red and black fruits, good length, I think I liked a bit more
> than table. B+
>
> 1997 Montevertine Il Sodaccio
> Very sweet fruit, leather, tobacco. Held well and drank nicely at end.
> B+
>
> About here we took a short break to appreciate the amazing view from
> Jay's building's patio, with marina, Liberty park, the Statue of
> Liberty and VN bridge. Wait, it's cold as hell and wine awaiting! Back
> to the flagship wine, Pergole Torte:
>
> 2004 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte
> Young, fresh fruit (cherries and plums), lots of acid and some tannin,
> but balanced. Some herby (oregano) notes. B/B+
>
> 2001 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte
> Young, muscular but elegant, needs time. A-/B+
>
> ( the lamb kept reappearing, plus a nice cheese plate)
>
> 1999 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte
> My first note says "amazing if young." Fresh, bright, powerful,
> focused, complex and complete. Solid red fruits, leather, earth, hint
> of cigarbox. This has decades ahead of it but I really enjoy now. My
> WOTN (and I think table's by a good margin) . A
>
> 1998 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte
> Moderate acids, spicy, good length. B+
>
> 1997 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte
> Sweet ripe round black fruit, Greg says not very Sangiovese-ish, I say
> it's like a very tasty Merlot. A nice wine, but my least favorite of
> the sound PGs,and I think I preferred the 97 Il Sodaccio. B
>
> 1995 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte
> Dry (austere to some), still fairly tannic, black cherries and plum,
> tobacco, nice length. Needs time. A-/B+
>
> 1988 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte
> A little lifted note at first, that blows off, leaving a nice mature
> bottle of Sangiovese. Dried cherries, dark berry, leather, a hint of
> menthol. Nice, but the 88 Riserva was better for me this night. B/B+
>
> 1985 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte
> Smoke, ripe plummy fruit, a meaty note. This seemed soft and tired,
> and consensus was this might have seen some warm storage at some
> point. My least favorite of the night, but even so a B-
> (note this and the 78 didn't have the woman's picture on label. Greg
> says in 85 there was one bottle with woman's picture per case!)
>
> 1978 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte
> Black cherries, tobacco, cedar, excellent. Quite a good showing, A-
>
> What a lineup! Great consistency in my eyes through the years and
> different bottlings. My least favorite - a probably compromised
> bottle- still got a B-. Every other bottle I'd have happily enjoyed on
> my table (and probably scored a bit higher in isolation- told you I'm
> not consistent!). Good group of people, very enjoyable night. Thanks
> Jay for organizing, cooking, and hosting, and all for good company,
> good wines, good food.
>
> Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent
> wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't
> drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no
> promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.

Montevertine Le Pergole Torte has long been a favorite of mine and I
try to buy it every year but I haven't seen it locally in a while.
Thanks for the reminder!