Blind tasting notes (with a great rack of lamb dinner).

Theme – Italian

2007 Ca Rugate Monte Fiorentine Soave – I’ve had this several times,
but this bottle showed quite closed at first. It opened to begin to
show some nice smoky citrus in the nose, and decent fruit and length.
Atypical showing.

2004 Mastroberardino Greco di Tufo Novaserra – haven’t had this for a
year or so. Darker colour with a nice caramel note in the nose, nutty,
clean and fresh. No worries about this one being too old.

2001 Talenti Brunello – I have both reserve bottlings in this vintage
(Vigne del Paretaio and Pian di Conte) but was delighted to get to
taste the regular wine. Good colour, an earthy nose, very good
flavour concentration, drinking very well now but no rush.

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco Asili – I had opened this single
vineyard Barbaresco only shortly before serving and we had to give it
some time to open. It was light in colour, with brown edges and a
sweet nose of cherry, and had soft dusty tannin and lots of acidity,
ending elegant and medium long. Good now.

1997 Il Poggione Brunello – dark wine with a pure sweet fruit nose, it
had pretty good stuffing but surprisingly little tannin, ending with
some dark cherry. Nice, but not a long keeper.

2004 Talenti Rosso di Montalcino – black cherry with a salty edge to
the nose, soft tannin and ready to drink right now. Pleasant.

2001 Produttori del Barbaresco Ovello Riserva – good colour, another
earthy nose with hints of tar, it had a pretty tight middle and enough
tannin to carry for years. I think this one needs a few more years.

1997 Argiano Brunello – some spice and mellow fruit in this nose, the
wine a bit tight on palate with soft tannins, smooth, pleasant and
medium long. Not outstanding but decent.

2001 Fanti Brunello – by this time I was wondering where the heck the
Barolos had gone and why everyone seemed to have become a Brunello
fan! This wine has a spicy dark cherry nose with hints of anise, was
sweet in the mouth with lush fruit and excellent concentration, lush
and long with hints of pepper in the finish. This bottle was far
better than one I’d tasted a couple of years ago. Weighty new world
approach.

2000 Mastroberardino Taurasi Radici – good earthy nose sweet, with
furry tannins on the tongue, but once you got into the middle, falling
off and perhaps nearing the end of it’s useful life? Damn! I still
have 2 or 3 in my cellar. Hope they have fared better than this
bottle!
Quinta do Vale D. Maria Sarzedhino Reserve Port Lot 01 (bottled 2003)
– this struck me as a ruby Port at first, albeit a classy one. Dark,
with a perfumed sweet nose, a soft sweet middle, and mellow tannins,
pleasant. Thanks Cristiano! Trodden by foot in lagares and aged in
wooden vats. Not sure if it has the stuffing for really long haul but
very nice right now.