Amarone and Shiraz for Asian Dinner

Amarone and Shiraz for Asian Dinner

For a gala business dinner in Rotterdam with our special business partner, they took us to a local favorite Malaysian restaurant.  I selected from the winelist two wines for the meal starting with a favorite 'go-to' wine, Shotfire Australian Shiraz, and a Amarone Volpolicella from Tedesci.

Following our tasting of a Zeni 1870 Amarone the previous evening, it was interesting and fun to explore this label, a similar wine from the same vintage, 2015 Tedeschi Amarone.

Saving this more complex and sophisticated wine for the entree courses, we started with this Thorne Clark Shotfire Shiraz as our opening wine.

Thorne Clark Barossa Valley Shotfire Shiraz 2016

The name Shotfire is derived from the history of ancestor and founder James Goddard who worked in the gold mines of Barossa during the gold rush of 1870 in the Lady Alice mine. Shotfire refers to the perilously dangerous activity of setting and lighting the explosive charges used to remove the aggregate from the mines.  

I call this a 'go-to' wine as it is a high QPR (quality price ratio) priced to be an everyday wine that is dependable and pleasantly easy drinking, yet it won't disappoint when serving to others.

Its the kind of wine to keep on hand for everyday drinking with cheeses, pasta, meats, BBQ or desserts. Tonight, it provided just such as a starter wine with our early courses that was enjoyed by all.

Dark garnet colored, full bodied, fruit forward, jammy sweet ripe black and red fruits with notes of mocha, vanilla and subtle oak with chewy tongue puckering tannins on the long finish.

RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2962204


Tedeschi Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2015

This wine is made from grapes harvested in various vineyards located on hills in the Valpolicella zone (Mezzane and Tregnago hills). Tedeschi use different sources and different grape varieties so as to produce "a well-balanced wine with the fine structure that only a few single areas in the Valpolicella zone can provide".

This label is a blend of  grape varieties; 35% Corvina, 35% Corvinone, 20% Rondinella, 10% Rossignola, Oseleta, Negrara, and Dindarella.

This was bright ruby red, medium full bodied with balanced and firmly structured bright notes of sweet raisiny character fruits of currants, blackberries and cherries with sprites of vanilla and earth tones with a slight tangy bitterness on the lingering persistent tannin laced finish.

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3171907

Zeni Amarone della Valpolicellas

Zeni Amarone della Valpolicellas

Fellow Pour Boys Ernie and Lyle and I helped host and serve at the Valpolicella Wines Trade & Media Tasting Event in Chicago last November, where we were called in to service to assist in setup and serving. At this event, the Consorzios of Valpolicella and Lugana also conducted a Masterclass seminar and tasting in addition to the exclusive trade tasting of these regions’ most exceptional recent vintages. 

There, I discovered Zeni Amarone della Valpolicella Barriques. I've been on the lookout for the label ever since.

So, I was excited to see the Zeni Amarone della Valpolicella Classico label on the winelist at the INUL8 Wine Bar in Rotterdam when out on the town with my EMEA roadshow team.

The Zeni family has been producing wines for four generations, dating back to 1870 in the area of Bardolino, Italy.

Fratelli Zeni manages about twenty hectares of its own vineyards located in the Bardolino hills. they also sources grapes from numerous local growers.

Fratelli Zeni produces the classical wines of the province of Verona; all are DOC wines : Bardolino classico, Bardolino Chiaretto classico, Soave classico, Custoza, Valpolicella classico, Amarone and Recioto.

The current proprietor Gaetano Zeni has invested in and updated the facilities and vineyards; cetnury-old wine barrels, new barrels of toasted wood, careful management of the vineyards, control of production, and updated technology all contribute to the quality and individuality of Fratelli Zeni wines.

Zeni 1870 Amarone della Valpolicella Barriques 2012

I discovered and tasted this label at the Valpolicella Wines Tasting Event in Chicago.

This was the most unique Amarone della Valpolicella I've ever tasted with its sweet spicy oak flavors infused into the wine from aging in for 12-24 months in French oak barriques. I loved it.

This label is a selection of the best grape bunches from the harvest from the hilly vineyards. The grapes are collected in small crates and left to raisin in order to achieve a high concentration of sugar, extracts, aromas and glycerine according to the Amarone custom and style the.raisining of the grapes lasts for 4 months followed by traditional skin fermentation and 20-25 days maceration, The juice is then aged in French oak barriques (large barrels) for 12-24 months adding the sweet spicy oak notes to the flavor and character of the aged wine.

This is a blend of 40% Corvina, 50% Corvinone, and 10% Rondinella. The final release has an alcohol content of 15.4% vol.,

This was Garnet colored, full bodied black berry and black raspberry fruits accented by sweet spicy toasted oak and notes of vanilla, tobacco leaf, tea an leather with supple lingering tannins on the lively finish.


RM 92 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3172937 


After a steak and beer dinner in Rotterdam we set out for an after dinner glass of wine and landed at 1NUL8 Wine Bar and Restaurant.

Having tasted the Zeni 1870 Amarone at the trade and industry tasting, I was captivated by this other Amarone from this producer and was eager to try it.


Zeni 1870 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2015

This is sourced from the Valpolicella Classica zone, the hilly band to the north of Verona with red-brown soil with limestone-marly and basaltic sediments. This is a blend of 60% Corvina, 20% Corvinone, and 10% Rondinella.

The grapes are harvested as the Amarone above, hand selection of the best grape bunches coming from hilly vineyards, the grape collected in small crates and left to raisin in order to achieve a high concentration of sugar, extracts, aromas and glycerine. The difference is that for the Classico, the  raisining of the grapes lasts 2-3 months followed by traditional skin fermentation and 15-20 days maceration, and the aging lasts in oak barrels for 2-3 years, depending on the vintage. the resulting wine is alcohol content  of14.8% vol.

Bright ruby red with a garnet red tinge, medium full bodied, bright vibrant notes of black berry and bing cherry accented with notes of vanilla and hints of cocoa and spices with tangy lingering tannins on the finish.


RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3064536

https://www.1nul8.nl/

https://www.zeni.it/en/

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2018/10/pour-boys-work-volpolicella-lugana.html

Italian Village Dinner features Amarone and Brunllo di Montalcina

Team Dinner at Italian Village features Amarone and Brunello di Montalcina

With my management team in town for planning meetings we ended the day with dinner at my usual host site, Italian Village.

As is customary, we dined in our usual private room so we could have an intimate working dinner. And. as usual, friend and Wine Director Jared Gelband selected a couple of ideal wines to complement our authentic Italian dinners.

Several of the group had the trio of vitello with three different preparations. I had my favorite, Veal Marsala entree with the brown mushroom sauce which is a perfect complement to the Amarone Volpolicella red wine.

For our starters and salad course had a Sangiovese based Brunello Di Montalcino from Caprili. As we moved to the entree course we drank an Amarone della Valpolicella from Giuseppe Lonardi.

Caprili Brunello di Montalcino 2013

I asked for a Sangiovese varietal wine which calls for Brunello di Montalcino. Jared served this Caprilli which paired well with our salad and  Anitposto courses.

Brunello di Montalcino is from the area surrounding the town of Montalcino which is located south of Florence in the Tuscany wine region. Brunello is the designation for wine produced with 100% Sangiovese varietal grape.

Since 1980, Brunello di Montalcino has been designated DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita) status, which refers to quality controls and guaranteed designation of origin. This is akin to the American AVA with regards to to place of origin, and the French AOC - Appellation Origin Controlee system which regulates quality. DOCG labelled wines are analyzed and tasted by government–licensed personnel before being bottled. To prevent later manipulation, DOCG wine bottles are sealed with a numbered governmental seal across the cap or cork.


This was garnet colored, medium bodied, lighter than I expected, slightly astringent with bright acidity, bright red fruits accented by notes of spice, minerals, leather dusty earthiness and hints of smoke with fine tannins on the lingering finish.

RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2607727
 

Giuseppe Lonardi Amarone della Valpolicella

Corte Lonardi is a small winery located in Marano, in the heart of Valpolicella. The owner, Silvia Lonardi is the daughter of founder and namesake Giuseppe Lonardi whose life was immersed in wine and cuisine, growing up in the vineyards and the family owned tavern.

Silvia’s great-grandfather Giuseppe, was a restaurateur, as was her grandfather Aldo. Giuseppe began producing wine in the early 80s with his friend and winemaker Roberto Ferrarini.

Today Silvia produces high-quality wines which reveal the terroir of the Valpolicella region and the soil of the Marano hills 1000 feet above sea level above the Marano di Valpolicella valley. Valpolicella is in the province of Verona, within the large Veneto region near Venice in northeastern Italy.

Amarone della Valpolicella, also known as Amarone for short, is a red wine blended from the Corvina (45–95%, of which up to 50% could be substituted with Corvinone), Rondinella (5–30%) and other approved red grape varieties (up to 25%). 

In Italian, the name Amarone literally means "the Great Bitter" which distinguished it from Recioto and Repasso wines produced in the same region, which tend to lighter and slightly sweeter in taste.

What distinguishes Amarone from other wines is that the grapes are partially dried for approximately  90 days before pressing, which results in higher degree of residual sweetness and lower acidity. The resulting wines allows long aging and have a distinctive flavor profile described as full, warm, velvety notes and notes of ripe fruit and woodland tones. Amarones are often consumed ten to fifteen years after harvest.

Volpolicella wines are designated DOCG status.

Giuseppe Lonardi Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG 2011

This was bright deep garnet colored, full rich concentrated ripe sweet red fruits accented by notes of leather and tobacco leaf with hints of forest on the firm but polished finish.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2114460

http://www.lonardivini.it/wines/?lang=en

http://www.italianvillage-chicago.com/

Pour Boys Serve Volpolicella Lugana MasterClass and Industry Tasting

Pour Boys Serve Volpolicella Lugana MasterClass and Industry Tasting

For the Valpolicella and Lugana Wines Trade & Media Tasting Event in Chicago, the 'Pour Boys' were called in to service to assist in setup and serving. This was extra special as the Consorzios of Valpolicella and Lugana also conducted a Masterclass seminar and tasting in addition to the exclusive trade tasting of these regions’ most exceptional recent vintages. 

The event was orchestrated and hosted by Balzac Communications from Napa, CA, who arrange and manage many industry events. It was held in the magnificent Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.) Hall, Rotunda, and Annex in the Chicago Cultural Center overlooking Michigan Avenue across from adjacent Grant Park. 

This was a smaller event than the gala Bordeaux events we've served in the past, most notably, the annual UGCB annual release tour (2018). (UGCB 2017), and the Grands Cru Classe St Emilion Producer's Chicago tasting event (2015). Those events featured 130+ and 28 producers respectively. 

While the Volpolicella Lugana tasting only featured 15 producers and a major distributor, it offered a Sommelier Master Class seminar that was oversubscribed to a full house with a waiting list and was very well received and highly regarded. Almost 300 members of the trade and press were pre-registered for the event.

Valpolicella is the viticultural area or appellation in the province of Verona, Italy, east of Lake Garda. It ranks just after Chianti in total Italian Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) wine production. It is known for red wines typically produced from three grape varieties: Corvina Veronese, Rondinella, and Molinara.

The Valpolicella region is colloquially called the "pearl of Verona". It is a popular rural vacation destination with its classic villas surrounded by estates with historic vineyards and wineries.

Valpolicella is best known for its premium wine, Amarone, a strong wine made from dried grapes.

Another most notable wine from the region is Valpolicella Ripasso, a form of Valpolicella Superiore made with partially dried grape skins that have been left over from the Amarone.

The Lugana region is the area to the east around Lake  Garda  and  its  surrounding  area. The “Lugana” Controlled Denomination of Origin (DOC) was established in 1967. Lugana DOC  wines are white wines made from the Trebbiana and Turbiana grapes. The Lugana was the first DOC in Lombardy and is one of the oldest in Italy.

The Lugana tasting was hosted by the Consorzio Tutela Lugana. The Consortium is the Lugana trade association that was established for the Safeguarding of Lugana  to supervise, protect and promote the qualities of the denomination and its wine.

The area is also known for Franciacorta, a sparkling wine from the Province of Brescia (Lombardy) with DOCG status produced from grapes grown within the boundaries of the territory of Franciacorta, on the hills located between the southern shore of Lake Iseo and the city of Brescia.

Wine producers represented serving/tasting wines:

• CA Mailol
• Cantina Bulgarini
• Cantine Riondo
• Domenico Fraccaroli
• Le Morette
• Malavasi Daniele
• Monte Cicogna
• Pilandro
• Sartori Di Verona
• Sgreva
• Villa San Carlo
• Zeni 1870

Volpolicella Wine Tasting:

• Ilatium
• Novaia
• Rino Sartori
• Sanit
• Vigneti Di Ettore

 Lugana Wine Tasting:

• Avanzi
• Borgo La Caccia
• Ca' Lojera
• Cadore Patrizia
• Cantina Di Castelnuovo
  
• Cascina Maddelena
• Casello Bondini
• Loda Umberto
• Marangona
• Montolonale
• Oselara 
• Ottella
• Pasini San Giovanni
• Perla Del Garda
• Pratello
• Rizzi
• Selva Capuzza
• Silenzi Di Terra
• Tenuta Roveglia
• Turina

www.consorziolugana.it

https://www.consorziolugana.it/lugana-home

Pour Boys - Ernie, Lyle, Rick