Spectacular Wine Flight highlights Etta Restaurant Dinner

Spectacular Wine Flight highlights Etta Restaurant Dinner

Our hosts Mike and son Matt

Friend Mike D flew in from NYC to host a special wine dinner and brought a spectacular wine flight for the occasion. He generously featured a few of his favorites as well as some extraordinary premier labels representing the best of the best of their varietal or appellations and vintages.

This dinner follows an earlier gathering of this group when colleague Matt hosted a dinner with Chef Zubair Mohajir who prepared a Wazwan Supper Club dinner.

Tonight's dinner was held at Etta neighborhood restaurant in trendy Bucktown Wicker Park on the near northwest side of Chicago, one of the hottest new venues in the City.

Etta is the latest sensation of Danny Grant who earned two Michelin stars for RIA Restaurant and who also overseas popular Maple & Ash steakhouse on Chicago's Gold Coast.

“For the Table”

Etta is rustic, bright and lively with large windows and an open patio deck upstairs. The main ground floor dining room is centered around a wood-fired hearth serving wood-fired pizzas, six different house-made pastas, and salads all featuring farm fresh ingredients from locavores across the region, served in their “For the Table” family style.

For the dinner, Mike selected a special menu to accompany and complement the spectacular wine flight featuring a selection of the finest labels from some of the best vintages from a range of old world and new world regions, that he brought from his cellar for the occasion.

The Etta staff provided superb attentive, professional wine service of the BYOB wine
flight.

Mike D's wine flight for the occasion

 The menu and wine pairing selections:

First Course  

Marinated hamachi crudo with sesame, citron-chile vinaigrette and cilantro

Bubbling shrimp with ginger, chiltepin chile, smoked tomato and mint

Bubbling Shrimp

Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill Champagne 2006

 

 

Second Course

Etta chopped with hearth smoked salmon, oak leaf, green goddess,
stracciatella, everything bagel spice, avocado, grains & seeds

Jean-Louis Chavy Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Perrières 2015  

Third Course

Spicy meatballs with "Sunday sauce", pecorino on a bed of hearth bread

Rigatoni with lamb ragout, olives, calabrian chili and pecorino

Bucatini cacio e pepe

Giuseppe Quintarelli Rosso del Bepi
Veneto IGT Corvina Blend 2002

Soldera (Az. Agr. Case Basse)
Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Sangiovese 2004

Fourth Course 

Hearth glazed lamb, fall spices, pickled turnips, mustard greens, yogurt

Grilled dry-aged ribeye, roasted caulilini, confit garlic, chimichurri, jus

Château Mouton Rothschild
Pauillac Bordeaux 2000

Bryant Family Vineyards
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

 Penfolds Grange (Hermitage)
Shiraz/Syrah Blend 2005 

Glazed Lamb and Big Reds flight

Dessert Course

Aya's chocolate sabayon tart with vanilla bean ice cream

Château d'Yquem
Sauterne Sémillon-Sauvignon Blanc Blend 1990 

Tom R and buddy, Owner/proprietor
checking out special menu and wine flight

The Etta proprietor/owner checked in on us and our special menu selection and joined us for a taste of some of our premier labels.

The flight shown below featured a selection of the finest labels from some of the best vintages from a range of old world and new world regions.

Rick Wine Note and Comments:

Pol Roger "Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill" Brut Champagne 2006 

This is a classic special labeling, made only in the very best vintages, from this legendary Champagne house. This label is a blend that is predominantly Pinot Noir, as preferred by the label namesake, Sir Winston Churchill, the exact blend is a closely guarded family secret.

This vintage release got 98 points from Wine Enthusiast, 95 points from Wine Spectator's James Suckling and Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 

Readers of these pages know, while I love Champagne, I do not represent to have a discriminating palette for such, hence I defer to the pundits on such tastings. Robert Parker wrote about this label, "Very clear, precise, ripe and complex bouquet with fruity and refreshingly chalky, nutty and brioche notes. Full-bodied and complex on the palate, the 2006 is supple, round and rich but also fine, elegant, fresh and well structured. It has a harmonious yet tight, persistent and very promising finish that puts this silky textured,  with rich and expressive flavors of peach tart, raspberry sorbet, candied ginger and orange peel, and sleek acidity that leaves a mouthwatering impression on the satiny finish."
 
92 points from Wine & Spirit - "A classical style of grande marque Champagne, Pol Roger’s tête de cuvée has seamless elegance and clarity of fresh citrus flavor. Rather than minerality and ripe fruit, it’s more about airy fragrance and spicy lemon zest, firm and cool."


Jean-Louis Chavy Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Perrières 2015  

Giuseppe Quintarelli Rosso del Bepi Veneto IGT Corvina Blend 2002 

Rosso del Bepi is named after Valpolicella founding father Giuseppe Quintarelli. The 2002 Rosso del Bepi was a declassified release of their legendary Amarone yet showed the Quintarelli signatures, according to Vinous Anthony Gallous.

This was imported by the legendary Kermit Lynch who brought Loire Valley and many other French wines to America. This is the first non-French label I've seen from them.

Dark garnet color, medium full bodied, more approachable than a fully classified vintage Amarone, never-the-less big, bold, deep and complex yet nicely integrated and balanced black cherry fuits with notes of prune, earth, spice, tobacco leaf, hints of cigar box and vanilla.

RM 90 points.

Soldera (Az. Agr. Case Basse) Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Sangiovese 2004

 

Mike cited this as his absolute favorite or one of this favorite wines. Anthony Gallon of Vinous gave this 97 points and wrote in his review of this wine, "Soldera’s 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva is just as beautiful as it has always been. Super-refined and finessed, the 2004 is one of the most aristocratic, nuanced wines Soldera has made over the last four decades. I imagine the 2004 will reward readers with several decades of exceptional drinking. It is of course quite young today, but all the elements are so balanced, the wine is pretty much impossible to resist." (AG) 1/2015.

I love Sangiovese, especially with zesty Italian pasta dishes with cheese and bolognese sauces. Unfortunately, this was served with the Spicy meatballs with "Sunday sauce" that was very bold and aggressive and overpowered my pallet and this wine. Thankfully, I begged off finishing the course to save my discernment for the rest of the wine flight. I may tolerate big over the top bold assertive wines, but I'm a wimp when it comes of pepper spices.

Cellartracker consensus score for this wine is 95.2 - high praise, indeed.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=939979

Château Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Bordeaux 2000 

A classic First Growth Bordeaux from a classic vintage. Mouton Rothschild of course are known for their artist labels, each vintage release adorning a customized label featuring art from a renowned artist - even the empty bottles are collectors items!  I have a Mouton  Rothschild Artist Series Label Library page devoted to the subject. The 2000 vintage release replaced the painted label with an enamelled illustration of the gold-encrusted Augsburg Ram from the Chateau’s own Museum of Wine in Art. 

This release was awarded 97 points by Wine Enthusiast, 96 points by  Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 95 points by Vinous and Wine & Spirits, 94 points by Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, 93 points James Suckling and Wine Spectator.


Dark blackish ruby garnet colored, medium full bodied, complex but balanced and polished with black fruits accented by smoky cedar, violet, kirsch, coffee and notes of mocha, floral, spice and oak with elegant silky tannins on the lingering finish. 
 .
This is a blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot and while balanced, polished and elegant has firm full tannins that should provide graceful aging for fifty years. 

RM 94 points.

Bryant Family Vineyards Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 

Another classic label, from Napa Valley, Bryant Family Vineyards from Pritchard Hill, in the neighborhood of exclusive legendary cult-producers Harlan, Screaming Eagle and Colgin, and more earthly yet respectable premium labels David Arthur and Del Dotto's newest ultra-premium brand and label from their new property Villa Del Lago.

This 2009 Bryant Family release got 97-98 points from Wine Spectator's James Suckling, 97 points from Vinous, and
96 points from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, Wine Enthusiast and Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, and 95 points from Wine Spectator. (I share these metrics because many of us find our preferences align with certain reviews and it provides a good basis of comparison). 

Robert Parker cited this is a candidate for 'wine of the vintage'. Wine Spectator cited it a "Cellar Selection" as a notable Collectable.

Dark garnet colored, full bodied, rich concentrated and powerful yet elegant and polished with nicely balanced and integrated bright vibrant blackberry, plum and black currant fruits with tones of spice, oak, mocha, expresso and hints of cassis and cedar turning to a firm but silky smooth long lingering finish. 

RM 96 points.  

For all the pomp and fist pumping through the flight, while some of the other wines were more complex, or richer or more concentrated fruit, this had the best balance of complexity and pure enjoyment of bold vibrant flavors, my favorite of the evening! Not surprising perhaps that California Napa Cabernets represent the largest holding in our cellar.

Penfolds Grange (Hermitage) Shiraz/Syrah Blend 2005  

It is always a treat and special pleasure to taste Penfolds Grange. In the photo above of flight of the Big Reds above, this one is on the right, based on tasting order of lightest to heaviest, most concentrated wines. I suggested that tasting order and it proved to be correct, being the biggest and most concentrated, complex of the Big Red portion of the tasting flight. This is a style we love and hold much of in our cellar. Its a bit over the top for some, but a style we favor.

Penfolds Grange is the 'First Growth' wine of Australia if there was such as designation. Penfolds Grange has been Australia's classic premium label going back to the 1950s, it is highly sought after by collectors. It has been listed as a "Heritage Icon of South Australia."

 One of my prized holdings in my wine cellar is a OWC (Original Wood Case) of this label from the 1990 vintage, designated Wine of the Year by Wine Spectator, and birthyear of son Alec. I still remember picking that case up at Berry Brothers & Rudd wineshop in London and carrying it back on the plane! So it was back in the day!

Another fond memory of this wine was tasting it with Penfolds Grange Global Ambassador, DLynn Proctor. What fun to meet DLynn in person having enjoyed watching his pursuit of his Master Sommelier Certification in the entertaining documentary movie SOMM which is a feature on Netflix. What irony that I read recently that DLynn is now Wine Director for Fantesca Winery in Napa, one of our favorite collectables.

Folks that have followed this wine over the decades still refer to it as "Hermitage", a moniker if carried from the early years till it was dropped in the early nineties.

This release was awarded 97 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator, and 96 points by James Halliday.  

This vintage release is a blend of 4% Cabernet Sauvignon highlighting the Syrah, aka Shiraz fruit, 85% of which is from the Barossa region of South Central Australia with the remaining proportions coming from McLaren Vale and Coonawarra.

Dark inky garnet colored, rich concentrated, full bodied, Wine Spectator describes the nose as "a bit animal with some smoked game, mincemeat and bacon notes'. The fruit is ripe blackberry and black currant with a hint of blueberry with notes of tar, coffee, earth, black truffles, anise and hints of pepper and spice on the long finish of fine grain nicelly integrated tannins and crisp acidity.

RM 95 points.

Château d'Yquem Sauterne Sémillon-Sauvignon Blanc Blend 1990  

This Classic First Growth Bordeaux dessert wine is pure nector in a glass. From the historic 1990 'vintage of the century' that was provided no less than three Wine Spectator 'Wines of the Year' (1992,93,94).

This vintage release was awarded 99 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 96 pointsby Wine Advocate's Neal Martin, and 95 points by Wine Spectator and 94 points by Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar.

Parker wrote that this "is one of the richest Yquems I have ever tasted, with 50-100 years of potential longevity. An awesome Yquem! Anticipated maturity: 2003-2050+"

Medium gold honey colored, full bodied, unctuous, concentrated and layered but superbly balanced and elegant, spice, honey and dried orange peel aromas. flavors of caramel, toffee, honey with smokey notes. extraordinary sweetness cut by harmonious acidity on the long finish that lingers for a minute or more.

RM 94 points.

Piazza Del Dotto Sangiovese

Piazza Del Dotto Sangiovese

Piazza Del Dotto Sangiovese for Last Minute Weekend Italian Dinner

For the second time in three days we had a commercial airline flight canceled so we brought son Alec back home from the airport instead of seeing him off. We headed to Angelis Italian, our favorite neighborhood trattoria for dinner in light of our disrupted evening. We stopped at home and picked up a bottle of Del Dotto Sangiovese to take BYOB to pair with the Italian cuisine.

We tasted and acquired this wine during or Piazza Winery Delicacies Wine and Food Tasting Experience during our Napa Valley Wine Experience 2018. We had previously tasted and acquired the 2015 release a year earlier at our Napa Valley Del Dotto Estate Cave Tour and Barrel Tasting in 2017.

As we have written in recent tasting reviews of wine acquired during this Estate visit, this label is from Piazza Del Dotto, Del Dotto's newest project, a new winery south on St Helena Highway featuring an Italian-inspired “barchessa,” or barn, magnificently appointed with tasting rooms and dining areas. It is surrounded by fountain gardens with al fresco tasting cabanas, vegetable gardens, 17^th century fountains and an outdoor barn with turkeys, peacocks, pheasants and doves. There are wine caves as well, all surrounded by 8.5 acres of cabernet sauvignon vineyards.

Piazza Del Dotto Sangiovese 2016 

This is Estate grown fruit, I believe from the Rutherford vineyards that surround the Venetian Estate Winery & Caves, the site for the Del Dotto cave tours and barrel tastings.

This was an ideal complement to Alec's Chicken Jardinara and my Pasta and Peas with Angeli's Vodka Cream sauce. 

This was ruby colored medium full bodied, delicious sweet ripe raspberry fruits accented by notes of vanilla and almond with supple smooth silky tannins on the lingering finish.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3038663

http://www.deldottovineyards.com/ 

Piazza Del Dotto Sangiovese

Piazza Del Dotto Sangiovese for Holiday Birthday Italian Dinner

We took dear friend Marlene U to dinner to celebrate the holidays and her birthday at Angelis Italian, our favorite neighborhood trattoria. For the occasion we took a Del Dotto Sangiovese to pair with the Italian cuisine.

We tasted and acquired this wine during or Piazza Winery Delicacies Wine and Food Tasting Experience during our Napa Valley Wine Experience 2018. We had previously tasted and acquired the 2015 release a year earlier at our Napa Valley Del Dotto Estate Cave Tour and Barrel Tasting in 2017.

This label is from Piazza Del Dotto, Del Dotto's newest project, a new winery south on St Helena Highway featuring an Italian-inspired “barchessa,” or barn, magnificently appointed with tasting rooms and dining areas. It is surrounded by fountain gardens with al fresco tasting cabanas, vegetable gardens, 17^th century fountains and an outdoor barn with turkeys, peacocks, pheasants and doves. There are wine caves as well, all surrounded by 8.5 acres of cabernet sauvignon vineyards.

Piazza Del Dotto Sangiovese 2016 

This is Estate grown fruit, I believe from the Rutherford vineyards that surround the Venetian Estate Winery & Caves, the site for the Del Dotto cave tours and barrel tastings.

This was an ideal complement to the tangy tomato sauces with our pasta dishes.

This was ruby colored medium full bodied, delicious sweet ripe raspberry fruits accented by notes of vanilla and almond with supple smooth silky tannins on the lingering finish.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3038663

http://www.deldottovineyards.com/ 

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/

Del Dotto Sangiovese and Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve for Angelis Italian Dinner

Del Dotto Sangiovese and Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve for Angelis Italian Dinner

Winding down the holiday weekend, we dined at Angeli's Italian, our favorite neighborhood trattoria. For Italian dining, we took two Del Dotto Sangiovese based wines, Del Dotto Sangiovese and Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve Sangiovese blend. This was a replay of our Sangiovese Italian dinner the day before when we did a Sangiovese and a Sangiovese based blend.

Del Dotto Napa Valley Sangiovese 1998

I wrote yesterday in these pages about Del Dotto Sangiovese. This is the last of our bottles of this label from this era. I've written often about the 1998 Napa vintage releases, how they were panned by the media and pundits as an off vintage, yet they proved to impress and over-perform with pleasurable drinking, even two decades later. The 1998 vintage was overshadowed by the 1997 and 1999, which in retrospect were over-hyped and over-rated. For years, the 1998 has proven to be the top performer for a go-to wine.

Tonight, at twenty years, this 1998 release was holding its own very nicely and showed no signs of diminution from age, whatsoever. This, despite having a partially saturated cork that came apart on removal.

According to Cellartracker, this was the first release of this label. My last tasting note was nine years ago in 2009, the last of nearly a dozen. Interesting that tonight's tasting was consistent with that report:

"Medium bodied, flavorful black cherry, black berry, and currant fruits, with notes of cedar and floral. Getting down to the end of a case and this one definitely more vibrant than earlier tastings. Earlier leather and earthiness gave way to the lively floral and cedar - perhaps age served it well?'

That night I have it a better rating than my previous review a year earlier when I wrote, "Del Dotto's first release of a 100% Sangiovese, grown on the mountains of Calistoga in Napa Valley. Medium bodied, fruity nose with a smoky slightly earthy floral flavor - chunky fruity wine."

RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=48662


Del Dotto Giovani's Tuscan Reserve Napa Valley Sangiovese Blend 2002

From my earlier blogpost on this wine. Tonight's tasting was consistent with this earlier experience.

We have about a decade of vintages in our horizontal collection of this label. I've written about Nils Venge and Del Dotto and their venturing into the Italian Sangiovese varietal in Napa Valley. Del Dottto were the featured wine producer of several of our Napa Valley Wine Experiences during the mid to late nineties and after the millenium.

This Sangiovese based blend is named after the Del Dotto's first born son, Giovanni. I remember first discovering this wine and buying it at the Wine Stop wine shop in Burlingame near SFO back in the mid-nineties, and then obtaining more from the producer over the years. I recall the early releases of this label came in 500ml bottles rather than normal 750's.

Del Dotto remain one of our favorite Napa producers whose wines from their early days continue to impress with their longevity and endurance. True to that style, there remains much life in this twelve year old.

This 2002 is a blend of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon and exhibits dark garnet color, medium to full body with the full forward, complex tight black fruits masked by tones of smoke and charcoal before giving way to aromatic floral and bright tangy black cherry fruits with spicy, firm tannins on the aromatic, lingering finish.

RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=289974&searchId=17744031

http://www.deldottovineyards.com/

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2014/11/del-dotto-giovanis-tuscan-reserve.html

Del Dotto Sangiovese for Family Lasagna Dinner

Del Dotto Sangiovese for Family Lasagna Dinner

With the family gathered for the Holiday weekend, Linda prepared baked Lasagna for a gala dinner and I pulled from the cellar two Italian varietal Sangiovese based wines - Del Dotto Piazza Sangiovese and David Arthur Merritaggio. The comparison illustrated contrasting styles and profiles of two wines based on the same core.

Del Dotto is a family favorite paying tribute to the close knit family there, and our family having 'grown up' with the brand over the years, and many of us having visited Del Dotto during our many visits to Napa Valley.

Del Dotto Napa Valley Sangiovese 1998 - 2016

I have written often in these pages about Del Dotto pioneering Sangiovese in Napa Valley back in the late nineties under the collaboration with legendary winemaker Nils Venge. Del Dotto continues their lineage of Sangiovese wines with this offering under the Piazza label, the recent addition to the growing list of Del Dotto brands.

We discovered the Piazza brand during our Del Dotto Estate Cave Tour and Tasting during our Napa Valley Wine Experience in 2017. We then targeted the just opened Piazza Winery Delicacies Wine and Food Tasting Experience during our Napa Valley Wine Experience 2018. It was the highlight of our entire Napa trip. We tasted and acquired this 2015 release during our Cave Tour tasting.

For the record and for reference for anyone tracking such details, the Cellartracker dossier, our inventory management system and normally reliable reference guide, is confused and misguided on this wine. It contains two references to this wine, both partially right and wrong. It lists the wine twice, Del Dotto Piazza Sangiovese and Del Dotto Sangiovese Piazza. For the first, it lists vintages 1999, 2003 (wrong) and 2013, '15 and 2016 (correct). For the latter it correctly lists 2013, '14, '15 and 2016, and errantly lists 1998 and 2003.

Del Dotto offered Napa Valley Sangiovese under the historic flagship 'David' label (shown right) from 1998 through 2003 and also appeared as Rutherford Estate Sangiovese 2013. (The 1998 label is shown here. The 1999 label calls it St Helena Sangiovese. We tasted and acquired these wine during our Del Dotto Napa Estate visit and Del Dotto Wine Producer Dinner back in 1999, and again at our Napa Wine Experience in 2003.

Del Dotto then offered Del Dotto Napa Valley Cave Blend Sangiovese under the Cave Blend brand from 2004 through 2016. I believe Cellartracker references to this label from 2001 are in error and should refer to the 'David' branding. There is no photo evidence of this (Cave Blend 2001) label in the Cellartracker library or in internet searches.

The Piazza brand appeared with the 2013 release and continues to this day.

Del Dotto Vineyards was established in 1990 when David and Yolanda Del Dotto planted vineyards on 17 acres in Rutherford at the homestead Estate on the corner of Highway 29 and Zinfandel Lane in Napa Valley. It truly is a family affair with David's father John being involved in the early days, and daughter Desiree and son Giovanni being involved in the business and having their own labels as well. I had the pleasure of meeting John back in the late nineties and working with Desiree as she took on marketing duties during that era.

Rick and Linda with David Del Dotto circa 2003

The Del Dotto first release vintage was 1993. Since then the estate has grown significantly to 437 acres of vineyards producing 8,000-12,000 cases annually. Around 2010, the Del Dotto brand expanded further with the release of Villa Del Lago, an ultra-premium label from Pritchard Hill.

Indeed, Del Dotto is one of the largest holdings in our cellar dating back to the inaugural vintage release back in 1993. Our association with Del Dotto dates back to our Napa Wine Experiences and wine producer and winemaker dinners back in the mid-nineties.




Del Dotto Piazza Napa Valley Sangiovese 2015

This was delicious and everyone loved it making me wish I had more than the single case we acquired last year. I'll be looking for more.

We tasted and acquired this wine during our Del Dotto Estate Cave Tour and Tasting last year. Our first recorded tasting note was just three months ago when we took it took it BYOB to our favorite neighborhood Italian Trattoria, Angelis Italian. Tonight's tasting experience was consistent with my notes from that evening (caution about the color and slight opaqueness aside, which was not present tonight.)

My notes from previous tasting three months ago. "This was dark garnet colored ((with a slight grayish hue that signaled caution but the wine was fine, we'll monitor the next bottle (s) with interest to see if this is an early warning of trouble ahead) (as noted, this was not present tonight)); medium full bodied, this was delicious with sweet ripe raspberry fruits accented by notes of vanilla and almond with supple smooth silky tannins on the lingering finish.


RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2579868

http://www.deldottovineyards.com/

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2018/08/del-dotto-piazza-sangiovese-at-angelis.html

We also opened this second wine, a Sangiovese based blend.

David Arthur Napa Valley Meritaggio 2003

David Arthur is typically known for premium Estate Cabernet Sauvignon sourced from vineyards on Pritchard Hill overlooking southeast Napa Valley. We visited the winery during our Napa Valley Wine Experience in 2013.

This is a serious wine with fun name - Meritaggio is a play on the word Meritage - a US trademarked moniker for a Bordeaux Blend - a red blend of Bordeaux varietals. This is a rendition of a Sangiovese based Bordeaux style blend, with fruit sourced from Napa Valley. As such, this was more complex than the single varietal Sangiovese, and more akin to the traditional Italian Sangiovese based wines - more earthy - leathery and a touch of cedar. This exceeded expectations with vibrant bright flavored dark and red berry fruits with layers of complementary flavors. Complex and sophisticated but easy drinking wine.

Dark garnet color - full bodied - bright, vibrant, rich, mouthful of black raspberry, currant, ripe plum, layer of anise and hint of spice, smoke, cedar and leather with nicely integrated fine tannins.

RM 93 points.

http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=85665

Del Dotto Piazza Sangiovese at Angelis Italian Anniversary Dinner

Del Dotto Piazza Sangiovese BYOB at Angelis Italian Anniversary Dinner

We celebrated our anniversary with dinner at our local neighborhood trattoria, Angelis Italian. Deliberating on wine I select I considered Caymus Cabernet which I've written about in these pages, that shares the same anniversary year and started commemorating such in their new packaging a couple years ago.

I opted, instead for this Del Dotto Piazza Sangiovese in remembrance of our tasting experience there during our recent Napa Valley Wine Experience (2018), (shown right), which was the highlight of our trip, coupled with the fact our Caymus experience was one of the lowlights! Our server checked the wine on offer and determined it was the same vintage that drank last year at our anniversary dinner so we stayed with our BYOB choice. Had it been the most recent incremental release we would have chosen the latest #44 Caymus label.

Regretably, our dinner was not up to normal standards at Angelis casting a bit of a pall over the evening. Following my dinner at Italian Village
earlier this week, I was eager to try the Veal Marsala wine sauce as it was the highlight of that dinner and I was looking to compare and recapture that wine entree combination.

Firstly our server lost track of our orders and we got lost in the cadence of the courses. When our entrees finally arrived, my veal plate was completely void of sauce. The explanation was that it must have been absorbed by the pasta. I asked for a dish of accompanying sauce which arrived to reveal a thin watery broth instead of the rich gravy like sauce served by Italian Village (shown pictured as part of trio of medallions of veal including the Marsala and Piccata).

Worse, Linda's entree selection was also a disappointment, the Salmon with Avocado relish Special was completely overpowered being saturated with olive oil. Upon re-plating, pouring off the Olive Oil, the entree was much more enjoyable.

Despite it all, the Del Dotto Piazza Sangiovese was spectacular and was the highlight of the dinner.

Del Dotto Piazza Napa Valley Sangiovese 2015

We tasted and acquired this wine during our Del Dotto Estate Winery Cave Tour and Tasting last year. This prompted me to check my records which indicate we also tasted this in the 2106 vintage during our recent Del Dotto Piazza tasting at which we acquired that vintage as well.

This was dark garnet colored with a slight grayish hue that signaled caution but the wine was fine, we'll monitor the next bottle (s) with interest to see if this is an early warning of trouble ahead; medium full bodied, this was delicious with sweet ripe raspberry fruits accented by notes of vanilla and almond with supple smooth silky tannins on the lingering finish.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2579868

www.deldottovineyards.com/

Italian Village Chicago for Reliable Business Wine and Dine Experience

Italian Village Chicago for Reliable Business Wine and Dine Experience

For an important business partner dinner, we hosted dinner at our reliable go-to venue, Italian Village in Chicago. The Village has three different restaurants, each with its own kitchen and chef, each with its own ambiance and personality.

We dined in the 'Village' dining room upstairs at our regular table where our group selected six different entrees and all were excellent. We traversed a flight of three different Italian wines that perfectly complemented the courses of our dinner.

 Carpineto Poggio Sant' Enrico Toscana IGT Sangiovese 1999

At nineteen years of age, this is at the apex of its drinking window but not likely to improve with further cellaring, rather more likely to start to diminish from here forward. Great starting wine with our caprese and starters, dark, deep, blackish-ruby colored, full bodied with firm backbone of bold, intense black berry and ripe plum fruits, notes of black pepper, hints of smoke, leather and subtle vanilla with a long lingering supple tannin finish.

RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=101164
 

Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino Sangiovese 2012 

For the salad courses, this was slightly lighter and more approachable for pleasant drinking, especially for those less feint at heart for big robust wines. This was dark garnet colored, subdued fruits of black cherry and black berry fruits accented by earthiness and tones of tobacco and brown spices with moderate tannins on the well behaved finish.

RM 90

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2631507

 Paolo Scavino Barolo Monvigliero Nebbiolo 2008

This was an ideal finishing wine as it was quite expressive and vibrant. Bright dark garnet colored, full bodied, forward bright lively forward red berry fruits that jumped from the glass and excited the tongue, turning to full firm but manageable tannins with bright tangy acidity that projected the berry fruits on a long expressive full finish.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1315282

Normally, we'd meet and be attended to by good friend and Wine Director Jared Gelband who oversees the massive 15,000 bottle wine cellar that serves all three restaurants of Italian Village. Tonight he was consumed attending to a large party of forty in the Vivere wine dining restaurant to whom he served a selection of ten different wines (shown below).

https://italianvillage-chicago.com/

Prodigo Riserva Sangiovese di Romagna DOC 2013

Prodigo Riserva Sangiovese di Romagna DOC 2013

For casual midweek, holiday eve dining at our favorite neighborhood trattoria, Angelis' Italian, we normally do BYOB but tonight ordered their Tuesday Night Wine Special, this Prodigo Riserva Sangiovese di Romagna DOC.

Decent QPR (quality price ratio) in this casual everyday sipper ... 100% Sangiovese - garnet colored, medium bodied, red cherry fruits with notes of smoke, tar, wood and spice on a modest finish. Best with some tangy Italian sauces with pasta or Italian sausage.

RM 85 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2470300

http://www.angeliscatering.com/
 

Del Dotto Napa Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve 2002

Del Dotto Napa Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve Sangiovese Blend 2002 at Angeli's Italian Trattoria

For casual Saturday evening dining on the patio at our favorite local Italian Trattoria, Angeli's Italian in Naperville. I took this Del Dotto Vineyards Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve Sangiovese Blend. Our visit to Del Dotto and our private Cave Tour Tasting at the winery in St Helena was one of the highlights of our 2017 Napa Wine Experience. We've been collecting Del Dotto Napa Valley wines since their inaugural release in 1994 and hold a dozen various cases of their labels across twenty vintages.

This label is a unique blend of  blend of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon. It is named for Giovanni Del Dotto, son of proprietors Dave and Yolanda.

We hold vintages of this label back to what we believe is its inaugural release in 1996. This 2002 release is by the best version of this label I have tasted, being more complex, more polished, sophisticated, yet harmonious than my recollection of any release. Not surprisingly, it is also the sweetest variant of this label I can recall as well, which is much to my liking.

This was a perfect compliment to my two entrees, Italian Sausage and Peppers, and my Cheese Ravioli with Bolognese sauce (shown below).

This tasting exceeded earlier tastings, more complex, smoother and more harmonious; dark garnet color, medium to full body with the full forward, complex tight black berry fruits masked accented by hints of sweet mocha and caramel, with notes of smoke and charcoal before giving way to aromatic floral and bright tangy black cherry fruits with spicy, firm tannins on the aromatic, lingering finish.

RM 92 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=289974

http://www.deldottovineyards.com/

Del Dotto Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve Sangiovese Blend 2001

Del Dotto Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve Sangiovese Blend 2001

After church the family gathered for a gala Sunday dinner featuring Linda's homemade lasagna. I pulled from the cellar this Del Dotto Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve Sangiovese Blend 2001, a family oriented producer to celebrate gathering of our family, and an Italian based varietal for a hearty Italian dinner.

This label is named for Giovanni Del Dotto, son of owner producers Dave and Yolanda.

I've written much in these pages about our many Del Dotto Family Vineyards dinners, tours,tastings, and special events. We still hold a dozen and half vintages of Del Dotto wines dating back to their inaugural vintage in 1993.

Our visit to the new Del Dotto Winery Cave Tour and Barrel Tasting was one of the highlights of our Napa Valley Wine Experience this 2017 fall.

We acquired several cases of the 2015 vintage release to commemorate the birthyear of grandson and namesake (Richard) Reid, so I have to make room in the Del Dotto storage area for the new arrivals.

Del Dotto Giovanni's Tuscan Reserve Sangiovese Blend 2001

This was produced back when legendary Napa Valley winemaker Nils Venge was crafting wines for Del Dotto. Del Dotto were early adapters of Sangiovese in Napa Valley. Their early plantings were on the Estate at Route 29 and Zinfandel lane surrounding the homestead and office.

The 2001 Giovanni’s Tuscan Reserve was a limited production release of about 300 cases. Its a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Sangiovese, and 5% Merlot.

Still holding and showing well at seventeen years, this is dark garnet colored, medium to full bodied, dense, concentrated, bright vibrant black berry and black cherry fruits with tones of cassis, tea, cigar box and leather with spicy French oak and supple tannins, on the tangy lingering finish.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=57067

https://www.deldottovineyards.com/ 

Venge Napa Valley Oakville Penny Lane Vineyard Sangiovese

Venge Napa Valley Oakville Penny Lane Vineyard Sangiovese 2010

With son Alec visiting from NYC, we were joined by his girlfriend Viviana for a holiday visit. When Viv is around we have fun serving wines from one of our favorite producers, Venge with its 'V' branding prominently displayed on the label/bottle. We just received this lot of Venge Penny Lane Vineyard Sangiovese that we acquired at auction and were eager to try it.

In Italy, Sangiovese is the most widely planted red grape variety accounting for approximately 10% of all vineyard plantings. It is most notably known for use as the only component of Brunello di Montalcino and Rosso di Montalcino, and the main component of the blend Chianti wines. In recent years it has gained notoriety in "Super Tuscan" wines like the well known highly regarded Tignanello. It became very popular blended with Cabernet and some of the other Bordeaux varietal grapes. 

We like to keep some Sangiovese on hand for serving with Italian food. Wines made from Sangiovese usually have medium-plus tannins and high acidity. Sangiovese's high acidity and moderate alcohol makes it a very food-friendly wine. It is ideally suited with Italian cuisine such as tomato-based pasta and pizza sauces with a Sangiovese-based Chianti.

Sangiovese can accentuate the flavours of somewhat bland dishes like meatloaf and roast chicken. A benefit of Sangiovese is that it accentuates herbal seasonings such as basil, thyme and sage that tend to compliment the herbal notes  of the grape. When blended with Cabernet, Merlot or Syrah, the Sangiovese blend takes on the character of those fuller-bodied reds and pair with heavier dishes such as steak and thick soups.

Young Sangiovese tends to have fresh fruity flavours of strawberry and a little spiciness. When aged in oak barrels it takes on the oak notes and well as even tar like flavours. While not as aromatic as Pinot noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, or Syrah, Sangiovese often has a flavour profile of sour red cherries with earthy aromas and tea leaf notes.

The well known Italian producer Antinori family promoted Sangiovese planting in America when they owned Atlas Peak Vineyards located in the Atlas Peak AVA in the foothills of Napa Valley. They found Californian Sangiovese could be more fruit-driven with floral notes than their Tuscan counterparts.

Nils Venge was an early proponent of Sangiovese in Napa Valley dating back to when he planted and produced Sangiovese wines while winemaker for Del Dotto in the mid to late nineties. We held some of those early vintages of Del Dotto as well as early vintages of Venge Sangiovese. Records show we held these label from the 1997, 1998 and 1999 vintages. We discovered and acquired those wines during our winery estate visits from that period.

Today, Venge produce another vineyard designated select Sangiovese sourced from fruit grown in the mountains on the Antinori family’s Antica Estate. They cite that this is one of just a handful of standing Sangiovese vineyards that remain in Napa Valley today. 

Venge Napa Valley Oakville Penny Lane Vineyard Sangiovese 2010

When I saw this label at auction, I eagerly bought the entire lot.  With limited production, it is not widely distributed and not generally seen here in the Midwest.

Wow. This exceeded my expectations and was bigger, brighter, and more expressive than what I remember or expected. It almost resembled a Syrah.

Dark inky colored, full bodied, rich concentrated extracted fruit, aromatic,almost intense black cherry and black raspberry with notes of tobacco leaf, tea and hints of tar on a smooth silky tannin laced finish. This was super with dark chocolate and begged for a spicy Italian pasta!

RM 92 points. 

This is a  blend of 90% Sangiovese and 10% Charbono.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1351287

The Cellartracker wine drinking window went out to 2016. Based on this tasting, I pushed it out to 2020!

http://www.vengevineyards.com/

Castello d'Albola Acciaiolo Toscana IGT

Castello d'Albola Acciaiolo Toscana IGT Sangiovese Blend 2004

We don't have a large collection of Italian wines in our cellar but when daughter Erin announced she was bringing lasagna over for a family dinner I pulled this Toscana Sangiovese blend for the occasion.

This is a blend of 2/3 Sangiovese and 1/3 Cabernet Sauvignon - the popular favored notable blend of new age Italian wines from Tuscany known as IGT designated wines (Indicazione Geografica Tipica). This designation was introduced in 1992 to allow use of Bordeaux varietal grapes in the blend which were previously not allowed under the Italian DOC or DOCG appellation rules. Shortly thereafter, in 1994, Bolgheri DOC was established as an official DOC classification for Cabernet – Sangiovese blend wines. IGT designated wines are classified based on their region of origin, rather than their grape varieties or wine styles.

Toscana IGT is the most famous and most popular IGT designation for wines produced in Tuscany where there are actually 10 different provinces where the wine could be produced - Arezzo, Firenze, Grosseto, Livorno, Lucca, Massa Carrara, Pisa, Pistoia, Prato and Siena. These names are often associated with the producer in labeling the wine indicating its geographic origin within the region of Tuscany.

The blend balances the distinctive black-cherry and wild-berry flavors of Sangiovese with the structure and power of Cabernet Sauvignon.   Cabernet – Sangiovese wines are produced extensively as IGTs in Tuscany, and are known under the famous (if unofficial) title of Super Tuscans. These wines combines two of the most popular wines styles of Northern Italy and Bordeaux varietal based wines from that popular French region as well as California, and increasingly from Washington State and even Australia.

Tuscan IGTs are the basis of what have become highly popular and iconic Super Tuscan labels such as Marchesi Antinori Tignanello, Solaia, Sassicaia, Querciabell, and Castello dei Rampolla Sammarco to name a few.

Castello d'Albola Acciaiolo Toscana IGT Sangiovese Blend 2004

This was dark blackish garnet colored, full bodied with firm structure and complex concentrated blackberry and tangy black cherry fruits accented by black tea, tobacco, and hints of smoke with mouth puckering firm tannins and tangy acidity on a lingering finish. This begs for the spicy meat and tomato sauce and cheeses of the lasagna and garlic bread - a perfect accompaniment.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=439873