Natural Wines, Terroir Wines, Or Just Wines...

I was invited by Fredrik - thanks! - too taste some bottles from Terra del Vino´s range of wines. Their aim is to offer Italian, so called, natural wines to the Swedish public. Or should they be called terroir wines? Or maybe just wines that have been brought up, harvested and bottles with little or no additives. Maybe it is as simple as that.
The boring thing about the whole natural wine scene is that it has turned into a trench warfare - you seem only to be able to love them unconditional or hate them with the same amount of vigour. Both sides seems to me to be a bit Holier than thou....
There is such a thing as judge these wines for what they are, and the proof is, as always, in the bottle.

We were welcomed with a glass of bairly fermented grape juice of which I didn´t take a tasting note, so I let that one slip...
Delicious food from Roberto and Roberto.

2010 Friulano San Pietro, I Clivi
The only white wine served was this Friuli wine made from 100% Tocai Friulano. At first, served chilled, it is rather withdrawn and I have to coax the glass vigorously to get some notes of yellow apples, pine nuts and gravel. With air and room temperature it gets better and better. Fine notes of tangerines, summer flowers and chalk emerge then. And it keeps all night long in the glass. Really fine.
The taste is cool, elegant and fine with laid back notes of lemon peel, tangerines, gravel and pine nuts. A medium long, fresh finish. There is a touch of cap gun smoke in the end of the finish. Great stuff for drinking this summer with some grilled fish!
89p   (tasted 2013/02)

2006 Baccabianca, Tenuta Grillo
Next up was an orange wine. Made from 100% Cortese and with no additives what so ever, there is not even a gram of sulphites. Angelo poeticly described as "a red wine in a white dress". I was more thinking of Baudelaire´s Les Fleurs du Mal...
The nose opens with a distinctive scent of the rubber carpets which we had in gym class in school. That blew away with air, at least most of it. The other scents is cooked apricots, licorice, dried up orange peel and spontaneous brewed Belgian ale. This is weird, and maybe it is stretching my bounderies, which is good, but do I like it or find it enjoyable - nope.
The taste is even worse, the dry tannins and high acidity spoils everything else. Behind that wall there some notes of the same rubber carpet, dried fruit and warm gravel. Maybe it will work with food, but I´m not going to find out. My first orange wine, and I can´t say that I yearn for the next one...
66p   (tasted 2013/02)

 

 

2006 Pinot Nero, Bressan
Next up was a Pinot Noir från Bressan. The nose is young, seedy and fresh with nice blueberry and lingonberry fruit with some herbs, licorice and gravel thrown in. Very juicy fruit. A touch perfume/soap in the background. Feels very young, although it is 7 years old.
The taste is young, tight and seedy with notes of blueberries, juniper berries, licorice and road dust. A high acidity and a bitter note that reminds me of the white inside of grapefruit peel. Very dry ending. This needs some more time in the cellar and I hope the fruit flesh out or this will become very dry and bitter with age.
84p   (tasted 2013/02)

2006 San Valentino, Paolo Bea
Made out of 70% Sangiovese, 15% Sagrantino and 15% Montepulciano this nice wine jumps out of the glass with notes of red and black cherries, violets, arugula, tuscan gravel and a touch of detergent ( but not in a negative way). A fine depth. Very good.
The taste is young, tight and medium intense with fine red cherry fruit with some additional notes of violets, cigarette ashes, gravel and hard cherry candy. There is a perfumed/medicinal note that bother me a bit, but all in all, a very good wine.
87p   (tasted 2013/02)

2003 Pecoranera, Tenuta Grilllo
This beauty consists of 80% Freisa, 10% Barbera and 10% Dolcetto. It has a wide open, deep, hedonistic nose with notes of meat, ripe blue- and rasberries, violet candy, dried flowers, dried mushrooms and rosehips. A deep, profound nose. This has some mature notes as well, although it is far from its plateau. Very, very fine. Smells like an old school, mature Barolo, this is really up my alley!
The taste is tight, intense and a tad mature with a rustic feeling about it and lovely notes of dried rasberries, meat stock, dried flowers, forest floor and rosehips. The finish is long, dry and earthy. Could evolve some more. Great wine. This is a must buy!
92p   (tasted 2013/02)

More impressions from David, Magnus and Fredrik.