A grand tasting of the various properties owned by the Antinori family organized by Summergate and hosted by the Italian Ambassador, Mrs Riccardo Sessa and Alessia Antinori. Wines were available from Umbria and Tuscany (the original Antinori home) as well as Piemonte (Prunotto) and Puglia (Tormaresca), both also under Antinori control.

The tasting itself was held in the Italian Embassy and drew a good crowd of invited guests from the diplomatic, journalistic, F&B and wine trade worlds. The majority of the wines were red with only three whites on show. We offer our notes here of those three whites together with the rest of the selections from Umbria and Tuscany. A further post will contain the wines from Piemonte and the Puglian reds.

2005 Castello della Sala ‘Campogrande’ Orvieto Classico, Umbria

Appearance: pale green with yellow tints.

Nose: largely light apple fruit.

Palate: apple fruit, pleasant acidity, light-bodied, not bad length.

Conclusion: made from 40% Procanico, 40% Grechetto, 15% Verdello, 5% Drupeggio and Malvasia, this is a crisp, food-friendly white for everyday drinking and affordable at 135RMB.

Rating: 15.5/20

2005 Castello della Sala ‘Bramito del Cervo’ Chardonnay, Umbria IGT

Appearance: medium gold.

Nose: peach and melon fruit, pleasant oak.

Palate: good fruit, some acidity here; good oak and quite good length.

Conclusion: after maceration, the must for this wine is exposed to French Allier and Troncais barriques to undergo alcoholic fermentation; but only a proportion of the wine receives malolactic fermentation in wood. This may account for the lifting acidity here. Quite well put together. Price 299RMB.

Rating: 16/20

2004 Tormaresca ‘Pietra Bianca’ Castel del Monte Chardonnay, Puglia

Appearance: medium yellow-gold.

Nose: appealing citrus and peach fruit, good oak.

Palate: pleasant acidity, strong fruit, deft use of oak and well-balanced.

Conclusion: this was probably the best white of the three on show. Well-made Chardonnay with an impressive balance of ripe fruit – no trouble ripening Chardonnay in Puglia – and good acidity (probably the element that is harder to achieve). This wine retails at 347RMB.

Rating: 16.5/20

2004 La Braccesca ‘Sabazio’ Rosso di Montepulciano DOC, Tuscany

Appearance: light to medium red-purple, clear rim.

Nose: appealing light red fruits (red cherry, redcurrant).

Palate: more pleasant red fruits, medium-bodied, good acidity, light on tannin.

Conclusion: this wine is a blend of 80% Prugnolo Gentile, 15% Merlot and 5% Canaiolo (NB Montepulciano grapes are not used to make this wine, nor are they used for Vino Nobile di Montelpulciano – if you want to drink Montepulciano, try Montepulciano d’Abruzzo from the Marches region). It only spends about 4 months in oak which might account for why we didn’t notice any oak here at first. Priced at 191RMB, this is an easy-drinking, food-friendly Italian red for more or less immediate consumption.

Rating: 16/20

2001 La Braccesca Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG, Tuscany

Appearance: deep purple colour with slightly orange rim.

Nose: dark black and red cherry fruit, ‘tart’ nose, discernible oak but this is well-integrated.

Palate: lovely tannins here (moderate and spiky in nature), fine acidity, pleasant dark cherry fruit and good length.

Conclusion: this wine is aged in different sizes of oak barrel for 12 months (with a proportion in barriques). It’s lovely stuff. 347RMB from Summergate.

Rating: 17.5/20

2001 ‘Marchese Antinori’ Chianti Classico Riserva DOCG, Tuscany

Appearance: dark purple, slightly orange rim.

Nose: marked black cherry fruit, savoury oak, slight spice, complex.

Palate: medium-high chewy tannins, lovely acidity, strong fruit, good oak and very good length.

Conclusion: a blend of 90% Sangiovese and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, the latter adding some richness and slightly darker fruit whilst the former dominates with its strong cherry quality. The oak in question is new, one-year and two-year old Alliers and Troncais French oak and the wine spends some 14 months in oak after blending. 450RMB and clearly very good.

Rating: 18/20 [but could be higher with time]

2001 ‘Pian delle Vigne’ Brunello di Montalcino DOCG, Tuscany

Appearance: medium purple-red, slight orange rim.

Nose: complex red and black cherry fruit, some oak, savoury but with sweet fruits, complex.

Palate: very elegant with lovely closely knit but ripe medium-high tannins and beautiful Sangiovese fruit. Very balanced. Great length.

Conclusion: entirely Sangiovese, the wine spends some two years in a range of different sized oak vats and is also aged for a further year in bottle before release. This is clearly a very high quality Sangiovese (744RMB).

Rating: 18.5/20

Notes on the wines of Prunotto and the other Tormaresca reds to follow.

Labels: 2001, 2004, 2005, Antinori, Brunello di Montalcino, Chardonnay, Chianti, Featured Tastings, Italy, Montepulciano, Orvieto, Piemonte, Puglia, red, Sangiovese, Summergate, Tuscany, Umbria, white

Gaia Gaja of famed Piemonte producer Angelo Gaja came to Beijing for a book-signing (at the Hilton Food & Wine Experience) and a special dinner arranged with importer ASC. She kindly consented to an email interview arranged around her busy schedule. Dragon Phoenix (hereafter DP) is very grateful to Gaia Gaja (hereafter GG) for her time and effort. With luck, she will be back in China in 2008.

DP: You recently visited Beijing to show-case your wines. What is your perception of the market for fine wines in China?

GG: The Chinese market is certainly one of the future, as China is a factor in all things: because of its growth and the increasing acquisition of wealth. Fine wine will undoubtedly be part of this expansion.

DP: How would you say Piemonte wines specifically are appreciated in China? Or is it too early for the market to understand the complexity of the Piemonte region?

GG: I believe our wines are accepted equally in China; just as all other fine wines in the world are. Their complexity is an added value which, with time, will be more and more appreciated.

DP: Your company has a number of business interests: including Gaja distribution, the Castello di Barbaresco as well as wine estates not just in Piemonte but also in Tuscany. How would you say your business experience has helped in establishing new markets for your wines in China and Asia as a whole?

GG: My mother has a little distribution company importing foreign wines to Italy (this is a business that concerns Italy alone). As to the Castello di Barbaresco, you are talking about the castle of Barbaresco which we bought in 1995 and restored. We were thinking of transforming it into a hotel but, in the end, we decided to keep it for the winery – so now there are offices and tasting rooms. So, we just make wine really. This is the only thing we know how to do and we will continue doing it just so.

We produce wine in Piemonte, in Montacino and in Bolgheri, as you know. The three wineries are working with different varieties: Nebbiolo, Sangiovese (in Montalcino), Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot (in Bolgheri). The three regions – what we call the ‘3 Bs’ of Italy, Barbaresco (and Barolo), Brunello and Bolgheri – are, in my opinion, the most prestigious in Italy. They provide the opportunity and real possibility of making long-ageing and complex wines. So, we have the same goal for the three wineries and the same style, but different expressions. The Chinese market can see the distinctive differences between these three wine regions with the distinctive Gaja flare in each case.

DP: Your family’s wine-making roots in Barbaresco date back to 1859 and Giovanni Gaja’s establishment of the winery. You have embraced both tradition and modern technology in your wine-making. How would you describe your company’s philosophy and outlook?

GG: My wines are easy recognizable in blind-tastings because they have a defined style that is obviously the style of our Barbaresco winery. The goal is to produce wines loyal to the area, and loyal to the history of the winery itself. To preserve their identity and dignity, we release them only in vintages when the weather conditions have allowed them to express all their beauties and to illustrate what Nebbiolo in Barbaresco can do.

The wines are, therefore, not produced every year. For example, our Piemonte winery did not produce any wine in 2002,1992,1984,1980 and 1972. The single vineyard wines (Costa Russi, Sori San Lorenzo, Sori Tildin, Sperss, Conteisa) were not even produced in 1994,1992 and in many other older vintages. Pieve Santa Restituta did not produce any wine in 2002 and in 2003; and Camarcanda was not produced in 2002 either.

To work like artisans, following every detail from the beginning to the end: this is our philosophy. We do not buy in grapes but only use what we produce from our estate vineyards which have been selected over several generations. We also personally select the wood for part of the barriques we use, and we are working on several other details in the winery too.

DP: Piemonte wines are very food-friendly. Do you believe your wines will pair well with different Chinese cuisines?

GG: I don’t know enough about Chinese food, but I had the pleasure to pair several of our wines with different Shanghai-ese dishes (which were more oily and generally sweeter to the taste than some of the other Chinese regional cuisines I’ve heard of). They paired extremely well.

DP: Angelo Gaja was the first wine-maker to use French barriques and introduce international grape varieties to the Langhe. How would you describe the difference between your ‘international’ wines and your Barbaresco DOCG or is there no difference in your wine-making philosophy for these wines?

GG: Even the international varieties that my father introduced and started to produce in Barbaresco (Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay) are producing wines (Darmagi, Alteni di Brassica and Gaia & Rey) that are very Piedmontese in their personality. The grape varieties are a vehicle to express the flavours of the place where they are grown. Piemonte wines reflect minerality, earthiness, and can have fabulous ageing potential where the aromas develop exquisitely. All of these characteristics are expressed in the Darmagi, Gaia & Rey and Alteni di Brassica wines.

DP: Some of your top Barbaresco wines – Sori Tildin, San Lorenzo, Costa Russi – and the Barolos, Sperss and Conteisa, are ‘de-classified’ to Langhe Nebbiolo DOC because this allows you to add up to 15% of other grapes. Do you find that blending helps tame some of the more difficult aspects of Nebbiolo, e.g. its sometimes harsh tannins? Or is there another reason for blending?

GG: My winery has produced Barbaresco since 1859. And this is why Barbaresco is the most representative wine from our winery. The single vineyard concept was introduced in the late 1960s (in 1967 we produced the first single vineyard Barbaresco: Sori San Lorenzo). Clearly, Gaja became well-known through this Barbaresco, the only wine of the winery for generations; and the reason behind the re-classification of the single vineyards was to go back to Barbaresco as the only Barbaresco of the winery.

When we changed the denomination for the single vineyards, we discovered the advantage of being able to add, if we wanted, other varieties. The variety we are most interested in adding (and from 1997 did so) is Barbera: a local variety with very good acidity, excellent fruit and not too much tannin. In warm vintages Barbera is useful because it gives the wine a certain drinkability whilst also aiding ageing-potential. It works very well with Nebbiolo.

DP: Do you think it is easier for consumers to understand international grapes – for example, you make straight a straight Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and a Sauvignon Blanc – than the complexities of Italy’s DOC and DOCG system? Or is the Piemonte region itself of more importance to you and your customers?

GG: I think that one important reason why the international varieties are more understandable is that they are more well-known than the DOCs or DOCGs. So people are more used to drinking them and knowing what to expect from them. These varieties are like an international language that everyone can, on some level, speak and understand.

In Italy we have such a large selection of local varieties, all produced in such tiny quantities and areas, that it becomes very difficult to know them well. They are very much niche products. The international varieties give the chance to wine lovers to compare the results of certain grapes coming from different wineries and from different parts of the world.

DP: Nicholas Belfrage MW has written about your pricing policy, observing that this ‘seems to be paying off handsomely, with international buyers willing to spend any sum for a top name’ (Barolo to Valpolicella: The Wines of Northern Italy, p. 86). Belfrage does not dispute the very high quality of your wines, but wonders about global prices in the fine wine market. Do you think that buyers will continue to pay ‘any sum’ for top wines?

GG: The markets are undeniably growing and the new increasing demand cannot be absorbed by the offer of certain wines alone (as some wines cannot be produced in sufficient quantities to meet the demand). At the same time the production of wine is growing all over the world as well as the quality level (more countries are producing wines of better quality). So, for sure, in the case of certain top wines the prices will inevitably continue to grow. Fortunately, though, there will also be a good offer of wines at more moderate prices.

DP: In China, wine education should improve the market for fine wines as consumers become more confident in purchasing. How do you hope to support the appreciation of your wines in the Chinese market(s)?

GG: I like to explain my wines personally (and be there to explain them in person). I like to meet the people that drink and talk about my wines; and to hear their questions. This is one of the pleasures of my work. I will continue to come to China, maybe more often than I have in the past, and continue to explain what my wines mean to me to the people I will have the pleasure to meet. This is central to my life and work.

Labels: Angelo Gaja, ASC, Barolo, Bolgheri, Brunello di Montalcino, Cabernet Sauvignon, China, Gaia Gaja, Interviews, Italy, Langhe, Merlot, Nebbiolo, Nicholas Belfrage, Piemonte, red, white

2005 Il Nero di Casanova, La Spinetta, Italy

Appearance: medium red-purple, clear rim.

Nose: largely red and black cherry with some almond notes and slight clove.

Palate: medium-bodied, pleasant cherry fruit, refreshing medium-high acidity and medium chunky tannins. Quite good length.

Conclusion: La Spinetta is well-known as a producer of top Piemonte wines (having two properties in the region). However, the company also owns a property in Tuscany in the village of Terricciola. This Tuscan IGT was first made in 2004 and is predominantly Sangiovese with some Colorino thrown in (a grape indigenous to Tuscany that, as its name suggests, apparently does add colour). Easy-drinking, well-made and a very food-friendly Tuscan red.

Rating: 17/20

Labels: 2005, Colorino, Il Nero di Casanova, Italy, La Spinetta, Piemonte, red, Sangiovese, Tuscany

1997 Barbaresco Vigneto Gallina, La Spinetta

Appearance: darkish purple-red, only slightly orange rim.

Nose: very complex mix of red and black fruits: red and black cherry, redcurrants, red and black plum. Perfume also evident here with slight tar smell (but not in the tarry league of some Barolo wines). There’s also that slight peppermint I’ve noticed on Nebbiolo before. Savoury oak and a wine that kept on developing in the glass.

Palate: intense fruit, chewy ripe and not too tightly knit tannins, superb balance of high acidity to oak to fruit to tannin. Very, very long.

Conclusion: this wine is still very young, but was not closed. It had wonderful fruit and amazing complexity. This is one of La Spinetta’s top wines and is capable of considerable ageing, particularly from the famed 1997 vintage. Superb.

Rating: 19/20

Labels: 1997, Barbaresco, Italy, La Spinetta, Nebbiolo, Piemonte, red

Before the Barolo Cerequio vertical, I interviewed Michele Chiarlo - see Interview: Michele Chiarlo brings Barolo to Beijing and Featured Tasting: Michele Chiarlo Barolo Cerequio - and then tasted a number of other Chiarlo wines:

2006 Gavi, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: deepish green gold

Nose: lots of lemon, pear and apple fruit. Very clean on the nose.

Palate: lovely acidity, good fruit and refreshing length and finish.

Conclusion: a lovely expression of the Cortese grape and actually the most successful wine in Asia for the Chiarlo family. Good.

Rating: 17.5/20

2004 Barbaresco Asili, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: medium purple-red, slightly orange rim.

Nose: extremely perfumed and very delicate showing red fruits and slight spice.

Palate: lovely acidity, moderate slightly grainy tannins, good fruit, and very ‘refreshing’ (not something usually said about Nebbiolo).

Conclusion: Barbaresco, unfairly, is seen as playing second fiddle to Barolo, but its wines can show very pure examples of Nebbiolo in a delicate style. Asili is a single vineyard, but not one I’ve had before (most of the single vineyard examples I’ve had from the Produttori del Barbaresco).

Rating: 18/20

2003 Barbera d’Asti La Court, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: deepish purple-red colour, clear rim.

Nose: shows a lot of oak, even although the wine sees only 50% oak; but much would depend, of course, on what proportion of that is new oak and what happened in 2003 itself where very ripe fruit may have called for heftier oak. Has very attractive dark cherry fruit as well, however.

Palate: lots of alcohol here, but there’s good acidity, pleasant chewy tannins and impressive length.

Conclusion: obviously a very fine example of Barbera and a pleasure to drink now (with some modest ageing ability there too).

Rating: 18.5/20

1999 Barolo Riserva ‘Tortoniano’, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: deep purple-red, orange rim.

Nose: elegant red cherry and redcurrant fruit, violets.

Palate: not too tannic, ripe, possesses lovely acidity and the tannins that are there are grainy and also ripe. Good length.

Conclusion: A lovely expression of a readily drinkable Barolo; ready now, but one that will also improve.

Rating: 18/20

Labels: 2003, 2004, 2006, Barbaresco, Barbera, Barbera d'Asti, Barolo, Chiarlo, Cortese, Featured Tastings, Gavi, Italy, Michele Chiarlo, Nebbiolo, Piemonte, red, white

Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo, Vertical Tasting

Presenting his wines at Aria restaurant in a tasting organized by ASC, Michele Chiarlo revealed that the family owns some 6 hectares of the Cerequio vineyard or about 40% of the total (with the likes of Angelo Gaja, Roberto Voerzio and Aldo Conterno controlling the rest of the vineyard).

The yield is generally at 35 hl/ha. He affirmed the care taken in extracting the better tannins from Nebbiolo before the bitter tannins take over: something the grape can easily show in less carefully made examples. 33% of production is sold in Italy with the rest going overseas, principally to the US and UK.

2003 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: deepish purple-red, orange rim.

Nose: Very ripe red cherry, some ‘heat’ from the alcohol here, but there are still Nebbiolo characters coming through with some tar aromas. Oak is not over-dominant and with most of these notes I’ve hardly talked about oak because it’s well-integrated and almost hidden as Nebbiolo takes over.

Palate: big fruit, tight and close but ripe tannins; has impressive acidity for such a difficult vintage, some almond character and also peppermint and clove.

Conclusion: a very good wine for such a demanding vintage. Sensibly, they did not de-leaf in this vintage knowing that the grapes hardly needed much exposure to the sun in the fierce 2003 heat. Good, but it will never be a great Barolo year, not even from this vineyard and this producer.

Rating: 17.5/20

2001 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: Medium to medium-deep purple-red, orange rim.

Nose: toasty first nose, a lot more immediately perfumed than the 2003 with a gamey aroma and beautiful red fruits (cherry, redcurrants, even cranberry).

Palate: has ripe large grainy tannins, excellent acidity and considerable finesse. There’s a great balance here on the palate with delicacy, freshness and lovely length.

Conclusion: Very good. A lovely expression of Barolo in a fine year.

Rating: 18.5/20

2000 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: Deep purple-red (deeper colour than the 2001 certainly), slightly orange rim.

Nose: More tar on the first nose than perfume. Lavish fruit: more black cherry here than the red fruits you’d normally expect from most Piemonte Nebbiolos (at least those that haven’t had a bit of Barbera added!).

Palate: tannins are ripe and chunky. Considerable black fruits, but there isn’t the staying power here of the 2001 and there’s a slight problem with the palate. It’s not that the wine is short in length: there’s a gap between the generosity of the nose and a palate that gives a little less.

Conclusion: the palate notes here sound overly critical; but I can see why Chiarlo himself has more time for his 2001. This won’t last as well as the 2001 and will be an attractive earlier drinker, still of impressive quality.

Rating: 18/20

1999 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: Medium to medium-deep purple-red, orange rim (similar in colour to the 2001).

Nose: Very perfumed indeed – in that way that Nebbiolo at this level is indescribably perfumed, just like great Pinot Noir. Very concentrated ripe red fruits.

Palate: has the feel of ‘sweet’ fruit on the palate, excellent acidity and gripping, ‘angular’ tannins (whereas the tannins on the 2000 were chunky and chewy).

Conclusion: very, very good indeed and, along with the 1997 and 1990, probably my favourite (with the 2001 being a close contender).

Rating: 19/20

1998 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: dark purple-red, orange rim (but orange rim is less extensive than that on the 1999).

Nose: has an immediate clove nose with tar, pepper and ripe cherry fruit.

Palate: tannins are chunky here and the palate is very much like the 2000 but with a better overall structure, i.e. the ripe cherry fruit is more integrated and there’s a better balance between fruit, tannin, acidity and alcohol.

Conclusion: very interesting to taste comparatively. Obviously similar to the 2000 in style, but better overall. Although the below rating is the same as the 2001, I think I prefer the 2001 to the 1998, at least in this tasting.

Rating: 18.5/20

1997 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: Medium to dark purple-red (I know this sounds strange, but these wines are a real mix of colours and hues)

Nose: first nose has lots of violets, perfume and also rose petal. Throughout, there is the ‘sweet’, ripe red fruits of the 1999 vintage.

Palate: similar to the 1999 with ripe red fruits and perfume, but the tannins are bigger here. Excellent length.

Conclusion: the 1999 is more ‘delicate’ or lighter on the nose and palate than the 1997, but the 1997, with its relative burliness, might last longer. There are both wonderful vintages, however, and point-for-point, this and the 1990 were my top wines.

Rating: 19.5/20

1996 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: dark purple core with a real spread of red to orange in the rim.

Nose: shows a very clove and tarry nose – like the 2000 and the 1998 – with concentrated, even closed, red and black cherry fruit.

Palate: fruit is riper and ‘sweeter’ on the palate than expected with very big, chunky tannins and good acidity.

Conclusion: this wine will need a lot of time. Could do 10-20 more years and may well be superb eventually.

Rating: 18.5/20 [but could be higher with further age]

1995 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: deep purple-red, orange rim.

Nose: lots of peppermint, tar and perfume with a mixture of red and black cherry fruit.

Palate: has ‘dusty’ big fruit, hefty and chunky tannins, acidity that seems higher here than on other vintages (or is more noticeable).

Conclusion: obviously impressive, but not as conversation-stopping as some of the other wines. Still very good, however.

Rating: 18.5/20

1993 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: deep purple-red, orange rim.

Nose: has a very ‘Christmas cake’ first nose with clove, cinnamon and candied fruit.

Palate: shows more peppermint on the palate with lovely red fruits, decent marked acidity and ripe ‘fresh’, i.e. light, tannins (no doubt mellowed with age).

Conclusion: Ready to drink, although will still improve. A lighter, attractive vintage.

Rating: 18/20

1990 Barolo Cerequio, Michele Chiarlo

Appearance: medium purple-red, orange rim (still has considerable colour but has a wider gradation of orange rim than the other wines)

Nose: white truffle nose – the first wine to have this truffle quality – also other mushrooms, red fruits and some perfume.

Palate: mellowed but still lean tannins with generous fruit, complex truffle flavours and great acidity.

Conclusion: this wine still needs time in my book. It’s obviously a massive vintage and it would certainly be better to drink the 1993 before this wine. Stupendous and extremely generous of Michele Chiarlo to bring this over from his personal cellar.

Rating: 19.5/20

Labels: 1990, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006, ASC, Barolo Cerequio, Featured Tastings, Italy, Michele Chiarlo, Piemonte, red, white

2006 Norton ‘Lo Tengo’ Torrontes, Mendoza, Argentina

Appearance: gold with orange tints.

Nose: distinctive Torrontes nose of lychee and mango, but not really the rose-petal or gingerbread quality of Gewurztraminer (nor the orange blossom aspect of Muscat). Torrontes is apparently related to Muscat, but it remains an Argentinian thing really.

Palate: palate was rich with strong tropical fruit, distinctive bitterness and even slightly salty in taste with low acidity, highish alcohol and some length. More pleasant on the nose than palate.

Conclusion: fascinating to taste, but we're not sure we'd want to drink a whole bottle. A good deal at 88RMB, however (from ASC).

Rating: 15.5/20

2004 Moscato d’Asti, Castello del Poggio, Piemonte, Italy

Appearance: characteristic cheerful green colour with orange tints and some sparkle.

Nose: pleasant Moscato nose of highly aromatic grapes. It certainly has not deteriorated into that geranium smell you get on oxidized Moscato d’Asti.

Palate: good fruit, refreshing acidity and balanced medium-high residual sugar.

Conclusion: we were concerned that the bottle-age – which is desirable only in very high-quality Moscato d’Asti wines – might be a problem here, but the wine had held up very well. Good and well-priced for the Beijing market at 134RMB from Palette Vino.

Rating: 16.5/20

2006 Indis Shiraz Rosé, Great Southern, Western Australia

Appearance: purple-pink.

Nose: strong strawberry and red cherry fruit on the nose and even some spice (white pepper?).

Palate: decent palate showing the same strong red fruit qualities, nice acidity and not too high alcohol (weighs in at 12.5%).

Conclusion: A real find from the Beijing wine club Big 9. Indis wines are under the flag of Forest Hill, a really good Western Australian producer. Well-priced at 165RMB.

Rating: 17/20

Labels: 2004, 2006, Argentina, ASC, Castello del Poggio, Indis, Italy, Mendoza, Moscato d'Asti, Norton, Piemonte, rose, Shiraz, sparkling, Torrontes, Western Australia, white

2001 Barbaresco, Produttori del Barbaresco

Appearance: lightish red-purple, pink rim.

Nose: redcurrant and slight red cherry nose with some tar, violets and some other perfume-like smell, slight spice.

Palate: delicate fruit on palate, fine spiky medium tannins, excellent fresh high acidity and a lovely balance of alcohol to acid to tannin to fruit.

Conclusion: we actually drank this over three days because it is still quite age-worthy even although not a Riserva. 2001 is also a particularly good vintage in Piemonte and the Produttori del Barbaresco always does a god job. Very, very good.

Rating: 18/20

Labels: 2001, Barbaresco, Italy, Nebbiolo, Piemonte, Produttori del Barbaresco, red

1999 Barolo, Mauro Molino

Appearance: purple-pink, bricky rim.

Nose: a very Nebbiolo nose (red and black cherry fruit, spice, tar, rose petals, perfume), good use of oak.

Palate: lovely perfumed fruit; firm, spiky but also rounded tannins, excellent acidity, and commanding length.

Conclusion: absolutely stunning. This is a modernist wine showing great purity of fruit. In some ways I liked this wine even more than the more traditional G. D. Vajra 1999 Barolo enjoyed on 15th October 2005. But both are excellent wines.

Rating: 18.5/20

Labels: 1999, Barolo, Italy, Mauro Molino, Nebbiolo, Piemonte, red

2005 Moscato d’Asti ‘La Caudrina’, Romano Dogliotti, Piemonte, Italy

Appearance: medium green gold, attractive fat bubbles.

Nose: beautiful Muscat fruit with grapey and perfumed orange aromas.

Palate: lovely fruit, more residual sugar here than on some examples, but this is matched by excellent acidity and very good length. Moscato d'Asti, although relatively sweet, should be refreshing and this is just that.

Conclusion: one of the top producers of Moscato d’Asti. Beautiful. Possibly a little young at present – other Moscato d’Asti we’ve tried in recent months have been about two years old or so. However, it's not usually worth ageing this kind of wine because it loses its aromatic fruit and tends to smell of geraniums after a while. The La Caudrina should be compared with Dogliotti's La Galeisa, another Moscato d'Asti. Would also be worth comparing both wines with the 2005 Moscato d’Asti Piasa Sanmaurizio, Forteta della Luja, possibly the greatest Moscato d'Asti we've had.

Rating: 18.5/20

Labels: 2005, Forteta della Luja, Italy, Moscato d'Asti, Piemonte, Romano Dogliotti, sparkling

1999 Barolo Bricco delle Viole, G. D. Vajra

Appearance: medium red-purple in colour, some orange to the rim.

Nose: red cherry fruit with marzipan, game stock (some rich meat/vegetal flavours at least) and floral notes; a little spice from the oak here too. Delicate.

Palate: mellowed, prickly medium tannins, high balanced acidity, highish alcohol, good use of oak and lovely spicy fruit. Excellent length.

Conclusion: very good indeed. Ready to drink but could improve. A wonderful expression of Barolo.

Rating: 18.5/20

Labels: 1999, Barolo, G. D. Vajra, Italy, Nebbiolo, Piemonte, red

1998 Langhe Vignaserra, Roberto Voerzio, Piemonte

Appearance: dark purple red, clear rim.

Nose: beautiful black and red cherry fruit, slight tar, non-intrusive and integrated oak. Complex savoury aromas.

Palate: lovely fruit, impeccable balance of acidity to oak to alcohol to fruit to tannin. That acidity is lively, but the wine is modern in style (or, better still, a 'blend' of modern and old-style influences). Great length.

Conclusion: Roberto Voerzio is clearly a great wine-maker. His Baroli and single-vineyard Barbera are basically unaffordable, but look out for all of his other wines. This Langhe (with strong evidence of Nebbiolo and Barbera in the mix) was superb and only just starting to drink.

Rating: 18.5/20

Labels: 1998, Barbera, Italy, Langhe, Nebbiolo, Piemonte, red, Roberto Voerzio