October 3, 2008
October's Indigenous Arrivals: Amarone to Pizzutella

A Note from Sergio October Arrivals Amarone to Pizzutella

Special Event: How to Store Your Wine Wine Collecting Services Sergio in New Canaan, CT

These new arrivals might seem to have nothing in common other than timing. But if you go a little bit further, you’ll find that not only do they share the distinction of being unique, limited-productions, each goes against type, defying their accepted persona to do the unexpected, the unusual, and even the somewhat defiant. It’s not every day that you’re brought to a new place in wine, but these will take you there….and you just might not want to come back.


October’s Indigenous Arrivals
Vestini Campagnano 2005 Kaja Nero…$18.99
(Campania—Pallagrello Nero, Casvecchia, Aglianico, and Pizzutella)
La Sala 2006 Chianti Classico…$24.75
(Toscana—Sangiovese)
Masut da Rive 2006 Tocai ‘Vigna Candida’…$24.95
(Friuli—Tocai Friulano)
Elena Fucci 2005 Aglianico Titolo…$54.99
(Basilicata—Aglianico)
Cascina Ebreo 2001 Segreto…$71.50
(Piemonte—Barbera)
Nicolis 2001 Amarone ‘Ambrosan’…$88.00
(Veneto-Corvina, Rondinella, Croatina)




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(Campania—Pallagrello Nero, Casvecchia, Aglianico, and Pizzutella)
This is one of the best values to hit IWM. While the varietals that comprise this blend are relatively unknown, the wine possesses a youthful disposition, which can be likened to Quintarelli's Primofiore and France's Beaujolais. Vestini Campagnano was essentially founded as a refuge for Campania's lost grapes, Pallagrellos Nero and Bianco and Casavecchia. It didn't merely provide these phylloxera victims with a sanctuary, however, it devoted itself to giving them a modern, vital career. While the iconic Mastroberardino was reveling in the success of its own recovery story (starring Aglianico), Vestini began working exclusively with these grapes and showcasing their intrinsic value in opulent, vibrant, ageworthy bottlings. Now with a few cults to its credit (Connubio, in particular), Vestini's a little more relaxed and assured, and the easygoing Kaja Nero captures that comfort and sense of arrival. While predominantly a blend of the salvaged Pallagrello Nero and Casavecchia, Vestini's gone so far as to allow the input of the charmed Aglianico here, as well as a little-known Campanian white by the name of Pizzutella. Though its name signifies "dark wine," this is anything but the brooding sort, borrowing from Nero's earthy quality and Casavecchia's rustic elegance, yet delivering them in an accessible, medium-bodied wine that knows it can be devastatingly seductive without much effort.




(Toscana—Sangiovese)
Chianti Classico is always a popular pour for every day, but these days, its ever-increasing price point and quality keeps it out of the standard rotation. Coming in under the $25 mark, La Sala's Chianti Classico makes a strong case for becoming your next go-to wine. It continues its self-promotion on the palate, overdelivering—as many of these new arrivals do—in its lush notes of cherry, vanilla, and bittersweet chocolate.




(Friuli—Tocai Friulano)
With just 250 cases produced, this rare single-vineyard Tocai makes an applauded debut to the IWM line-up. As we've mentioned in the past, Friuli's Tocai Friulano, has its own share of ownership issues, having been embroiled in an ongoing dispute with Hungary for years over the right to call itself Tocai. It may seem inconsequential, petty even, but when you're as endemic to the culture as Tocai is to Friuli, it's understandable. The long-time partner of the region's famed Prosciutto San Daniele, Tocai also makes solo appearances, literally from morning to night, starting out as an AM quaffer for the hearty set and serving up full-bodied, barrique-aged versions that hold their own with regional dishes such as stinco di vitello. Masut da Rive's ‘Vigna Candida’ eschews the attentions of barrique, preferring to keep itself lithe and lean for that prosciutto. To that end, this single-vineyard artisanal production sees only stainless steel, delivering an unembellished Tocai that displays impeccable balance in its intense ripe fruit characteristics, bracing acidity and mild herbaceousness.




(Basilicata—Aglianico)
Campania has long claimed to be the original native ground of Aglianico, although one theory credits Basilicata with the patent. Indeed, if Basilicata was first, its Vulture DOC zone was likely the chosen terroir, given the high concentration of black volcanic lava in the soil (pozzolana). This endowment, coupled with the temperature fluctuation provided for by the region’s high altitudes (daytime heat delivers concentration, while cool nights aid in retaining acidity), produces wines of power and aromatic complexity. Fucci simply revels in pozzolana, crafting its limited-production Titolo bottling exclusively from this distinctive soil. Titolo’s spoiled that way, though, also enjoying the benefit of late-harvest grapes and the input of Sergio Paternoster, who represents one of Basilicata’s patriarchal families. The intense graphite-streaked and spice-laden Titolo may not win the paternity argument for Basilicata, but those who follow this limited production (averaging a mere 1,000 cases) will side with Basilicata all the way.




(Piemonte—Barbera)
In the realm of food and wine pairing, Barbera might be thought of as Tocai Friulano’s red counterpart, with its reliable companionship to pizza and simple pasta dishes. This rare IWM signature big red of limited-production makes its return appearance after five years, not as a Super-Piemonte but as a Super-Barbera—it has a new identity, with Barbera acting as the star performer. If a you are a fan of La Spinetta Braida, you will enjoy this modern interpretation. Debuting in 1996 as a Barbera-based blend (20% Nebbiolo), Segreto has gone monovarietal for the 2001 vintage, yet we’re hard-pressed to tell you what, if anything, it has to do with Barbera as any of us knows it. Aged in small French barriques for a two-year period, followed by a 15-month bottle maturation, the rare Segreto keeps itself exceedingly scarce (400 cases), so many will never know how intense and indulgent Barbera can be. You, of course, know better now. Can you go back to that accommodating, familiar Barbera?




(Veneto—Corvina, Rondinella, Croatina)
An IWM favorite, the single-vineyard ‘Ambrosan’ returns for the new fall season. Nicolis’ approach includes placing harvested grapes in small cases during the drying period (known as appassimento) and the use of Croatina grapes (which take the place of Molinara, the regular third contributor to the blend). The ‘Ambrosan’ achieves a rare and elusive balance, delivering a graceful eloquence and sensitive integration despite Amarone’s inherently opulent nature. The ‘Ambrosan’s caught, in effect, between the Old and New worlds, and all the better for it, working with the context of a structured vintage to elicit a wine that has found its place in not only in the Amarone genre, but in IWM’s classic repertoire.

Special Event: How to Build a Wine Cellar in NYC
(And Fill It, Italian Style)
Saturday, October 4, 1:00-3:00 p.m., $75.00

What happens to a wine that is not stored at 55 degrees and 70 percent humidity? How long should you hold on to your 1990 Barolo? What should you look out for when you store a wine? Whether you are a budding enthusiast or a connoisseur, how you store your bottles is essential to the integrity of the wine. This seminar, the first of its kind, explores wine storage options for the busy New Yorker with limited space. A professional cellar builder will lead the first half, discussing some options from the wine refrigeration unit to transforming your closet into a wine cellar. An IWM educator will also conduct a tasting and provide information on building a balanced collection—a great opportunity to taste wines before they go into your collection. Six wines will be featured including everyday wines, entertainment wines, cellar-worthy, and one very special rare treat.

Participants Receive:
• A “Taste of” six different regional wines

• Wine Note Booklet featuring IWM’s proprietary writing

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To learn more about IWM’s Studio Regionale Saturday Tasting Series, or to make a reservation over the phone, contact Maryellen Philipps at 212.473.2323, x129.