Once in a while, though, I do feel the urge to dive into warmer climes. A bottle of 1998 Château du Trignon Gigondas that I opened at a recent IDSK dinner was simply smashing. And here’s a note on something else I’ve wanted to try for an awfully long time.
Cerasuolo di Vittoria Classico, Azienda Agricola COS 2006$30. 13% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Domaine Select Wine Estates, New York, NY.
A blend of 60% Nero d’Avola and 40% Frappato from the district of Vittoria on the southern edge of Sicily. Okay, I didn’t taste it blind… but this is unmistakably southern wine. I’d even go so far as to say it’s unmistakably southern Italian. Actually, on the nose this could quite easily pass for a feminine, elegant style of Chianti, full of dusty red cherry and tanned hide scents. The deep south comes through in the mouth. You can feel the sun and baked earth in the wine’s fruit approach – warm, supine, even slightly sweaty. The Frappato serves well here, lightening and brightening the usual dark, throaty attack of Nero d’Avola. Transparent, medium ruby and going slightly pale at the rim, the wine displays very fine acidity for a warm climate wine, coupled to an ever so gentle clamp of tannins on the rear palate. Lots of fresh earth and cherry fruit on the palate. On its second day, the wine showed less fruit exuberance but picked up even more elegance, showcased via a lean, pure, clean texture, along with high-toned aromas of mace, molasses and menthol. Quite mellow and very comforting.
If there’s anything lacking here, it’s the energy and crunch more commonly found in its natural counterparts from the northern territories. Here, that cool, snappy persona finds its contrast and complement in warmth, stasis and restfulness. If there’s any gripe, it’s with the price of admission. At $20, this would find a comfortable place in my regular rotation; at $30, however, it will remain more an occasional dalliance, a wine for those days when a needed burst of sunshine is long overdue.
