Tasted at Vinitaly: D'Alfonso del Sordo

Gianfelice and Celeste del Sordo have their stand at Vinitaly across the corridor from Montenidoli, and Elisabetta invited then to dinner a couple of years ago. I enjoyed talking with them considerably, and stopped to taste their wines the next day, coming away quite impressed. So I've been going back...

D'Alfonso del Sordo Posta Arignano Bianco San severo DOC 2010
Lot 80 11
Trebbiano, 40% Bombino Bianco and 10% Verdeca. It's brassy gold with brilliant brassy reflections and white rim. The bouquet is fairly rich, with elegant floral accents mingled with loquats and some underlying savory notes that add depth; nice balance and fresh, though obviously still developing. On the palate it's fairly rich, with bright lemony mineral fruit that has some grapefruit accents and flows into a long savory mineral finish with grapefruit acidity. Quite fresh and will work nicely as an aperitif or with grilled or roasted fish, and will go quickly. A second bottle would come in handy.
2 stars

D'Alfonso del Sordo Catapanus Puglia Bombino Bianco IGT 2010
Lot 66 11
Pale brassy yellow with brilliant brassy reflections and white rim. The bouquet is fairly intense, with herbals accents and straw shot through with minerality and supported by some gunflint as well, and an aunderpinning of sea salt. On the palate it's light and savory, with crisp pineapple acidity and some underlying minerality that carries into a fairly long tart finish with lasting acidity. Quite direct, a simple summer wine that will drink very well with grilled or fried fish or meats, and be quite refreshing in any occasion it's served in. Expect it to go quickly and for people to want more.
1 star

D'Alfonso del Sordo Candelaro Piglia IGT Bianco 2009
Lot 82/10
This is Chardonnay and Sauvignon blanc barrel fermented separately and then combined in steel. It's brassy gold with bright brassy reflections and white rim. The bouquet is moderately intense, with some gooseberry and slight minerality; it's rather graceful. On the palate it's full, with bright gooseberry fruit supported by minerality and gunflint bitterness, while powerful sea salt -- almost like a summer breeze at the beach -- emerges to provide crispness and continues onto the finish, which also has crisp accents. It will work quite well with grilled or roasted fish, and will also age nicely for several more years.
2 stars

D'Alfonso del Sordo Posta Arignano Rosato San Severo DOC 2010
Lot 73 11
This is a blend of Montepulciano and Sangiovese. Pale pink with brilliant pink reflections and white rim. The bouquet is a little out of sorts -- just bottled -- with, as it opens, raspberry and minerality, though it's too soon to say much more. On the palate it's pleasant, with fairly rich minerality supported by bitter accents and sea salt, which flow into a fairly long warm savory finish with pleasant raspberry overtones. Quite nice, and will drink very well as an aperitif or at a cookout, and is a perfect summer wine. Worth seeking out.
2 stars

D'Alfonso del Sordo Posta Arignano San Severo Rosso DOC 2010
This is a bottling for Vinitaly.
The same 70-30 Montepulciano-Sangiovese blend as the Rosato. Lively pale ruby with brilliant reflections and pale rim. The bouquet is fresh, and rich for a just bottled wine, with lively floral accents and violets mingled with ripe berry fruit that has some jammy accents and some graphite shavings, and slight vegetal savory notes. On the palate it's light, with lively cherry plum fruit supported by mineral acidity and some bitter notes, and by smooth light tannins that flow into a clean slightly bitter fruit laced finish. Quite simple, a classic food wine that will drink well throughout the meal, and go quickly.

D'Alfonso del Sordo Montero Puglia IGT Rosso 2009
This is a bottling for Vinitaly
Primarily Montepulciano with a little Cabernet. Pale cherry ruby with ruby rim and white nail. The bouquet is rich, with fairly intense berry fruit supported by some graphite shavings and slight jammy accents. Still quite young. On the palate it's bright, with rich jammy cherry fruit supported by tannins that have a slight splintery burr and flow into a clean fairly rich cherry fruit finish. It's quite young and the tannins need another year to come together, but will be graceful in a deft fruit driven key, and age nicely for 3-5 years . Quite promising.

D'Alfonso del Sordo Casteldrione Puglia Uva di Troia IGT 2009
This is a bottling for Vinitaly.
This is from a younger vineyard planted from cuttings from their older vines; the bunches are a bit smaller than those around Castel del Monte, and have thicker skins. The bouquet is rich, with violets and spice mingling with ripe berry fruit and a fair amount of alcohol, and some vegetal accents shot rhtough with sea salt. On the palate it's full, and fairly rich, with pleasant sour cherry fruit supported by sour berry fruit acidity, and by tannins that are smooth and dusty, flowing into lasting warmth. It's pleasant in a fairly direct key, and drink nicely with grilled meats or light roasts.

D'Alfonso del Sordo Contrada del Santo Puglia IGT Rosso 2006
Lot 56/2008
This is 80% Uva di Troia and 20% Merlot. It's deep black cherry ruby with almandine rim. The bouquet is powerful, with quite a bit of alcohol and greenish accents supported by plum berry fruit and some balsamic notes; there's also some sea salt and some walnut skin bitterness. On the palate it's ripe, with rather exotic balsam-laced red berry fruit supported by smooth sweet tannins that do reveal Merlot, and by deft mineral acidity that flows into a long prune finish with some mineral underpinning. A nice blend and the Merlot does tame the wilder aspects of the Nero di Troia; it's quiet approachable in what is perhaps an exotic key for those used to just French varietals, but will work very well with hearty roasts or grilled meats.
88-90

D'Alfonso del Sordo DogaNera Daunia IGT 2006
Lot 8246
This is a Merlot, and is deep cherry with black reflections and cherry rim. The bouquet is intense, with ith cedar-laced balsamic berry fruit supported by warmth and pleasant spice with mentholated accents. On the palate it's ample and quite smooth, though not with the softness I generally expect from Merlot; rather the fruit is bright and sour, cherry with hints of citrus, and supported by tannins that are smooth and extremely round, but are also warm and have balsamic notes, and flow into a long fruit laced finish with tannic underpinning. Very different from more northerly Merlot, and will drink nicely with hearty roasts or stews; game come to mind, as does leg of lamb or fattier grilled meats such as lamb chops. Particular, but also considerable finesse.
88-90

D'Alfonso del Sordo Cava del Re Daunia IGT 2006
Lot 180/09
This is Cabernet Sauvignon; it's deep black cherry ruby with black reflections and almandine rim. The bouquet is powerful and jammy with red berry fruit supported by pleasant vegetal accents and some savory notes. Nice depth, and riper than some, without bell peppers and such, and a pleasant some bitter cocoa and chocolate too, slight coffee grounds. On the palate it's rich, with pleasant ripe cherry and plum fruit supported by deft minerality and graphite shaving bitterness, and by smooth sweet tannins that have a slight burr and some balsamic notes that confer an exotic touch, and flow into a fairly long sour cherry finish. Pleasant, and though it's still young will drink very well with grilled meats or roasts in the sort term, and also age well too.
88-90

D'Alfonso del Sordo Guado San Leo Daunia IGT 2007
Lot 22 109
Deep black almandine with black reflections and almandine rim and cherry at the nail. The bouquet is powerful, with haunting vegetal laced berry fruit supported by greenish accents and spice, and some balsamic notes as well, and nice spice as well. Quite rich and very young. On the palate it's full, with rich cherry fruit laced with vegetal and balsamic accents and supported by fairly brifth berry fruit acidity, and by tannins that have a greenish peppery burr and flow into a fairly long finish with tannic underpinning. Quite pleasant, and a step up in terms of vintage quality with respect to the 2006; it's a very young wine, and will age nicely for many years, though one could press it into service now woitu something along the lines of leg of lamb.
90-92

Tasted at Vinitaly (and a photo for the week): Cà Lojera

I met Cà Lojera's Ambra Tiraboschi, who looks rather like Maria Callas in the photo she puts up in her stand at Vinitaly, many years ago at Bordeaux's Vinexpo: It was the end of a very long day, my feet wished they belonged to someone else, and I had stopped to say hi to Paolo Abbona of Marchesi di Barolo. Sat down too, and found myself sipping a rather nice sparkling wine that turned out to be a Lugana from the southern shores of Lake Garda.

When I asked whose it was, Ambra raised her hand and smiled. Much has happened since then; they've redone their cellars and added a restaurant, which is open for dinner during the summer months, and Ambra's daughter Alessandra has had two delightful children. I make a point of stopping by her stand at Vinitaly every year. This year her husband Franco, who dislikes the limelight, was not there, but there was another surprise: she had redone her labels, with drawings by Angelo Peretti, friend and colleague who is also Director of the Consorzio del Bardolino.

2010, says Ambra, was a difficult vintage with very uneven ripening thanks to the cool temperatures and rains; they had to work their way though the vineyards repeatedly during the harvest, and the wines from the different passages were very different. "It took a lot to assemble it," she said.

Cà Lojera Lugana DOC 2010
Lot TF 03 11
Pale brassy yellow with brassy reflections. The bouquet is fairly rich, with stong greenish accents mingled with minerality and sour lemon fruit, and supported by fairly intense sea salt. On the palate it's ample and languid, with unexpectedly rich loquat fruit that's fairly sweet, and supported by deft minerality that flows into a long mineral finish with a slight bitter counterpoint that continues into the finish. I had expected the acidity to be more citric than mineral from the nose -- and observation -- but it is nicely balanced and will work well as an aperitif or with lake fish.
2 stars

Cà Lojera Lugana Superiore 2006
Lot TF LS 06
Pale brassy yellow with brilliant brassy reflections and white rim. The bouquet is deft, with considerable minerality laced with slight butterscotch and slight hints of white fruit, including white pear. Nice depth. On the palate it's rich, with loquat fruit supported by citric acidity that is laced with butterscotch bitterness and is supported by some savory accents that flow into a clean loquat-laced finish with a bitter slightly tannic underpinning that also has some sea salt to it. Pleasant, and though it's a little powerful to work as an aperitif, it will be quite nice with grilled or roasted fish, and will also work well with creamy risotti and white meats. In short, versatile.
88-90

Cà Lojera Lugana del Lupo Lugana DOC 2006
Lot TF LL 06
Brilliant brassy yellow-gold with brassy gold reflections and slight greenish highlights. The bouquet is rich, with butterscotch supported by some greenish accents and hints of tamarind, and also dusky greenish honeydew melon with hints of honeysuckle as well. Nice depth and complexity. On the palate it's ample, with rich minerality supported by languid butterscotch and mineral acidity that flow into a fairly long mineral finish with some butterscotch accents. Quite pleasant, and will drink very well as an aperitif, or with delicate fish or white meats.
2 stars

Cà Lojera Chardonnay Monte della Guardia 2009
Lot TF 09 04
This year Ambra decided, since the people at the Garda DOC appellation refused to let her bottle her rosé, made from red grapes that go into two Garda DOC wines, as Garda DOC, that she would label all of the wines that qualify as Garda DOC as Vino Da tavola, table wine. I can't but agree with her decision.

This said, the Chardonnay is brilliant brassy yellow with white rim, and has an elegant bouquet with rich floral accents supported by slight citric fruit and some minerality, with slight butterscotch sweetness as well. Nice balance. On the palate it's bright, with lively lemony honeydew melon fruit supported by minerality and some savory accents, and flows into a fairly long tart finish. Graceful, and quite pleasant; it clearly draws from a better vintage than the 2010 Lugana, and is quite pleasant to drink. It will work very well with grilled or roasted fish, and would be nice with perch and polenta, a classic dish from Lake Garda.
90-91

Cà Lojera Tur Blanc Metodo Classico 2008
Something new! Pale brassy yellow with brilliant reflections and fine perlage. The bouquet is is pleasant, with bread crumbs and citric accents supported by some gunflint and slight butterscotch with underlying bitterness. Nice depth. On the palate it's bright, with fresh gunflint shot lemony fruit supported by sparkle and citric-mineral acidity that flows into a fairly long mineral finish with a sea salt underpinning. Pleasant, and will work well as an aperitif, and also be a nice wine to drink a tutto pasto.
2 stars

Cà Lojera Rosato Monte della Guardia 2010
Lot TF RO 10
Pale salmon with brilliant salmon reflections and white rim. The bouquet is fairly intense,with ith raspberry fruit supported by some spice, also some savory accents. It's a bit disjointed, and this is because it was just bottled. On the palate it's pleasant, with fairly rich moderately sweet raspberry fruit supported by delicate acidity and some bitter accents, and it flows into a clean slightly sour raspberry finish. Pleasant in a light key, and will work nicely as an aperitif, with simple summer dishes, or with friends on a summer evening.
1 star

Cà Lojera Merlot Monte della Guardia 2008
Lot TF ME 10
Lively cherry ruby with black reflections and some almandine in the rim. The bouquet is fresh and vinous with fairly pronounced warmth and some vegetal accents, not quite bell pepper but green, and fairly intense graphite shavings too. Up front in a smiling sort of way. On the palate it's ample and quite smooth, with dusky berry fruit supported by moderate mineral acidity and tannins that are extremely smooth, as Merlot's are want to be, becoming drier in the finish, and assuming some savory brambly accents. Pleasant, and will drink very well with succulent not too fatty red or white meats; it would be nice with roast beef cooked medium rare and sliced thick, or with pork loin, for example.
2 stars

Cà Lojera Cabernet Monte della Guardia 2008
Lot TF CA 08
Dusky brick ruby with black reflections and cherry rim. The bouquet is quite varietal, with rich slightly brandied cherry and forest berry fruit supported by grilled pepper and sea salt with some spice and hints of graphite shavings as well. On the palate it's quite pleasant, with bright smooth back cherry fruit laced with ripe currants and hints of blackberry sweetness, and supported by fairly bright mineral acidity and smooth sweet tannins that have warm grilled pepper accents that complement the fruit and emerge nicely in the finish, which is fairly long and gradually dries. It's one of those wines you can set out and drink, and suddenly realize you're paying more attention to than you expected to, rather like a person who comes across as simple but turns out to be a very good conversationalist. It will be quite nice with grilled meats or light roasts, and if you like Cabernet -- it makes no bones about what it is -- you will enjoy it.
88-90