Wine Notes | Fall 2020 Wine Club 2 – Reds Only | Roscioli

Grapes: Nebbiolo 100%
Region: Serralunga d'Alba (Langhe) - Piemonte
Pairings: Aged cheeses, red meat, rich/earthy dishes, truffle risotto, pasta with sausages and mushrooms. Braised or roasted meats. Open this Barolo for an important occasion. 
Drink By: Ready or by 2028.
Notes: Made with grapes on clayey calcareous soils from Parafada cru from Serralunga d’Alba, between 260 and 370 m above sea level faced to South. Fermentation occurs in steel tanks. Ages for 24 months in big oak barrels and at least 12 in bottle.
Description: Serralunga d'Alba is a one of the best spost in the Langhe area, reflecting the favourable weather conditions and the uniqueness of its terroir. The hills feature optimal exposure, with very few shadowed areas, thanks to the daily accumulated sunshine, which guarantees an ideal microclimate for cultivating vines. Serralunga d'Alba, taking its name from the “lunga serra delle Langhe” (long greenhouse of the Langhe), hence forms its identity around a territory characterised by limestone-clay soil that gives wines great body, with vigorous yet balanced tannins and significant potential for ageing.

Grape: 85% Nerello Mascalese, 15% Nerello Cappuccio
Region: Passopisciaro (Catania) - Sicilia
Pairings: Grilled or roasted meats pairs great with any kind of game meat. Nice pairing with a legumi soup with garlic bread.
Drink by: Ready, but it can rest for over 5 years.
Notes: Fermentation occurs spontaneously by indigenous yeasts and immediately after the wine is aged for a long time, which varies according to the vintage.
Description: Don Pippinu is a heroic wine from 80/100 year old ungrafted vineyards. This is a real, peasant wine, without tricks capable of unleashing all its impetuousness and softness. Scirto is pure craftsmanship, from manual work in the vineyard to harvesting during the harvest up to the small but functional cellar that crowns the sacrifices of Valeria and Giuseppe, where they can finally try their hand at small experiments.

Grapes: Schioppettino 60%, Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso 40%
Region: Prepotto (Gorizia) - Friuli - Venezia Giulia
Pairings: Stunning if paired to a meat ragout gnocchi. Pairs well also with grilled turkey breast with oven-baked potatoes.
Drink By: Ready or before 2024.
Notes: The harvest takes place in the second week of October, carried out manually and collected in dedicated boxes. Fermentation takes place in concrete containers thanks to indigenous yeasts, and lasts for 15 days without checking fermentation. Aging in French oak tonneaux for 22 months.
Description: Le Due Terre is a small winery in Friuli - Venezia Giulia, in the Prepotto area, on the Slovenian border. It was founded in 1984 by the spouses Silvana Forte and Flavio Basilicata who, after a long experience in other wineries, buy a farmhouse with four hectares of vineyards and begin to cultivate their dream. The name of the winery derives from the particularity of the land on which it is placed: one side is made of marl and the other is made of red earth. Silvana and Flavio lead the vineyard and the cellar with minimal human intervention.

Grapes: Sangiovese Grosso 100%
Region: Montalcino (Siena), Toscana
Pairings: A great wine to enjoy alongside hearty red meat dishes such as a prime steak, rich beef stews or seasonal game served with roasted vegetables. The perfect match is a classic Fiorentina cut steak.
Drink by: Ready or before 2030.
Notes: The grapes are thin out manually when green and selected a second time during the cutting season. They observe, even for the alcoholic fermentation, the old and traditional techniques and let the nature take its time. This Brunello is aged in middle capacity slavonian oak barrels, no more than tirthy ectolitres. The bottling procedure, with no filters, permits to sharpen the wine.
Description: Poggiarellino Farm is located in a pleasant and peaceful corner of the Senese countryside, among the old and famous Val d’Orcia’s hills. The 30-acre estate is divided between vineyards, olive trees and cereal production, with just 3 acres dedicated to the production of their exceptional Brunello and Rosso di Montalcino wines. Structurally the full body and smooth tannins are carefully balanced by a bright acidity and impressively long finish which will respond well to further ageing over the next decade or so.

Grape: Gaglioppo 100%
Region: Cirò Marina (Crotone) - Calabria
Pairings: Excellent wine for structured aperitifs based on aged cheeses, typical Calabrian cold cuts and game salami.
Drink by: Ready or by 2025.
Notes: Vines of almost 40 years of age, facing East and West, on clay soils and limestone. Fermentation happens with indigenous yeasts, then it ages for 10 months in cement, then at least 7 months in the bottle.
Description: The Cirò Rosso Classico Superiore by Cataldo Calabretta is absolutely the most representative wine of this new reality of Calabria. A new reality, but that has its roots in the history of the family Calabretta that for over four generations produces wine in Crotone, in the countryside around Cirò Marina. Today Cataldo, with the sisters Maria and Michela, gave a new impetus to this fantastic reality, combining tradition and craftsmanship to his studies by winemaker place in Milan. Harvest strictly in cases, minimum intervention in the vineyard, fermentation with indigenous yeasts and aged in cement to preserve the best and leave intact the characteristics of Gaglioppo, the grape that is the master in the cellar Calabretta. 10 months in cement and 7 months in the bottle make this Cirò Rosso Classico Superiore a red full-bodied and intense that you show with an interesting personality where features freshness and aroma. On the nose there is a succession of notes of cherry, licorice and violet, while in the mouth Cirò Rosso Classico Superiore by Cataldo Calabretta is displayed in all its structure and in all its enveloping tannins.

Grape: Nebbiolo 100%
Region: Castiglione Falletto (Langhe) - Piemonte
Pairings: Surely a pot roasts with Barolo, red meat and game, stuffed guinea fowl, seasoned cheeses.
Drink by: Ready or by 2028.
Notes: Controlled fermentation and maceration in steel with hair submerged for about 50 days, with pumping air. Malolactic fermentation in steel and matures for at least 36 months in 25 hl oak botti. Bottling without filtration.
Description: Here is a Barolo outstanding for its crispness and slaty elegance, its marked savouriness and long-lingering finale, and its sinewy character, qualities that distinguish the wines from Castiglione Falletto. An alluring mixture of delicate rose, wild cherry and leather. Firm, almost raspberry-like acidity with well integrated tobacco notes extended to the palate.

Grape: 80% Nerello Calabrese, 15% Castiglione and other varieties.
Region: Bova (Reggio Calabria) - Calabria
Pairings: Red meat, salami, pasta with ragout and legumes soups.
Drink by: Ready, but it can rest for over 5 years.
Notes: Small vineyard of about one hectare, at an altitude of 700 meters, with the Aspromonte behind and the sea in front. The vines are trained in sapling, no treatments are made, not even with copper, useless in a place like this, apart from a few rare cases in which a little sulfur is used with the classic tank on the shoulder.
Description: The Traclò brothers decided to give life to Lanò, a Greek-Calabrian term of Doric origin that indicates the characteristic millstone where the grapes were pressed. A red Igt Palizzi, obtained from Calabrian nerello, Castiglione and other vines present in the vineyard, including, as Bruno Traclò confided, also some white grapes. Just over two thousand bottles produced, so this Calabrian pearl is certainly a rarity.

Grape: Terrano 100%
Region: Sgonico (Trieste) - Friuli Venezia Giulia
Pairings: It can be opened with a charcuterie plate made with aged salami and cheeses, also great with a meat ragout pasta or a slowly cooked pork belly with grilled vegetables.
Drink by: Ready, but it can rest for over 7 years.
Notes: Left to macerate on the skins for 15 days in wooden vats, it is then aged for a year in 25-hectolitre barrels.
Description: Sandy Škerk produces its Teran in the Trieste Karst, a stony and windswept land, which gives the wines a strong personality. The vines are constantly beaten by the Bora, the cold North-East wind, which helps to keep the grapes always dry and healthy, allowing agronomic management without the use of chemical principles, according to the dictates of organic and biodynamic viticulture. The plants produce naturally few grapes and after the harvest, the grapes are brought to the cellar dug entirely into the limestone rock. A vine that is the symbol of Karst viticulture, the Teran is a close relative of the Refosco family, a variety which shares some characteristics. A perfect synthesis between terroir and skilful work of man, still conducted with craftsmanship.

Grape: Nebbiolo 100%
Region: Barolo (Langhe) - Piemonte
Pairings: Stunning if paired with wild boar ragout "Pappardelle" pasta (a thicker fettuccine), great with roasted lamb ribs too.
Drink by: Ready or before 2023.
Notes: Sarmassa, Alba and Sinio from 250 to 550 metres above sea level are the selected vineyards for this Nebbiolo, located on clayey and calcareous soils. Alcoholic fermentation happens in steel vats at controlled temperature with long maceration on the skins. Ages for 8 months in oak barrels of 25 hl and in barrique of 500 l. It spends at least 6 months in bottle before the release.
Description: Nebbiolo by Scarzello is the little brother of the maison Barolo, in a more immediate and juicy version. Aged only in big barrels, this wine plays with hints of cherry, wild strawberry and raspberries, embraced by salty, slightly smoky and spicy notes. The sip is taut, delicate, vibrant with a surprising balance of taste and a balsamic finish that lasts for a long time. Son of the Piedmontese Langhe allows to discover the true essence of the terroir from which it comes.

Grape: Sangiovese (known as "Prugnolo Gentile") 80%, Canaiolo and Mammolo 20%
Region: Montepulciano (Siena) - Toscana
Pairings: Red meat, salami, pasta with ragout and legumes soups.
Drink by: Ready or before 2024.
Notes: The grapes are harvested by hand, put into crates, and are immediately brought to the cellar for destemming. Spontaneous and natural fermentation without addition of yeasts, pumping twice a day during fermentation with the marc sinking. Duration of maceration takes around 8-10 days.
Description: The winery, which belongs to Dora Forsoni who inherited it from the father, owes its name to a historic battle, which saw the Roman army opposed to the Etruscan one. According to the legend, the clash was so bloody that the lands on which today the Poderi lie, theater of the battle, became red with blood ("sangue" in Italian), hence the name "Sanguineto". Wide and multifaceted, after two years spents in oak barrels, it perfectly integrates fruit and spices. Driven by an unusual lightness for the denomination, allows a "compulsive" sipping.

Grape: Giacche and Parigina (Technically illegal to say)
Region: Noto - Sicilia
Pairings: Great if paired with a grilled red tuna fillet, Sicilian caponata or any kind of spicy meat. It could surprise if opened with a gourmet hamburger.
Drink by: Ready, but it can rest for over 5 years.
Notes: Biodynamic agriculture, without herbicides, without chemical and/or synthetic treatments and/or fertilizations, pesticide treatments limited to low doses of mine sulfur; fertilizations limited to biodynamic preparations, pruning shredded and green manure of grasses and legumes.
Description: "Ogni scarrafone è bello a mamma soia" - "A mother of a beetle finds her son beautiful", Neapolitan proverb. Which literally means that it does not matter how bad you are but your mom will love you anyway. Or if I've never made wine it's because I've always thought it would be much easier to drink it, and desperately judge it. Perhaps waiting for that opportunity in which I could put my desires at risk without actually risking anything. In short, the ideal situation. The opportunity presented itself a few years ago, walking among the vineyards of Pierpaolo. I asked, walking on the hill of Marabino what were those slightly different plants. He tells me that maybe they are two hybrid vines of northern Italy, Giacche and Parigina, but he is not convinced. What are you doing? I asked him. I don't know, there are too few plants to do anything, Maximum 300-400 bottles. So I offer him a collaboration: I remove the whim of playing the vigneron and he does all the rest. My idea, I tell him: let's make a wine, I'll buy all the production in advance, and whatever happens, happens. I liked the idea of recovering two unknown vines, in extinction, in such a well-known territory. Giacche, but above all Parigini hybrids are related to the American vines. A lot of fruit, body, perhaps little personality, but this land is magical, if it has ennobled the Nero d'Avola and the Muscatedda, who knows what's possible. So three years later I go back to the cellar with Lindsay, and hell, I think the wine is a bomb. Fruit, strawberry, cherry and a Nordic freshness on the finish. A bipartisan wine, able to satisfy the most simple palate and bribe the most sophisticated palates. Two months ago, the first bottles arrived in Rome and, upon opening the cartons, I saw my label, Vino da Rimessa. An emotion. I finally feel part of a world from which I've always felt detached. There was always a filter, a membrane, that of judgment. Now, I'm part of the game. I open it and immediately feel enveloped by the warmth of the sun, the softness of the fruit. The first taste has the same sweet and lactic taste of the skin of my newborn son. A solar and Mediterranean embrace then leaves the space to an unprecedented, Nordic, austere freshness. The licorice notes here dance with the soft softness of a strawberry jam and then raspberries and oranges and pomegranates and all the red and orange fruits you want. It's a dip in a pool of flavors of the south, in a rustic villa overlooking the sea, on a holiday playing with the great love of my life, my son. Combine it with your best memories, the moments that are only experienced and not described, but above all allow yourself the pleasure of simple things and leave all those grim and pretentious thoughts out of the glass, that desire to see the result of your aspirations in others, in short your children for who they are and not for what you would like them to be.

Grape: Nebbiolo 100%
Region: Barolo (Langhe) - Piemonte
Pairings: Perfect wine for importat occasions or holidays, such as Christmas dinner or Thanksgiving. Ideal with red meat stews, roasted and grilled meat. If opened alone, enjoy this Barolo with a plate of refined and aged Italian and French cheeses.
Drink by: Ready, but it can rest for over 20 years.
Notes: Vineyards located at 250 m. above sea level, facing South-East, on the ground silty-sandy. Vinification starts with the alcoholic fermentation for 7-8 days, where temperatures never exceed 28°C. It ages in Slavonian oak barrels of medium capacity for at least 2 years, then it rests 1 year in bottle before release.
Description: The Brezza philosophy is easily understandable: producing great red wines in the full respect of nature. Hence the choice of organic production, understood as ethical and cultural value and not as a promotional tool. The wines of Brezza represent the noble side of tradition and fit fully in the classical Barolo, but they always manage to maintain dynamism and originality. Founded in 1885 by the skilful work of Giacomo, the cellar Brezza can count on twenty-two acres of land, of which sixteen and resources are devoted to vineyards. 2016 stands to be a very promising – and potentially exceptional – vintage. Producers in all zones have been very happy with the outcome of the harvest season, reporting a crop that’s high in both quality and quantity, with sugar concentration to rival the richness of 2015 but with greater structure and livelier acidity. This is surely one of the best Barolo ever produced.

Olive: 100% Itrana
Region: Sonnino (Latina) - Lazio
Pairing: Ideal raw on crudités, artichokes, and mushrooms of the forest floor, farro and legume salads, carpaccio and tartare of beef, and fish, raw shellfish, marinated fish, soups, vegetables and legumes, risotto, grilled fish, grilled white and red meats, raw and cooked vegetables, fresh and mature, hard and spun cheese.
Notes: Manually harvested in October/November. This monocultivar EVO oil has the DOP certification. Extraction method occurs with cold-crushing in a continuous-cycle plant.
Description: The influence of the sea air, the almost continuous exposure of sunglight, the shape of the rocky terrain, the altitude of the olive groves, and the extreme care and attention put into the process of production and transformation, determine the quality of Cetrone Extra Virgin Olive. Their Extra Virgin Olive Oil is extracted exclusively from Cetrone "Monocultivar Itrana" olives, which are healthy, fresh olives hand-picked directly from the tree and pressed the same day, employing a rigorously cold procedure. Its green color with golden reflections, intense fruity flavor with a harmonious hint of almond, a fragrant aroma, and low oleic acidity (always less than 0.2 %), qualify it as truly unique among the extra virgin quality. The essence of Cetrone Extra Virgin Olive Oil is defined by its naturalness, its exceptional organoleptic characteristics, the low oleic acidity, and by its many recognizable therapeutic qualities.

Olive: 100% Frantoio 
Region: Montenero d’Orcia (Grosseto) - Toscana
Pairing: It matches perfectly with beans starters, grilled red meat, salmon carpaccio, tomato salad, amberjack marinade, cream of legumes, artichoke risotto, gratin shellfish, grilled squid, baked rabbit, grilled chicken and goat cheese.
Notes: Hand-picked in October/November. Extraction method occurs with cold-crushing in a continuous-cycle plant.
Description: Franci Olive Farm was established in the 1950s on the hills of Montenero d’Orcia, a small hamlet at the foot of Mount Amiata, which dominates the landscape of the Orcia Valley in Tuscany, when brothers Franco and Fernando Franci purchased a historic olive grove called Villa Magra and renovated an ancient barn to turn it into an olive mill. The year 1995 represents a turning point for the history of the farm. In fact, it marks the collaboration between Fernando and his son Giorgio, who adds to his dad’s experience a new charge of enthusiasm and entrepreneurship.