Delas Freras Cotes-Du-Ventoux 2006

Glycerine aromas mark this smooth Grenache and Syrah blend from Cotes-Du-Ventoux, super balnced with a slight pepper edge.... here are extensive winemaker notes:

DELAS FRERES
Wines from Côtes du Rhône, France
Côtes-du-Ventoux 2006

The appellation of Côtes-du-Ventoux sits on the East bank of the Rhône river at the foot of the Ventoux mountain range. The appellation extends for 18,000 acres and mirrors the climatic conditions and grape varieties of its neighbor, the Côtes-du-Rhone.

CHARACTERISTICS:
This wine comes from a blend of wines from the heart of the Cote du-Ventoux appellations. The grapes are Grenache (80%) and Syrah (20%). The average Delas production is 16, 670 cases per year.

WINEMAKING:
After harvest, the Grenache grapes are fermented the traditional way in stainless steel tanks mixed daily to allow a soft extraction of carbolic acid.

On the other hand, Syrah is fermented by only the vintage wine in order to fully bring out the fruity aromatic power of this type of vine.

AGING:
After malolactic fermentation, the wines are mixed and then preserved in stainless steel tanks, in temperature controlled wine warehouses for six to eight months until bottled.

TASTING NOTES:
The color is a dark ruby red. There is a dominace of red berries with a combination of power and freshness that carries over onto the palate
Technical Information
Appellation: Côtes-du-Ventoux
Blend: Grenache (80%), Syrah (20%)
Soil Composition: Limestone

Suggested Retail Price: $10

PS. I tasted this wine recommended by bartender at Danny Brown's of Forest Hills.

Sierra Cantabria 2007 Rioja

From San Vicente De La Sonsierra comes this luscious blend of Tempranillo and Graciano grapes.

Deep ruby colors preview aromas of ripe cherries, oak, raspberries, roses and violets.

While on the palate up front are more cherries and roses, plum and black pepper on the mid-palate with figs and licorice on the back of the tongue. Vibrant finish with lively tannins.

This worked perfectly with a medium rare cheddar cheeseburger at Danny Browns in Forest Hills.

Italians dig up vines, wine output growth slows

What follows is a Reuters story about how the Italian government is paying an incentive to growers for digging up their vines in order to cut back wine output.

Wed Jul 15, 1:18 pm ET

MILAN (Reuters) – Wine output growth in Italy, a major producer, will slow down this year after farmers dug up vines because of incentives under the European Union wine sector reform, research showed on Wednesday.

Italy's wine output is expected to rise 5 percent from 4.6 billion liters (1.012 billion Imp gallons) produced in 2008, when it jumped 8 percent, farmers' research center ISMEA and wine industry body Unione Italiana Vini (UIV) said in a statement after conducting joint research.

With growers actively digging up vines, this year's output is likely to be below a 4.8 billion liter average of the past five years, but much depends on a weather ahead of harvesting, ISMEA and UIV said citing preliminary estimates.

The EU reform, which started in August 2008, offers cash to less competitive winemakers to dig up vines to cut back output aiming to drain Europe's "wine lakes." Under a three-year scheme, the cash premium is the highest in the first year.

Italian winemakers applied for cash to subsidize the removal of 11,600 hectares of vines in the 2008/09 year, the research said. The figure compares to a total of 788,393 ha under vines in Italy in 2008, according to Italy's statistics agency ISTAT.

The EU reform aims to remove 175,000 ha of land under vines out of the EU's existing 3.6 million ha.

Italian growers' increasing efforts to prune grapes to improve quality would also rein in quantity, the research said.

Wine output in Tuscany, famous for its Chianti red and its premium cousins Brunello di Montalcino and Nobile di Montepulciano, is expected to be flat on last year, it said.

The region of Piemonte, known for its full-body red Barolo, is likely to see a bigger wine output this year, while forecasts are stable or slightly higher for Italy's main wine producing regions, Sicily and Puglia.

Wine harvesting is expected to start about 10 days earlier this year spurred by hot weather, Italy's biggest farmers group Coldiretti said in a separate statement.

(Reporting by Svetlana Kovalyova, editing by Anthony Barker)

Notro Sangiovese - Bonarda 2008 Argentina

This really interesting blend of 50% Sangiovese and 50% Bonarda from Mendoza region of Argentina. Medium bodied with aromas of ripe red berries, and a forest floor lushness. The flavors are soft and tannins are supple with a long silky finish. Found this for about $10 at The Wine Room of Forest Hills. 13% alcohol.

From Wikipedia
Bonarda is a name applied to several different grape varieties used to make red wine :

Charbono of California is widely grown in Argentina as Bonarda. It originates in Savoie, where it is known as Corbeau or Douce Noir ("Sweet Black"), but is not the same as Piedmont's Dolcetto.

This grape is known in Italy as Dolce Nero ("Sweet Black") and it is believed that the same translations of these two grape names has led to the frequently-quoted statement that they are the same grape. Dolcetto ripens early and makes a light, fruity wine, while Charbono is very late to ripen and makes wines of great substance. Bonarda Piemontese is grown in Piedmont, around Turin, and makes a light, fruity wine. It may be labelled as Bonarda dell'Astigiano, Bonarda di Chieri, Bonarda di Gattinara or Bonarda del Monferrato.

Croatina grown in Lombardy, around Pavia, is known as Bonarda dell'Oltrepò Pavese, making a mildly tannic wine similar in style to Dolcetto.

Uva Rara is called Bonarda Novarese in Novara and Vercelli.

Home Made Wine

Last week while on vacation a friend of mine gave me a bottle of his home made wine. It's a blend of California grapes, namely Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, 70% and 30% respectively.

In the glass it resembled the paler colors of a Pinot Noir, and reflected fresh aromas of cherries and dark berries. More acidic than tannic, showing a slightly fizzy frontal palate similar to that of a Lambrusco, it evolved into blueberry notes with a mild, light finish. Sometimes in summer it's difficult to handle heavy reds, but this one was really refreshing.

Bottle courtesy Frank M.

Primarius Pinot Noir 2007 Oregon

With Pinot Noir sourced from high quality Oregon vineyards, this red wine is produced and bottled in Walla Walla Washington.

Medium in weight with crisp light ruby red colors, an impressive nose loaded with cherries, grassy perfumed fruits and smoked meats, opening as aromas expand into baked cherry pie with a slightly vegetal note.

On the palate a minerality previews vanilla and mild spices with silky tannins, nice integration and a good lasting finish.

Taste courtesy my friend Marc S.