Notes from an Italian themed dinner I arranged, wines from my cellar and not tasted blind.
With roasted spice chickpeas, pesto stuffed cherry tomatoes, rullepolse and tartine de foie gras:
1989 J. Lassalle Champagne Blanc de Blancs – now showing considerable colour and with a nice toasty nose, this has matured into a delightful taosty wine.
With lentil and sausage soup:
2004 Russo Barbicone – the first of a pair of IGT wines based on sangiovese.ciliegiolo blends. Very enjoyable nose with hints of tar and spice, some tannin and good fruit and length. Drinks well now.
1999 Roccaccio Fontenova – fruit driven nose, fresh and with a fair bit of fine tannin, mellow and tasty now. Sweet finish.
With wild mushroom (morels and chanterelles) gallettes:
1995 Badia a Passignano Chianti Classico Riserva – excellent dark fruit nose, good fruit in the midpalate and good length. Very smooth in the mouth.
1995 Ruffino Riserva Ducale Gold Label – a riper more roasted nose, mellow and smooth in the mouth and with good acidity. Slightly low in fruit and not as attractive as the Badia.
We had a palate cleanser of avocado dressed with soy, EVOO, lemon and toasted sesame.
With roast lamb and vegetables:
1990 Parusso Barolo – my nose was still not up to par after a bout of flu and I failed to detect a whiff of TCA that others noted, but the slightly musty earthy nose wasn’t too far off and the tar and fruit worked well. On palate, tasty and balanced if a bit rustic, and of course if slightly corked, impossible to tell what the fruit levels would have been otherwise.
1990 Scavino Barolo – a more floral nose, more tannin in the mouth but quite smooth and less rustic, riper with more fruit in the middle and a better wine all round.
With Roquefort stuffed pears:
1988 Taurino Patriglione – this Negroamaro based wine has always shown well and this, my last bottle, continued that tradition. Dark, with a ripe spicy sweet nose, and quite savoury flavours in the mouth, with a medium long dry finish, it went very well with the dessert and accompanying cheese.