Chateau de Pibarnon 1998...

It is something i didn't want on my blog, listing wines and giving my opinion on them - as if my opinion was important! But, even though my opinion doesn't matter, well I have to say I enjoyed this wine thouroughly - so i share about it.

It is a producer i've loved for a while, I discovered the Bandol appelation through Chateau de Pibarnon, and i come back to it with pleasure every time i get the opportunity. Being in New Zealand, it's not the kind of bottle you find in every wine shop, and old vintages are at a premium. So i found this wine in my cellar in France!

Here are the notes i took:
Nose: dry meat, dry figs, garrigue, dry leaves. Ripe fruit, but the main component of this wine is not its fruit.
Mouth: the aromas follow the nose. The oak is completely integrated, and there is still a nice acidity, that keeps it all alive. The tannins are integrated and still a touch dry (not green, but from the oak and structure), more precisely tight. The end of mouth is long and continues on a very ripe fruit - notes of port and maury, and notes of black truffle.
Conclusion: Very good example of Bandol with 10 years of age, voluptuous and with all the power you expect from Bandol. The structure is masculine but rounded by the time. Every element seems to have taken the time harmoniously. The tannic structure is well present, the fruit has not completely disappeared and remains with subtletly showing complexity between the garrigue / dry meat and the ripe fruit. Nice volume without too much roundness, nice presence in the mouth. Will age few years more...

Portrait of this wine: It's a rough man talking to you in the eyes with a gentle tone in his nostalgic voice.

http://www.pibarnon.com/

Visit of Poli Distillerie - Veneto

In Veneto, at Schiavon sits the Poli Distillerie - A beautiful artisan distillery, owned by the Poli family who has for generations developed its distillation systems to acquire the best as possible. Nicely guided through the whole distillery process by Alessandro Villanova, in charge of Extern Relations, I got to understand the history of the family with Grappa, and the love and passion they put into it. The concern of search for ultimate quality, from the raw materials (coming from the surroundings: by memory Bassano, Breganze, Barostica) to the improvement of the distillery system is evidence when you visit the place. Continuous improvements of the system with the use of fresh pomace and discontinuous cycle, however still in the tradition as the old steam cauldrons in copper were kept, and certainly were the secrets of distilling too. Jacopo Poli, the actual head of the family, kindly took some time to meet me and to talk without rush, at a moment that was definitely difficult as they were in the middle of harvest.

The wide tasting at the end of the distillery tour was very enjoyable as well, as you get to taste the different eaux de vie, and grappas Poli makes. What a pleasure for the senses, and that even if you were not tasting – I was though indeed! I particularly loved the Classical Grappa, I would say it is the essence of Grappa as you imagine it when you feel like a purely defined grappa both in the aromas and the mouthfeel. I also loved the special Jacopo Poli range, and particularly the Grappa aged in oak which brings that unusual structure, and luscious oak aromas melted in classical grappa aromas. Both of these grappas were showing subtlety and elegance in a pleasant voluptuous warmth without heat.

I also enjoyed seeing the good balance between tradition and modernity, in the systems again, but also in the marketing: researched packaging with sober and elegant lines – in phase with the modern customer, but still showing the historical roots of this family business; the use of the name of Jacopo Poli as a new modern value to the business; the tasting room and the new Grappa museum; the examples are numerous. The attention to detail is definitely showing at every step.

Once again, I have been touched by the generosity of italians, in the present case Jacopo and Alessandro, and from the beginning to the end of this very personal visit, I have felt I was in a family affair, led by tradition and willing to be part of its time. A thoughtful business, led by love and passion for its know-how and its region.

Only one last thing to say: Grazie mille.

Travel with me in San Gimignano

I went for a quick visit in San Gimignano to give a hand harvesting the famous Vernacia for the winery of Monte Oliveto which is partly owned by the father of Lorenzo Zonin (see article below). A little building of stones shows an old piano and few tables that invite visitors to taste and buy wines. Guests also have the possibility to stay in a renovated farm of stones, in a traditional though clear and modern style with view on the hills of vineyards on one side and on the village of San Gimigniano on the other side. Vernacia and olive oil are produced there, on gentle hills flowing one after the other in nuances of greens, greys and yellows.
The rain came after the first day, so my time there was short, but there again: a very nice vineyard of high vines (fruit wire at around 1.5m high), all in slope.

Close your eyes and travel with me: Coming up and down the slope, with the perfume of soft mint wildly growing in some of the rows, under the shocking hot sun shining above our heads while our shoulders show signs of stiffness, and the sound of the few ten people cutting the grapes and dropping the cases in the truck while chatting, laughing and at times shouting at loud voices.