Thursday Night Wine Blogging

It's back! The Thursday night wine blog.

Tonight we have a little Italian I found hiding in the back of my wine chiller. Damned if I know when I bought it, but low and behold there it was, calling my name. "It" would be a little something from Tuscany called "Cabreo Il Borgo" from the 1990 vintage. Wow, this certainly has been fully aged!

Perhaps too much.

But we'll see, that is what the wine blog is all about.

Let's open it shall we? The cork is in ok shape, but not great......no bad scent though upon opening the nose is perhaps a bit plummy. Let's pour a bit into the glass.

Ok, I'm getting a little black cherry, that same plum and forest. Ok, how about a slurp; whoa, not bad....perhaps a little too long in the bottle. Still though there are some tannins which is good. Vanilla, that same cherry and something else which I can't quite get. The mouth is dry yet still has some remaining structure. It either needs to breathe to release some more flavor, or it spent a little too much time in the bottle. Lets give it ten minutes and see what happens.

Oh, if I'm guessing the grapes I'd say Sangiovese perhaps grenache, and mayber Merlot which would be a little odd. Damn! Foolish mistake, I knew Sangiovese would predominate given the region, but I should have identified the Cabernet which makes up a full 30% of the wine and explains the tanins after 16 years in the bottle. Oh well. Here is a write up on the vineyard if you're interested.

Oh wow. This is opening nicely. A very nice wine, excellent fruit and the mouth just lasts and lasts. What a fantastic surprise! Pouring another glass.

The background I have been able to find on the wine indicates that it is a Super Tuscan, which we knew, that has been produced since around the mid eighties. The vineyard itself is well regarded, and has been in the same family since 1913. Apparently, the first few years this wine was made the vintners messed around with the oak looking to get the detail right, and really began to hit their stride in '88 which was considered the best of the decade. I couldn't find anything on the '90 specifically, but in my view it is a very good wine....not excellent or great, but a real delight.

As I've said before here, I really enjoy European wines and I continue to find myself coming back to the Rhones and Italian wines. This wine reminds me why. Well structured, finessed, prevalent fruit without being fruity it really works for me.

So, another Thursday, and another wine. Perhaps the best surprise we've had in this series.