video

We traveled from our hotel in Radda Chianti over to the Bolgheri coast last September, making a stop at one of the finest estates in the region, Tua Rita. This estate continues to fire on all cylinders, producing some the top Merlot and blends in the world!  These wines, especially after a few years in cellar, are simply to die for….luscious and velvety smooth, rich and intense yet never over the top.  I don’t know how they do it!

Owner Stefano Frascolla walked us through the vineyards (which you’ll see on future video) and then escorted us into the tasting room where we tasted the 2009 Tua Rita Redigaffi, their 100% collectible Merlot.  The wine already shows deep and beautiful dark cherry, spice, licorice, and chocolate notes.  What’s amazing is that this wine is so bright yet deeply sweet and rich.  You could almost drink it now but I can just imagine what a few years in cellar will do for it.

If you’ve not tried freshly produced Decio pasta, you’re missing something very special.  They offer a wide variety of pastas flavored with notes such as fresh wild mushroom, Szechuan Orange, Chili Cilantro, Tomato Sonoran Spice, Saffron as well as the more traditional Tomato or Spinach Basil Garlic and more.

Watch this video as Gerard cooks up flavorful airline chicken and a poached salmon and scallops dish, both infused with Kief Joshua wines, on a bed of his outstanding pasta and paired with Kief Joshua Viognier and Cephus.  Trust me when I tell you these are wine:food pairings that will impress your guests.

Buried in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy lies the city of Modena, really a small village renown for a very “big” product, balsamic.  We stopped by to visit with Davide Lonardi of Villa San Donnino estate and learn how this aromatic and flavorful product is made and of course taste a range of balsamics from commercial to traditional.  While the video is a little longer than normal, stay with it.  You’ll never look at balsamic the same way again.  And by the way, keep an eye out for a follow up video with Davide in which he takes us back to taste a balsamic over 100 years old!!

It was only a matter of time before Fnb’s creator Pavle Milic, in conjunction with co-owner and chef Charlene Badman, pushed the limits once again, launching not just one but three new exciting concepts under one roof! Check out this video as Pavle takes us through their new market Bodega, the new cozy Baratin Cafe (patterned by the way after the Parisian based Le Baratin that we visited and wrote about in our Fine Dining segment a couple of years ago), and Arizona Wine Merchants, a joint venture between Pavle and Brian Reeder featuring both Arizona and international wine. Knowing Pavle as I do, I can’t imagine that he’ll stop here. Check out the details at www.fnbrestaurant.com.

Pio Cesare produces some of Barolo’s and Barbaresco’s best Nebbiolo based wines.  We visited with Pio’s nephew, Cesare Benvenuto last September, touring the cellars and tasting some great wines.  In this video, we tasted the fantastic 2007 Barolo (from five separate vineyards) and the single vineyard Ornato, wines that according to Pio, are some of the most extracted he’s ever produced. The Ornato is just a sumptuous wine, plush with blackberry and dark plum, flowers and spice and even a hint of orange peel on the finish.  The tannins are perfectly integrated and soft.  This is a wine that has a magnificent future.  And not to take away from it, the Barolo is just a half step behind.

Without debate, Masseto, made of 100% Merlot, is one of world’s finest and most coveted wines.  A blend from three separate sections of the Masseto hill and aged for 36 months, the wine world always waits with baited breath for the new release.  The 2009 will be released sometime this year and based upon my tasting, it’s another winner with soft rounded edges and incredible fruits.

In this video, Axel talks about the Merlot grape, the Masseto hill and its soils and the importance of its proximity to the Tyrrhenian sea.

The Paolo Scavino estate has been producing world class Barolo since its founding by Paolo in 1921.  In 1978, son Enrico, now the head of the estate, convinced his father to vinify grapes from the Fiasc vineyard, the vines nourished by the “tufa” soil comprised of gray silt, sand, marl that takes on a bluish-gray tint interspersed with a yellow-gray sandstone.  Since that time, this single vineyard Cru has become one of most beloved Barolo in the world. Malolactic fermentation takes place in oak barrels followed by one year of aging in French barrique and another year in French oak casks.  The final 12 months aging takes place in bottle. 

Join me here as we taste the 2004 and 2005 vintages, guided by Elisa.  And stay till the end……….we have a very special appearance by a guest.

We visited the Roberto Voerzio estate in La Morra last September, touring the vineyards and tasting their renown wines from the entry level Dolcetto to the single vineyard stars such as the Rocche dell’Annunziata, La Serra and Brunate.  Roberto has been recognized as producing some of the finest single vineyard Barolo in the world, undoubtedly a reflection of his longstanding philosophy to produce wines from minute yields.  This approach, once thought of as outlandish, discarding large yields of grapes in favor of the best, is now practiced widely throughout the region.  In this video, Roberto’s son Davide, rapidly gaining the experience in winemaking and vineyard management from the master, met us in the tasting room and talks about his outstanding entry level 2009 Dolcetto.

These days, the estate is run by Aldo’s three sons, Giacomo, Franco and Stefano with Aldo “popping in” every so often to offer his expertise.  Giacomo, so affable like his father, made time for us as his vineyards approached harvest time, inviting us into his tasting room to discuss the Cru Cicala 2005 and 2007.  The Cicala vineyard is situated on south-southwest hills comprised of clay calcareous soils.  After a mid October harvest, the must remains in contact with the skins for 28 days and eventually, after several decantings in stainless steel tanks, finds it’s way into large Slavonian barrels for 28-30 months.  The result is a wine that’s firmly structured, with great fruit and spice, a long finish and worthy of your cellar.