What do you look for in a white wine at your local independent retailer? Does the wine need to have lots of fragrant aromas working together in harmony? Does it include a sweet creamy texture with a strong depth of tropical flavours? If you find yourself answering yes to all the questions above then look no further! The La Vita Moscato D’Asti 2017 by Cossetti has all the characteristics and more to satisfy your thirst for sweet white wine!
The small town of Asti is located in the Piedmont region of Northern Italy. It is widely known for making the classically light fizzy Moscato with typical notes of white peach, white flower, and bright citrus. La Vita Moscato D’Asti 2017 is no exception! Coming in at only 5% abv it is deliciously approachable with full of bold flavours. The aromas of peach and elderflower are big and fragrant. On the first sip, elderflower notes take over before a medium finish of lovely lychee with a small touch of that classic fizz in the background. This Moscato is full of light creaminess and sweetness and is perfect for sunny days or even for breakfast (it must five o’clock somewhere!). If you are looking to pair with food, any fruity desserts would be excellent. If you are planning to pack a picnic basket, make sure to take some apricot Wensleydale cheese with some crackers. I promise, you will not regret it!
Rosé is that aesthetically attractive pink coloured wine which is the embodiment of Summer in a glass. Drunk mostly on days when it is warm and bright outside due its main flavours of red fruits, flowers, and citrus. For example, the Pungirosa 2018 by Rivera (Castel del Monte, Italy) has aromas of wild strawberry, grapefruit, and subtle floral notes. Medium-light bodied with a little acidity and a dry finish on the palate. A nice balanced wine to quench your thirst when it is sunny and 20°C.
A common misconception about rosé wine is that it is made by blending red and white wine together. Whilst this is only true for very few sparkling wine regions like in Champagne, it is rarely made in this process for still rosé.
The most common way in producing rosé is through a maceration process. After the grapes are harvested and pressed, the grape skins are left to macerate in the juice usually between 2-24 hours. This allows the red pigment from the skins to leech out into the grape juice. A longer maceration time usually results in a darker colour in the final product. After macerating it is strain and then fermented without the skins. On the other hand, red wine is usually fermented with their skins, seeds and all then strained. This is one of the main differences in making rosé and red wine in addition to barrel and/or bottle ageing in reds amongst other things.
Wine is always more appreciated when the atmosphere is right, so let us hope it will be a sunny season this year so we can enjoy more barbecues, more picnics and most importantly, more Rosé!
Or biggest selling Gewürztraminer is the sensational Bolognani ‘Sanroc’. The picture on the label is evocative of the “Bear of Vigolana”, which is a dark shape that appears on the snow-covered North Wall of the Vigolana mountain, which stands over the vineyard.
Sanròc: an exclusive vineyard on the South-Eastern hill of Trento, in San Rocco, on the edges of the Bindesi forest, bordering above, with the famous Aquiloni nature trail, which was specifically created to allow even partially-sighted persons to autonomously enjoy this natural oasis. The Sanròc is Bolognani’s premiere white, which is planted in rows (guyot) of only Gewürztraminer grapes, which they attentively grow caring for their environment. In mid-September the grapes are hand-picked and the best bunches selected to make into wine; the wine is then rested on its lees for eight to ten months, which highlights its character. It is bottled at the end of summer and after at least eight to ten months of ageing in bottle is released.
Intense and full of flavours such as rose water, lychee, orange blossom, melon and jasmine. While rich this wine is balanced by the fresh aromatic flavours. Ideal for fish-based platters, especially seafood, or simply on its own, to enjoy the flavour of a great white wine.
Join us on what will hopefully be a sunny July evening for a tasting of some of the best Italian wines available in Ireland. We will have over 20 stunning Italian wines open from Alto Adige in the North all the way to Salento in the heel of Italy. Customer favourites like Pinot Grigio, Prosecco and Valpolicella, to exciting wines such as Traminer Aromatico, Vernatsch, and regions and styles making a comeback like Soave and Orvieto.
Tickets are €5 per person but are redeemable as a €5 off voucher on the night against purchases. Tickets can be booked here on Eventbrite.
Soave (“swah-vay”) is a small Italian village near Verona and Venice which is famous for its white wines made mainly from Gargenega grapes. It is full of citrus fruit flavours, like melon and it has a touch of almond. As great as Soave is, and it is great as a Summer sipper it is much maligned by years of cheap bulk crap served in Italian restaurants in Ireland!
Coffele‘s delightful Castel Cerino Soave Classico exuberantely draws in the taster, keeping its excellent harmony and elegance. With the passing of each year, its youthful quality changes and becomes more mineral in the flavour and complex in the taste. Exclusively from their organic hillside vineyards in Castel Cerino, in the heart of the historic Soave Classico zone, which range between 490-1470 feet above sea level.
The wine is a brilliant, straw yellow, with hints of green when young. The aromas are subtle and fresh, suggesting white flowers, from hawthorn to cherry blossoms, underpinned by fresh apple, white plum, sage, and minerals. On the palate, the wine is dry, with structure and good balance. The long finish has attractive almond notes. Makes an ideal aperitif. Also perfect with fish and shellfish. Goes very well with delicate pasta dishes, especially risotto with peas or asparagus. €17.95
Join us for our first tasting of the summer, when we will be showcasing 10 of our favourite, fabulous wines summer wines! Think sizzling BBQs,grassy gardens, balmy evenings and sunny weekends.
Taste your way through different styles of bubbly, shades of rosé, zippy Sauvignon, crisp Riesling, summer berry reds, and big bbq reds!
Let us tell you the story of small, boutique, craft & family run winemakers.
In 1971 Giovanna Visco and her husband Giuseppe decided to retire from teaching to breathe new life into Giovanna’s family’s estate: a property with cellars in the old walled village of Soave that had lain dormant for over 30 years.
Today their children, Alberto and Chiara, are in control of the day-to-day running and are the head and heart of the place. They are fully aware that the ingredients for a great wine come from the land itself. Around 30 hectares of immaculate vineyards are planted in the Soave Classico zone around Castelcerino (200-350m above sea level) on perfectly exposed hillsides. For about nearly a decade the winery has been following full certified Biodynamic practices (all natural – minimal intervention – spiritual viticulture) in their vineyards
The garganega grape variety from this location is prized for its ripeness and natural acidity when it ripens slowly, allowing for exceptional flavour development. Coffele’s wines often go a step beyond their peers, with the hard work and careful attention to detail that is given to the vineyards. The grapes are all hand-harvested using multiple passes through the vineyards to ensure picking at the perfect moment of ripeness.
This producer is doing a great job, maintaining standards of Soave that some of their neighbours in the area, with much larger resources, would be proud to achieve. The wines are typically high in finesse with delicate mineral notes.
Most recently, Coffele has expanded into the Valpolicella DOC with the purchase of a small estate in Campiano, and are now producing a Valpolicella and an Amarone.
COFFELE VALPOLICELLA 2017 Full of fruit: sour black cherries, blackberries, and ripe red cherries, with hints of balsam and spice and the slightest suggestion of herbaceousness. The aroma is rich and intense, but with great finesse. It is highly structured, harmonious, and delicate, with a long finish. The refreshing acidity balances out the wine’s alcohol, and the tannins are dense yet fine.
The Cascina Feliciana is a family run wine-making company located in Pozzolengo, on the southern side of Garda Lake and a short distance from the motorway exit of Sirmione. The family dedicates themselves with passion to the care of the vineyards and the production of wines, including the renowned Lugana. The Family produces a selection of Lugana wines along with some excellent reds typical of the area.
Feliciana is one of 125 Lugana producers and their ‘Felugan’ Lugana 2017 is one of the best wines we have tried this year. Lugana is typically crisp and refreshing and the Felugan is no exception! It is a wine with a pale straw yellow colour and greenish highlights; its nose is delicately floral, with a hint of almonds, while on the palate it is fresh, pleasantly citrus-like and long. It will pair well with most seafood and fish dishes and is delightful with lemon and thyme roast chicken.
Orvieto is one of the beautiful locales in all of Italia, and Cantina Altarocca just may be the crown jewel of this historic hilltop. With one of Italia’s most beloved and picturesque hotels, Altarocca is an aesthete’s delight; set in a rich color palate of dark, asperous earth, deep-green vines, gentle sage, and blue sky, the villas are sprinkled about, connected by sunwarmed cobblestones.
First and foremost, however, Altarocca, or “high rock,” is a vineyard. Specializing in lush, international varietal wines, this estate delivers surprising–if not shocking–character from familiar grapes, with both authenticity and polish. Owner and winemaker Emiliano Sirchio, a young man with a zest for life, races motorcycles, bicycles (basically, anything on two wheels), and along with his family, manages the gorgeous hotel and even more impressive vineyard. Not to be confused with a tired, rustic Umbrian estate, or (if you’ll pardon the expression) a “ratings chaser” from Bolgheri, Altarocca is a confident, modern estate with deep roots in one of Central Italy’s most historic places. A “bucket list” place to visit, with wines worthy of savoring.
The dedication and passion of the Altarocca Winery in respect to this territory drove us to become organic, for which we obtained certification in 2016. Theirs was an ethical choice combined with the genuine wish to adopt an approach, by which human intervention follows the biological rhythm of nature and no systemic products or phytopharmaceuticals are used. Altarocca has also always been involved in the initiatives for the protection of typical regional wines and quality improvement programs for grapes and winemaking techniques. They are proud to offer a quality brand made with passion, dedication and care.
A blend of 60% Cabernet Franc and 40% Merlot. A ruby red color and violet hues. Intense and harmonious in the nose, rich with notes of red fruit and a vegetable scent. In the mouth is full and balanced, with elegant notes of fruit and smooth tannins. Best coupling with first courses based on meat, roast and grilled meat, cold cuts and medium aged cheese. €19.95
Natural wine has a bit of a buzz going on at the minute. But what is it? And importantly how does it taste? Simply put natural wine is a very low intervention wine that is made by simply picking the grapes, crushing them and allowing the yeast present on the grapes and in the air ferment them. The result tastes more like a kombucha or sour beer than what we traditionally expect wine to taste like.
Decanter Magazine sums up Natural wine as follows:
• Vineyards farmed organically or biodynamically – certification was strongly preferred, but uncertified wines were accepted
• Hand-harvested only
• Fermentation with indigenous (wild) yeasts
• No enzymes
• No additives added (such as acid, tannin, colouring) other than SO2
• SO2 levels no higher than 70mg/l total
• Unfined, and no (or light) filtration
• No other heavy manipulation (such as spinning cone, reverse osmosis, cryoextraction, rapid-finishing, Ultraviolet C irradiation)
But here’s the thing there is no official or regulated definition of natural wine. It is not defined and controlled like So, if someone says you’re drinking a natural wine, it technically doesn’t mean anything!
Is Natural Wine Better For You?
Without the use of sulfites or any other manipulation, people believe that natural wines are better for you. The problem is as above with out regulation this can be true in some cases and not in others. Firstly there is no evidence that sulfites cause wine headaches, blame the alcohol! Secondly SO2 that is used in wine is used in small amounts and helps the wine last longer, sulfite free wines spoil quicker and are more unstable due to not
having SO2 to sterilise the wine from impurities and may have funkier flavours as a result of these impurities.
We don’t currently stock any Natural wines but we do have Monte Zovo’s É Senza 2016, a wine made with out the addition of Sulfites. This wine is similar in style to a Valpolicella but has matured more rapidly, with more tertiary flavours developing in place of the bright cherry fruits. Very soft and enjoyable and worth trying if you wish to see what a low/no added sulfite wine tastes like.
In 1971 Giovanna Visco and her husband Giuseppe decided to retire from teaching to breathe new life into Giovanna’s family’s estate: a property with cellars in the old walled village of Soave that had lain dormant for over 30 years.
selection of Lugana wines along with some excellent reds typical of the area.
Orvieto is one of the beautiful locales in all of Italia, and Cantina Altarocca just may be the crown jewel of this historic hilltop. With one of Italia’s most beloved and picturesque hotels, Altarocca is an aesthete’s delight; set in a rich color palate of dark, asperous earth, deep-green vines, gentle sage, and blue sky, the villas are sprinkled about, connected by sunwarmed cobblestones.
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