Tuscan wineries at Viva Vino LA/1

LOS ANGELES, USA – Viva Vino LA, the premiere Italian wine festival presented by the Italy‐America Chamber of Commerce West, The North American Sommelier Association, and Please the Palate, makes its grand return to Los Angeles for a second year of illustrious and educational dinners, lectures, tastings and seminars May 14­‐19 at various locations.

There will be some Tuscan wineries.

POGGIO ALLE SUGHERE – Family owned Alto Adige Pinot Grigio & Trentino Merlot made with tradition, quality, & Sustainability. Lionello Marchesi – Premium Tuscan Sangiovese Producer from Col Di Sole – Montalcino, Poggio alle Sughere – Maremma, & Castello di Monastero – Radda. Villa Pozzi – Sicillian wine producer with traditonal and popular varietals of quality and value. The wines: Poggio alle Sughere Morellino Di Scansano 2008, the grapes: 90% Sangiovese; 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.

PODERE SEPAIO – Podere Sepaio has an experimental and innovational philosophy: it aims at searching new expressions of Bordeaux grape varieties in the Bolgheri area, with the final goal of producing wines which put together power, elegance and longevity. A new interpreter of the Bolgheri area… The estate Podere Sepaio was founded in 1999. Its 40 hectars are spread between the Councils of Castagneto Carducci and Bibbona. Grape varieties of Bordeaux origin -Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot-, which in the last fifty years have imposed themselves in the area, are grown in lands of quaternary deposits. Other grape varieties are present in small quantities. There are also some hectars of land, which are part of the estate, where Frantoio, Moraiolo and Leccino cultivars of olive trees are grown. The wines Sepaio (Bolgheri DOCG 2007), the grapes 50% Cab. S. 15% Cab. F. 20% Merlot 15% Petit Verdot. Tasting notes: Medium, dark red. Great nose of mushroom, graphite, red cherry, pepper, and earth. A very nice rich cherry and earth palate and a long dry finish. Right in my wheelhouse, lot’s of terroir and fruit.

LA CORSA – The La Corsa estate was selected and acquired years ago by the well known and successful telecommunications manager Marco Bassetti, a gourmet with a grand passion for food and wine. It is located near the Tyrrhenian Sea, on hillside slopes of the Tuscan Maremma, with a southwestern exposure; the average altitude is 50 meters (165 feet) above sea level and is entirely part of the Capalbio appellation (DOC). In 2005 the La Casa vineyard project got under way, a program conducted with the supervision of oenologist Vittorio Fiore and Barbara Tamburini with the objective of realizing new proprietary vineyards planted principally to Sangiovese, with supplementary plantings of Petit Verdot, Teroldego, and Vermentino for the house.

In the initial phase particular attention was given to the physical and chemical characteristics of the soil and to the house’s local micro-climate in order to test their compatibility with the selection of these grape varieties, chosen in advance for the project. The terrain intended for Vineyard use, situated on gentle scope, extends over 18 hectares (45 acres). The soil is principally composed of sandy clays with a good presence of stones, ideal for obtaining red wines of important size, structure, and elegance. The first twelve hectares (30 acres) of vineyards were, accordingly, planted with a rather high vine densties (6000 plants per hectare, or 2400 per acre) and trained either to a cordon de Royat sstem or to a classic Guyot. The vineyard is cultivated with the maximum respect for the environment and with the purpose of obtaining very low yields of grapes per plant.

The wines: La Corsa Il mandrione IGT 2007 (alcohol 13,5%, grapes 100% Sangiovese). Tasting notes: a deep intene ruby red, its exudes aromas of Mediterranean brush, cherries, berry fruit, violets, licorice and an elegant note of graphite. La Corsa Il Mandrione IGT 2008 (alcohol: 13,5%, grapes: 100% Sangiovese). Tasting notes: a deep intene ruby red, its exudes aromas of Mediterranean brush, cherries, berry fruit, violets, licorice and an elegant note of graphite. La Corsa Aghiloro IGT 2010 (alcohol 13,5%, grapes 34% Sangiovese; 33% Petit Verdot; 33% Teroldego), tasting notes: in this wine the force and flavor tension of the Sangiovese grape are balanced in the blend by the noble Petit Verdot and Teroldego. A full ruby in color with purple highlights, it is characterized by flavors of blackberries, black currants, wild cherries, and light notes of Mediterranean herbs.

(1-continues)