On the Road with the Grape Guy

A Greek Wine Tasting and Masterclass

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Category: On the Road with the Grape Guy

(October 2024) ... Thanks to Kolonaki Group for bringing Greek Wine Week to Ontario … hope they keep this event up; a great way to shine a spotlight on these great wines.

Domaine Skouras 2020 Grande Cuvee - Nemea ($39.95)
(Agiorgitiko)
Winery established in 1986. Dark fruit (cassis), with smoky-tobacco, subtle mocha, silky tannins, and a smooth mouthfeel.  (****)

Kir-Yianni Winery 2023 Le Nord ($18.00 - 25707)
(Assyrtiko)
Great fruit and mineral component along with lots of nice stone fruit.  (****)

Samos Wines NV Vin Doux ($15.95)
(White Muscat)
95% of their 4400 acres is devoted to Muscat, so this is a staple wine, and it shows. Sweet dessert wine. A lovely vin doux with sweet tangerine/marmalade and burnt caramel. Acid plays a nice balancing role; it’s also a great value.  (****)

Alpha Estate 2023 Malagouzia - SingleVineyard: Turtle ($18.95 - 32161)
(Malagousia)
Winery established in 2005 as a grower and maker partnership. Refreshing and floral, lovely with hint of sweetness, white fruit, peach, fruit forward with pleasant acidity.  (*** ½+)

Domaine Skouras 2022 Saint George
(Agiorgitiko)
Soft and supple - easy across the tongue, slightly floral, along with some muted red fruit and smoke. (*** ½+)

Kir-Yianni Winery 2021 Cuvee Villages ($18.00 - 14151)
(Xinomavro)
Light in colour, good acidity with some grippy tannins. Fruit has cranberry, sour cherry, and subtle raspberry. (*** ½+)

Mega Spileo 2022 Cuvee III ($21.95 - 25708)
(Mavrodaphne / Cabernet Sauvignon)
Aged in American oak and developed to 9g of sugar. Obviously, there’s a sweet flavoured palate; smooth and silky, rich in dark fruit with a long finish.  (*** ½+)

Wine Art Estate 2022 Idisma Drios ($28.95 - 36834)
(Assyrtiko)
This winery was established in 1995 by hobbyists and is located in Drama. Here they use 1/3 new oak, bringing some sweet vanilla and slightly nutty note to the wine. There’s great acidity and fruit forward, notes of apple, peach and kiwi.  (*** ½+)

Wine Art Estate 2019 Techni Alipias ($24.25 - 26944)
(Cabernet Sauvignon 70 / Agiorgitiko)    
Dark fruit forward: black cherry and cassis, smoky-tobacco, herbal finish.  (*** ½+)

Alpha Estate 2021 Axia ($21.95 - 239897)
(Syrah / Xinomavro)
Gentle fruit, subtle spice and easy drinking. Name means value, and yes that is what it is: simple but tasty.  (*** ½)

Thalia 2023 White ($13.20 - 273490)
(Assyrtiko / Sauvignon Blanc)
Easy and pleasant; summer in a glass: with its nice white fruits, almost tropical.  (*** ½)

Wine Art Estate 2018 Idisma Drios – Xi ($56.95 - 35719)
(Xinomavro)
1 year in oak; delivers on some sweet fruited notes; but also prune, tomato and oak.  (***+)

Boutari 2023 Moschofilero ($16.15 - 172387)
(Moschofilero)
Has a very floral character, almost gewurztraminer-lite.  (***+)

Thalia 2022 Red ($12.95 - 15285)
(Cabernet Sauvignon 30 / Agiorgitiko 70)
Gentle, easy, uneventful, but with a nice touch of fruit.  (***+)

Visit to Tenuta Sette Ponti

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Category: On the Road with the Grape Guy

(June 2024) ... A side trip to Tenuta Sette Ponti, after A Montefalco, proved to be an eye-opening experience. I’d always known about Crognolo and Oreno, but Sette Ponti has branched out to other areas around Italy, to bring us some very exciting wines. Let’s take a look …

Poggio al Lupo 2021 Cabernet
(Cabernet Sauvignon from Maremma)
Pretty and plush, earthy and black fruited with notes of mocha, black cherry, cassis, and soft tannins. A wine that’s balanced and well-integrated.  (**** ½)

Tenuta Sette Ponti 2019 Vigna dell' Impero
(Sangiovese from Toscana)
Oldest vines (pl. 1935) and a unique clone ... soft and smooth, fruit is upfront, and red in nature with hints of oak; but the fruit shines through as fresh and light and skips across the tongue.  (**** ½)

Tenuta Sette Ponti 2022 Oreno
(Merlot 45 / Cabernet Sauvignon 40 / Petit Verdot 15 / Cabernet Franc 10 from Toscana)
There's a freshness to this wine. It’s been nicely integrated with its oak, dark fruit and spice with subtle vanilla nuances on the finish.  (**** ½)

Orma Winery 2021 Orma
(Merlot 50 / Cabernet Sauvignon 30 / Cabernet Franc 20 from Bolgheri)
This is the first passage of grapes and the best selection. Lots of fruit rides a wave of oak, but that oak remains in the background and does not get in the way. The highlight here is the elegance on the finish.  (****+)

Orma Winery 2021 Aola di Orma
(Cabernet Franc from Bolgheri)
Fruit forward (red) with cigar box and mocha – there’s even some strawberry with subtle grit. Pretty.  (****+)

Orma Winery 2022 Passi di Orma    
(Merlot 40 / Cabernet Sauvignon 35 / Cabernet Franc 25 from Bolgheri)
Properties lies between Sassicaia and Ornellaia, those are some pretty righteous neighbours and valuable piece of land: ripe cherry, smooth, silky, easy drinking, with some blue fruit and nice acidity; it has a simplicity, but with a real elegance.  (****+)

Tenuta Sette Ponti 2021 Sette
(Merlot from Toscana)
This is a new project and proving to be a real winner from the get-go: blueberry and cherry, smooth and easy to drink; there’s a little tannin punch on the mid-palate, but the finish is lush.  (****+)

Orma Winery 2023 Bianco di Orma    
(Vermentino from Bolgheri)
Nice citrusy-grapefruit on the nose; white flowers, citrus pith, fresh, and crisp.  (*** ½+)

Tenuta Sette Ponti 2018 Vigna dell' Impero
(Sangiovese from Toscana)
A little mocha and cherry, with some dusty tannins that prove to be non-aggressive, but certainly present. (*** ½+)

Poggio al Lupo 2023 Vermentino
(Vermentino from Maremma)
Fleshier style, grapefruit skin, mineral, and salty on the tongue through to the finish.  (*** ½)

Tenuta Sette Ponti 2021 Crognolo
(Sangiovese 90 / Merlot 10 from Toscana)
Aged in both tonneau (large) and barrique (small) barrels ... dusty, fruity with some oak nuances on the finish.  (*** ½)