Franciacorta Tasting with Jeremy Parzen
@ I Trulli Restaurant, NYC (7/6/2015)
Jeremy Parzen, who writes one of my favorite blogs on the Internet,
Do Bianchi,
was in town hosting a tasting of Franciacorta sparkling wines at I Trulli.
Jeremy is working on behalf of The Consortium of Franciacorta Producers
promoting their wines at various locations around the US.
He is also writing a blog called
Franciacorta: The Real Story,
where you can find out a lot more about these fine sparkling wines from Northern Italy.
I was able to take the train down and organize a
lunch
with a few fellow Neb Heads following this tasting.
Turned out to be a lovely way to spend a summer day.
For each image, I have posted a compressed (and possibly cropped) version.
Click on it to see the original, much larger image.
Jeremy introduces the wines of Franciacorta:
Franciacorta
is a sparlking wine made in a similar style to Champagne.
In the US, these wines range in price from at little as $15 on sale to over $50 for the top
aged vintage wines.
The term "Brut" is used in Franciacorta similarly to its meaning in Champagne and other sparlking
wine regions to denote a fairly dry wine.
In Franciacorta, the term "Satèn" means a white wine made from white grapes, typically called
"Blanc de Blancs" in other regions.
Flight 1
- NV Barone Pizzini Brut - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(Chardonnay, Pinot Noir) Lovely, dry, refreshing. Leesy.
(90 points)
- 2011 Barone Pizzini Satèn - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(100% Chardonnay) Lighter, long, flavorful.
(89 points)
- NV Il Mosnel Brut - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(60% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Blanc, 10% Pinot Noir) A little yeast in the nose.
Dry, steely and tart on the finish.
(88 points)
- 2010 Il Mosnel Satèn - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(100% Chardonnay) Expansive nose. Classic, dry blanc de blancs.
Strong charonnay flavor. Lovely.
(90 points)
Flight 2
- NV Monte Rossa Brut Prima Cuvee - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(85% Pinot Chardonnay, 10% Pinot Noir, 5% Pinot Blanc) Dry and a little sour.
(86 points)
- 2009 Monte Rossa Cabochon - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(70% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir) Dirty poop nose. Sour.
(NR)
- NV Montenisa Brut - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, and a smaller amount of Pinot Noir)
Crisp, lemony, nice and refreshing.
(88 points)
- NV Montenisa Brut Rosé - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(100% Pinot Noir) Soft. A little dirty. No rosé color.
(86 points)
Flight 3
- NV Ricci Curbastro Brut - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(60% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Blanc, 10% Pinot Noir) Dry, pleasant.
(87 points)
- NV Ricci Curbastro Satèn Brut - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(100% Chardonnay) Dry, a little softer and more flavorful.
(88 points)
- NV Ronco Calino Brut - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(80% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Noir) Appealing yeasty nose. More fruit on the finish.
(90 points)
- NV Ronco Calino Satèn - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(100% Chardonnay) Yeasty, complex nose. Very dry.
(89 points)
Flight 4
- NV Contadi Castaldi Brut - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(80% Chardonnay, 10% Pinot Noir, 10 % Pinot Blanc) Nice doughy nose.
Dry, flavorful, appealing.
(89 points)
- NV Contadi Castaldi Rosé - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(65% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Noir) Mild yeasty fruity nose.
Delicious red fruit. Clearly the best, most flavorful so far and the first
rosé that I would have picked out blind as a rosé.
(92 points)
- NV Bellavista Alma Cuvée - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(80% Chardonnay, 19% Pinot Noir, 1% Pinot Blanc) Grapefruit an peach nose.
Soft, balanced, tasty. Very nice.
(91 points)
- 2006 Bellavista Pas Operé - Italy, Lombardia, Franciacorta DOCG
(65% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Noir) Yeasty nose with a hint of peach.
Delicious and crisp with lots of appealing fruit salad.
These last 3 are the best of the tasting.
(92 points)
Jeremy's commentary on this tasting.
Charles Scicolone, one of the most knowledgeable people on Italian wines, has a much more
detailed and thorough post on this tasting.
All original content © Ken Vastola