If you know me well, then you know I am passionate about Italian wines. In this Saturday’s, September 21, VINTAGES release, we have two incredible values to share with you! Both wines were grown organically, with very little intervention in the vineyard, or in the winery. They are pure expressions of the vintage and where they were grown. To add to that, both wines received 90 point scores from some of the most respected writers in the wine business, and both wines are under $19!
Sottimano’s Dolcetto d’Alba Bric del Salto DOC 2011 is full of fresh vibrant fruit, and if you haven’t yet tasted any Piemontese wines from the 2011 vintage, they tend to be a bit riper and plumper than usual, and this wine is proof of it. Delicious!
Ciù Ciù Merlettaie Offida Pecorino DOCG 2011 is a crisp, clean, mineral driven white, with soft citrus flavours, a style that matches the bountiful seafood based dishes omnipresent in its home on Italy’s Adriatic coast of Le Marche.
Both of these wines are tremendous values that you don’t want to miss out on!
Sincerely,
Le Sommelier
416.603.7026
Sottimano Dolcetto d’Alba Bric del Salto DOC 2011
Varietal: 100% Dolcetto
Alcohol: 12.5%
The “Bric Del Salto” Dolcetto is the result of the different soils of the “crus” in which the vines are grown. It is well balanced in all of its components, starting with its deep color, its fruity, rich and elegant nose, and a complex, lingering and fresh taste.
Review: “Another house speciality, Sottimano’s 2011 Dolcetto d’Alba is packed with juicy blueberries, flowers and sweet spices. Classic Dolcetto notes are given a little extra volume because of the warmth of the year. This round, fleshy Dolcetto is pure pleasure. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2015.” – 90 pts, Antonio Galloni, Wine Advocate (Oct 2012)
$18.95 retail price per bottle
Available by the bottle through LCBO VINTAGES. To purchase your wine, click HERE to check store availability. LCBO #330738.
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Ciù Ciù “Merlettaie” Offida Pecorino DOCG 2011
Varietal: 100% Pecorino
Alcohol: 14.0%
Soil: Quite varied, with considerable clay (280m ASL)
The lace workers of Offida weave together the threads, with precise and quick movement of their fingers. They are the last witnesses of a precious art of ancient origin… so it is the origin of Pecorino, a noble Italic, austere, harsh and strong grape’s variety, which has been confined for decades onto the bare and steep slopes of the Piceno Apennines. A few wine growers have recently rediscovered this wine thanks to their love and enthusiasm. Pecorino is rare, precious and able to exhale a strong personality recalling ethereal and persistent sensations, year after year. Its personality and strength are harmonically enhanced by fermentation in “noble” wood, a perfect example of the past combined with a new oenological knowledge.
Reviews: “Great value in a firm, complex white. This is fairly hefty and spicy with yellow gold colour and a generous toasty, nutty, dried fruit, lemon and almost flinty nose. A bit mindful of ageing Chablis. Lots of character and a firm structure and a nutty finish establishing it in Italy. Excellent length. Tasted September 2013” 90 pts, David Lawarson, WineAlign.com
“Taught and extremely flavourful, generous both aromatically and palate-wise. With an abundance of cool minerality bolstering the acidity and with ripe peachy, passion fruit, lime, crunchy sea salt and honeysuckle flavours that are incredibly seductive. Great length. Try with grilled calamari. Tasted August 2013.” 91 pts, Sara d’Amato, WineAlign.com
$16.95 retail price per bottle.
Available by the bottle in LCBO Vintages through the September, 14, 2013 release. To purchase your wine, click HERE to locate store availability. LCBO #245670.
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I have not tasted the Ciu Ciu Pecorino, but I picked up a bottle of the Sottimano Dolcetto at my local on Tuesday, then went back and bought a case on Wednesday. It’s sublime. If I was presented with a glass blind, I would have priced it at double of what it’s going for.