2023 Varvaglione Susumaniello Salento

Another Susumaniello adventure from time spent hanging around the Salento bit of Puglia that’s worth a few words maybe. This very pretty labelled bottle came to the table from a small but nicely stocked enoteca found in among the winding alleys of old seaside Otranto. The label neatly shows most of the delicious things local to the area including octopus who thoughtfully seem to have enough legs to keep me fed. A couple of years rest since bottling seem to have rounded but not diminished those rich red fruited Susu flavours. A note of nutty naturalness sits comfortably with that deep and very ripe pomegranate tang together with a sweet spicy earthiness. Licorice, cinnamon and fruit chocolate seem a reasonable explanation of the flavours too. Soft and velvet rubbed the wrong way tannins keep the scales from tipping. A lovely, just right, roundness seems the import, not too much of anything, not too little. Comparisons can be a bit silly when the point of the expedition is to find local difference but they can help us understand maybe. So, if pushed, perhaps a bit like one of those fresh, deeply purple Spanish Garnachas, particularly Tintorea or a very ripe Bierzo Mencia sort of gets there but there’s more fat here. The maestro of Italian wine grapes, Dr. Ian D’Agata, suggests Susumaniello means load up the donkey in dialect due to historical high yields but the recent revival seems more about flavour and pleasure.

14% alcohol. Diam. €15.

93 distinctively local points.

2025 Azienda Candido Casina Cucco Susumaniello Salento IGP

It’s a joy to find another really interesting variety rescued from an almost fatal decline, particularly in the heat of Puglia which is already facing warmer summers. In fact us humans have managed to disrupt even the benign and fertile Salento beyond unbearably hot summers. Catching the train across from Calabria, the number of dead or dying olive trees was noticeable, particularly as Puglia produces so much good EVO. It seems a nasty bacterial infestation is responsible which was introduced by importing infected coffee plants. All is perhaps not lost, as there seems to be a couple of resistant varieties but it’s yet another limit to some traditional diversity. Anyway back to grapes grown in what was Magna Grecia where wine and oil have been a part of life for millennia. This bottle was a delicious adventure in terms of both flavour and structure. The former rich and ripe with pomegranate, dark cherry and a sooty depth of full blown ripeness but not the dried grape skin thing that seems to inhabit Negroamaro and other locals. The shape was a succulent surprise. Quite strong but what feels like naturally soft and well bound acidity and velvety tannins, all adding an unexpected freshness. After trying some local Calabrian reds made from Gaglioppo and Magliocco which from limited sampling always seemed to be acidified to a purple toughness or rusty from elevated ph, this Susumaniello was a breath of right grape, right place fresh air. A couple of weeks exploring Italy’s lovely heel and searching for Susu became a mission. It seems to make good rosato too, double delicious. The holiday apartment even had a pottery donkey to support the idea Susumaniello means load up the donkey.

13.5% alcohol, nice compared to some of those local rocket fuel Primitivi. Diam which seems to have overtaken Nomacorc by some way in the south. €12 bargain

92 points.

2025 Pellegrino Il Salinaro Grillo

While Etna Bianco will always be my favourite wine from La Bella Sicilia, the round comfort and sea salty cut of Grillo from out west seems to be yet another way to enjoy the dolce vita. This one from a Marsala producer is a surprisingly fine version, some can often be a bit too ripe and broad or too green and propped by some sweetness. Not this, like one of the new Jerez Vino de Pasto, there’s great definition to yellow fruit, sweet grassy hay, all made delicious by some saline refreshment. A bit of treble by way of almost a jasmine and orange blossom top note too. The label doesn’t lie, it’s that sea salty breeze thing that finally gets you coming back for more. To coax such balance from such a hot climate is quite something. Perhaps not the most intense or concentrated of things, or the sheer class of a good Etna Bianco but a perfect first glass as the golden hour of yet another timeless Mediterranean sunset melts the day’s worries. Great value to boot. Italian pun, no.

13% alcohol. Diam. Found for €9 in a supermarket, amazing.

92 points.

2023 Martinico e Figli Frappato Terre Siciliane IGT

Time flies by and it seems there’s no posts since the end of March. When you’re not paying much for WordPress’ basic and it must be said pretty clunky site, it doesn’t help the lack of motivation. Nonetheless if you’re lucky enough to be spending some time back in the fascinating and gently hedonistic town of Trapani on the western tip of la bella Sicily, then it’s probably a good idea to note a bottle or two. What better than to anticlimax a new review with a bottle you’re unlikely to find outside the few square kilometres of the provincia itself. Close to the ancient sea wall of old Trapani is an alimentari or deli run by a passionate man who I think gave up running a supermarket to open a small business to enjoy selling things of real quality from the local area. At least, that’s what my very limited Italian grasped. Some good cheese, piggy things, olives and a sort of tapenade were all excellent, as was this bottle of one of my favourite Sicilian red grapes. The label suggests it’s made from a vineyard of only 1700 vines. A kilo or two per vine probably means only two to three thousand bottles, not exactly Yellow Tail. Nevertheless, what a delicious drink. Utterly clean, pure and just moderately extracted, there was loads of raspberries and cherries anchored by some lovely powdery soft tannins and bright acidity. Underscored by a rattle of earthy goodness, like sweet organic soil. All of a piece, no jangling and sort of like a cru Bojo for want of a better comparison. The other bit of the label says something worthy in Italian I think

If you find yourself in Trapani, the lovely man running La Deliziosa will cheerfully offer a few tastes of cheese and good things. A picture of him below, stolen from googlemaps.

The same tiny producer also makes a cracking Grillo which I reckon shares a rich but tightened by texture similarity to Palomino from that other sea salty place in Spain.

13.5% alcohol. Diam. €20.

93 points.

2020 Prinz Hallgartener Jungfer Rheingau Riesling Trocken GG

The only bit of Germany’s vineyards I’ve explored is the very pretty riverside Rheingau. Happily there’s lots of dry Rieslings to be tried from what seems to be a lot of quality minded producers. It’s also very easy to explore by train from sky scraping towered and bankered Frankfurt. German wine labelling is still not entirely clear in my old brain but the back label says VDP Grosse Lage which I think means the vineyard is defined as being top of the quality pyramid under wine law and can be further loosely defined as Grosses Gerwachs meaning dry wine from such Grand Cru sites. Should be good then. Perfumes of white peach and citrus with a dab of vanilla bean. It’s all a bit reserved and controlled by that word…mineral..freshness and some sweet green herbiness. Really powerful as it glides on fruit sweetness and a glycerol slide of tightly bound mouth watering acidity and a touch of alcohol warmth. One of those Rieslings that’s either got a touch of fruit sugar or the fruits so dense it seems sweet, beyond me and no bad thing. Just balancing itself adroitly. Opened at the same time as a really good Eden Valley local which was rich in developed flavour with a broad burst of wide acidity. So different to the linear brightness of this Jungfer tingle, so bound into the whole. There’s some Rolls Royce power in this GG top of the range. Quite different to the Toyota reliability of a good Eden Valley to stretch a dubious metaphor.

13% alcohol, it’s ripe. Cork lottery. Thanks to a generous dinner companion.

96 points.

2022 Allegrini Valpolicella

Well over thirty years ago when I first realised Italy made some very interesting and tasty wine, there were only a few DOCs and even less DOCGs available and not many breakaway Vini di Tavola purposely ignoring the rules. Simpler times that made learning easier, particularly as there were only a few producers from each of the better known DOCs whose bottles had something a bit extra. Valpol, as we knew it, had perhaps only two labels that consistently excited this novice, Allegrini and the great Quintarelli whose Classico is now over $250 a bottle in Australia. When this came up at auction, I thought it would be fun for old times’ sake to have a bid. Nobody else was interested which is maybe indicative of Valpol’s fashionability? Well, I’m happy to say it maybe old fashioned but Allegrini’s version is still delicious in that gentle and mouth watering way I remember it. Nicely clean and perfumed with red cherry fruit and that dark chocolate accented earthiness that marks the Verona bit of the Veneto for me. Barely medium bodied, it’s that deliciously fine acidity and talc powdery tannins that can make Valpolicella special. There’s a gentle balance of fruit and succulent texture that seems to mark Corvina from those huge canopies of vines. It’s far from a blockbuster wine of dramatic impact and high scores but it’s delicious and true to its place. Nice trip down a cobwebbed memory lane.

13% alcohol. Screw cap, good idea. $28 auction.

92 points. But much more about place and texture than simple numbers.

Domaine Vincey Interlude Chardonnay d’Oger Grand Cru

This bottle was probably the last of this summer’s luxurious Champagne, thanks to a generous best friend who’s still keen to indulge and share before it’s too late. And what a particularly great Chardonnay in particular. It’s interesting for the wine nerd to notice the grape variety and place are prominent on the label. As much as Champagne’s a label for fizzy celebration guarded often by a ferocious tendency to threaten litigation at the smallest hint of misappropriation, it can still be a gobsmacking Chardonnay from a very special bit of chalky soil. The back label explains whence and how….

A vin vivant indeed, it certainly made this life extra lively. Once the bubbles calmed a little and it warmed in the glass, the brilliant quality of the grapes involved was obvious, should you take the time to sip and think. There’s subtle grace and power. Reading the back label, there’s some passionate hand crafting involved. But there’s no rustic clumsiness. Instead there’s incredible detail and finesse for want of a better word. One of the Winefront crew recently noted they preferred ripeness still on the way up rather than overripe on the way down. This just teeters at the summit. Mouth watering crystalline citrus, quince and a splash of tangy white peach juice. Perfume of flowers and waxy honey. Once more there’s a palpable feel of something related to soil or rock which defeats my limited ability to put into words. To be totally pseud corner about it, it’s like standing in front of a great painting for a few moments in a quiet gallery and being inexplicably transfixed. Sort of… Needless to say, but I will, there’s impeccably fine acidity and a brush of texture that means a 750ml bottle is just far too small. Always loved Blanc des Blancs but a couple recently have been not a lot short of profound. Jewels in what was once literally Paris’ junk heap. Try googling gadoux.

12.5% alcohol. Cork. $ kind of irrelevant.

96 points but much more than that.

2015 Domaine Georges Vernay Sainte Agathe Côtes du Rhône

A quarter of a century ago I briefly gave up a relatively well paid job in the unforgiving construction industry to work in badly paid employment for an importer of European wine; not a happy experience as their attitude to their employees would have even made some of Dickens’ characters wince. One producer they imported was this doyen of Condrieu. Sadly their lack of staff product education meant I only tasted Vernay’s great wine once. It was enough. When four bottles of this came up for auction, a quick search revealed a great review from Jancis for the 2016 version and an explanation that the Sainte Agathe vineyard is planted to Shiraz in the middle of Condrieu on soils very similar to the adjacent Côte Rotie. I spread my bets and bid what turned out to be a total of $43 for each bottle. Thanks maybe to Vernay’s relative obscurity in Australia, nobody else had a bid and I ended up with all four. Happy days as it’s a profoundly good wine. Despite ten years of age, the colour is still a fresh, low ph red and purple. After a serious triple decant, it all melds into a fascinating nose full of spice, dark raspberries, plums and something of a cross between sweet old leather, violets and dark slate roasting in the sun. A mouthful is almost painfully concentrated but loaded in charm. The same flavours and a texture like rough silk in the finest of dense tannin, all freshened by incredibly beautiful blood orange acidity. I can only imagine this is what a great Côte Rotie from a very warm year would be like? It left me hoping more comes up on the auction site. The wine budget be damned.

12.9% alcohol. Cork. RRP of about $85 in Australia.

95, maybe 96 points as it’s so well made.

2019 Champagne Drémont Marroy Écolsion Chardonnay

There’s been quite a bit of Champagne in the last few weeks. The most extraordinary was a last bottle of Lilbert et fils Perle Blanc de Blancs which thanks to an informative back label was disgorged in 2017. The years spent resisting temptation were worth the restraint. Grand cru Chardonnay worthy of the name which had developed perfumes of wattle blooms and the best flower honey that went on for light years. If you’ve $170, the current release is available in Australia at The Prince Wine Store amongst others. Not sure I’ve the money, patience or the years left to risk another. The original post from a few years ago.

https://cognitivecellartherapy.com/2019/02/22/nv-lilbert-fils-perle-blanc-de-blancs-grand-cru-champagne/

A friend devoted to still buying Champagne offered this Drémont Marroy as a swap for some spare auction bottles. As it comes from the usually well chosen selection of champagne-de-vigneron.com, it should be a good buy. Particularly as the importer has been pursuing good value on the ground for quite a few years. The hunt ranging west along the Marne to Charly sur Marne, just about halfway to Paris from the Côtes des Blancs. And another producer more interested in their farming than label bling as the back of the bottle explains a lot more than some…

Fruit so ripe these days of warming weather that there’s zero added sugar to hide any shortcomings. The wine itself, after all Champagne is wine, is beautiful but shy. There seems to be a wound up depth of crystalline citrus, lemon and maybe grapefruit that slowly unwinds after an initial hit of what could be confused with a good breath of fresh, saline seaside breeze. Most of all, it’s the sense of power in the middle that promises all sorts of mineral and stone depths to come with time. Add some delicious, life giving breath in the form of well modulated acidity and it’ll be a wonder in a few years. Nonetheless, a great bottle to share and wonder how much Champagne has changed for the better in quality if not price. Cheers indeed.

12.5% alcohol. Diam I think. Great swap for a few dodgy old auction bottles.

94+ points.

Another bottle of great bubbles shared with no little joy but not much objectivity was a Vilmart & Cie Premier Cru Grand Reserve. Really rich but light on its toes with a great depth of middle mouth fruit and the sort of ripe acidity that tingles and glides and shows how inadequate are some of the luxury goods companies’ bottles. Direct import from The Prince Winestore.

The great disappointment was a Champagne Veuve Monsigny Brut Selection from Aldi which has had some good reviews. Horribly cork tainted. I was many kms away from the nearest Aldi and not sure I could face explaining the problem to probably the only poorly paid and overworked staff member dealing with the madness that’s Xmess shopping. $35 dollars would have been better spent on a Barbadillo Sherry under screw cap and still had change.

2022 Sylvain Pataille Bourgogne Aligoté

A first Aligoté review which means I’m finally catching up with trends in Burgundy. Apart from the de Villaine Bouzeron version, there wasn’t much sold as a stand alone quality bottle when I first got bitten by the Burgundy bug. Never really a fan of kir. As it’s become popular, perhaps due to extra ripening as the climate warms and lunatic prices for even basic Bourgogne Blanc, there’s been lots of comment about the clones of Aligoté. There’s two it seems, vert and doré, with the latter the more favourable for an interesting drink. Think this is doré as it tastes fairly golden in a way. Lots of rich yellow fruit, sort of plum, specifically maybe greengage, straw, sweet green herby touches and a satisfying almond meal thing. Both in smell and flavour. Oddly reminds me of some Mediterranean grapes like Grillo or Palomino which is good for me. The lovely acidity and phenolic pith is much more Burgundian in terms of a delicious glide and substantial texture. The sheer volume of flavour is impressive, albeit not as complicated or wide as Burgundian Chardonnay but there’s heaps of solid clean fun. The almond paste flavour is compelling. Not sure it warrants its recommended retail price of close to a hundred Australian dollars but that’s Burgundy and our stupid tax system.

12% alcohol I think, the weird coloured label is a bit easily scuffed. Cork. Part of some beautifully chosen bottles swapped for the yearly Wendouree share.

93 points.