It was great to meet Riccardo Cotarella ( FALESCO wines, Umbria/Lazio , Italy - info@falesco.it ) at this private luncheon for some of us in the trade two years ago at Johhny's Half Shell restaurant ( the old La Colline location across the plaza from Union Station ). I did not know what to expect. I had to some extent tried not to promote or sell the really popular " Vitiano " Umbrian red ( three equal parts of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot ). It was simply too popular to really rate my attention/ make my radar screen. People asked for it frequently. What could I add but point to the location on our shelves or on the floor at Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits ( 3423 Connecticut Avenue N.W. Washington D.C. 2008, sales@clevelandparkwine.com www.clevelandparkwine.com Tel: 202-363-4265 ). I like to have more of an involvement with the sale of wine than to just point to a particular wine's location in the store. I like to be a wine-educator and so wines like Vitiano red I feel don't really need my help or stamp of approval.
Having said that I must amend this statement somewhat and say that I have greatly enjoyed both the dry rose ( see my very first blog ever on this site in early May 2008 ) 2006 and the dry white blend. I find both flavorful and satisfying/intriguing, especially the dry white blend. David Pinzolo and others have often told me the blend but I seem to forget it often. However, I remember distinctly that each and every time that I try it that I am drawn into/closer to it as the flavors leave indelible taste-sensations that for the value are hard to resist, especially in the context of a meal where I think the wine would always work best.
So, where the flavors of the red blend Vitiano leave me pretty much cold the dry white and rose play with my taste buds and get them to take notice. I can live with that. I can especially now live with it having discovered this October 26th, 2006 the " new " and exciting Falesco Sangiovese. Riccardo really brought it to life for me along with his " new " Lazio Ferentano indigenous grape variety of Roscetto. These were my two grand discoveries at this luncheon along with discovering the passion and vision of Riccardo Cotarella which I also found intoxicating and very compelling.
This was all so serendipitous and wonderful and I really got caught-up in the moment at hand. Here are Riccardo's own words that I wrote as quickly down on paper as I could. He spoke quickly and so some of this will be a bit paraphrased. Sorry for that. At the end I pushed the paper across the table and over to him and asked him to look it over and sign it if he thought I had captured the essence anyway of what he had said. He studied it for a few seconds and signed it, smiled broadly and passed it back over to me. This pleased me greatly.
Riccardo started with some general statements : " Sweetness is Merlot. Greatness is Cabernet. Richest in mouth - Caberent Sauvignon. In the nose - Cabernet Franc ".
We tasted the Falesco 2004 Est Est Est and Riccardo talked about the blend of Trebbiano, Malvasia and Roscetto. Then we went to the 2005 Falesco Ferentano Roscetto. He said it was his " greatest satisfaction ". He went on to say that he could have planted Chardonnay in Lazio. Riccardo went on to talk about the soil there, that it " comes from a really poor area of Italy ". I think he said that Roscetto means " nearly red ".
Riccardo went on to talk more about the Roscetto grape. It takes 3-4- days longer to ripen and " to get the nearly red color ". It has " thick skins " and gives - " a lovely golden color to the wine ". Riccardo continued by saying that it was " hard to extract ripe, not green tannins " from the grape. That they felt they " must burn the skin to open the cells of the grapes ". That " within seconds " this would happen. Then he mused : " How long is it able to age? " He ventured that it " can age a long time, how long? " He was not sure. He had no track record with the Roscetto yet. He remarked on it's " aromatic bouquet ". He said he wants " the character of the wine to show in the beginning ", and that it " will continue to show long, for the long life of the wine. " The first vintage of the Ferentano Roscetto white was the 2003. Here we were drinking the 2005. With " just five minutes in the glass - an explosion " he said emphatically/ with a gleam in his eyes and a conviction in his voice. He did use malolactic fermentation and that helped to explain the smooth, creamy brightness to the wine, a buoyancy that would not permit my tongue to sink or dip too deep. It was buttressed by the richness and density/ viscosity of this liquid grape that I was just discovering and being seduced without even my notice but seduced nonetheless! I would learn this later.
Then we moved onto the reds again and the Merlot grape which Riccardo said " was like a baby, educate in the way that you want ". Sangiovese, he went on , his was " a new clone of the Sangiovese. " He and his winery looked at " more than a hundred clones. " This type , so rich in the nose ; rich in cherry, young, fresh : you cannot confuse it with others. It's rich in the mouth, long aftertaste, a young wine.
Riccardo spoke quickly and with mounting passion and with both very clear thoughts and ones that he wished to convey and ingrain in us if at all humanly possible.
" I don't want to change Vitiano rosso. " So, he offered " All other wines - single vines - why chose this type of ( Sangiovese ) clone ? " He didn't wait for us to answer his question. He was really asking himself this question. He had obviously asked himself this question already many times over and over and over again. He had to work through this process. This was a part of him. Perhaps not at first but now had become ingrained in him so that one would never know that it wasn't with him since he first drew breath as a young child.
" This type of clone ( the only one out of one hundred or more that had already been tested/examined ) is rich in color ; other Sangioveses are poor in color. " It was a deeper, brighter red color, I could clearly see that. It drew me to it as he spoke so ardently about this one clone of Sangiovese. It had obviously taken time to find. He/they did not know for sure that it existed but he/they had vision and they were all willing to follow/pursue it and discover where it would finally lead.
Then Riccardo was back thinking for a moment on the white Roscetto Ferentano as he said " Try it ( the food ) ; try to go back with white ( the Ferentano ) ."
He smiled and relaxed and said : " I like very much to sing. Afterwards we can sing " he told Mike Potasnik. I think we all took it as that after the luncheon we might all break out in song together having shared such an intimate/revealing/rewarding luncheon together.
Then Riccardo was off in pursuit of the Merlot grape. " It goes great ( Merlot ) even with peppercorns in the roast beef dish ; also marrow and wild mushrooms ". He was now speaking of his excellent vintages of the 2001 and 2003 Montiano. As I said in the first part of this blog that I clearly favored the more flavorful, complex 2001 over the more silky, elegant 2003. I wanted guts, rawness and rustic power and maturity of flavors/expression.
" The grapes ripen by the coast towards continental ; too much rain or dryness equals tropical ... you have to plant accordingly. My favorite grape is the Merlot ". Riccardo spoke so quickly that I know I left out key words and phrases. I am truly sorry for that. It should have been recorded/ a video made of it. Why is that videos are rarely taken of these events? They should be preserved in their entirety ; in the owner's and winemakers own words. I plan to do this soon myself along with taking all the pictures that I already do.
With the Montiano 2001 and 2003 Merlots we had enjoyed the chicken in a Creole etouffee sauce. I liked the white Roscetto Ferentano best myself with this dish. I surprised myself yet again when I picked it over these two excellent reds.
With the regular 2004 Falesco Merlot and the Falesco 2005 Sangiovese we were served the roasted Criple Creek aged tenderloin and I had also preferred the 2005 white Lazio Roscetto Ferentano! Go figure!
The Pomele 2005 dessert wine is made with the " Aliatico grape of Greek/Venetian origin " said Riccardo. He spoke his way and us, clearing a path for us and our heightened enjoyment of this meal with his words. He likens the taste to strawberries and pears I believe ; he does not like desserts . Maybe some figs, too in the flavors of this Pomele?!?
" Great nose! " I say.
We then tasted and spoke more about the intoxicating/entertaining/seductive 2005 Pomele as we ate almost reverently and quietly the Fall fruit compote with spiced cream and almond tuile.
We had heard and absorbed both figuratively and literally quite a bit in this two-hour period or so. We were happy in our seats, content. If it had not been for the need to stir and continue our jobs I think that we would have all been happy just to sit there longer at the table and converse some more about just anything including wine and what good wine, food and company does for all of us?!
I know that I would have loved to talk to you some more Riccardo but I simply had to run back to my car and drive pretty much like a madman to return to work to sell more wine and to relate to anyone that would listen to me about this great luncheon that I was still high on and that I had really enjoyed!
We said our " good-byes " and I took more pictures of this event, of you close-up Riccardo and then I dashed out into the daylight and noises of Washington life all around. Thank you for sharing all of this with us. I hope my paraphrasing has brought some of this alive for all of you reading it. It has brought it back to life for me writing it all down and piecing it together once again.
I will add the pictures as soon as I find them and can download them onto this blog. In the meantime it is 12:01 A.M. here at my home in Virginia on Friday morning December 5th, 2008 and I'm going to post this blog now because I am so excited about sharing it with you all. I believe there will be a third part to this blog that I will again type/compose and post tomorrow evening around the same time. Stay-tuned!
Cheers, Happy Holidays 2008 to one and to all and Happy New Year 2009, too! TONY
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