Rinaldi Follie Pink 2020

Rinaldi Rose Moscato Pink Bug Juice NV is made from Moscato d'Asti 90%, Brachetto d’Acqui 10%
Alcohol by Volume: 7%
Zone de Production: Ricaldone’s territory on the hills called ‘Bricco Rioglio’ and ‘Valmorana’,and Celle. Average altitude 280 m above sea level, calcareous soil with tufa layers.
Training System: guyot with a cultivation density of about 3000 vines per hectare.

Vinification: manual harvest into crates, usually at the first week of September. Temperature controlled maceration for about 24 hours with mechanic plunging of the cap and pumping over to extract a slight rosé color from the skins. Soft pressing. Settling in steel vats to have a natural clearing of musts. Further temperature and pressure controlled fermentation.

Sensorial Description: this wine, with light rosé color, strikes for its scent of spices and fruits. Its acid freshness suits its sweetness and offers a well balanced wine.
Serving Suggestions: aperitif wine, fruit cakes, fruit salad.Wine for brunch or poolside. To best appreciate this wine serve it fresh.

Rinaldi Brachetto d' Acqui is made from 100% Brachetto d'Acqui

The skin gives the wine its particular scent and flavor. 

Light ruby red color. The bouquet is musky and delicate with scents of ripe red fruit (strawberry, blackberry) and roses. Sweet and smooth flavors with lingering aromatic persistence. There is a good balance between the sweetness and the freshness, which makes this wine very pleasant.

The training system used is Guyot with a density of 2500-3000 vines per hectare. Manual harvest. Temperature controlled maceration for approximately seven days with mechanic plunging of the cap and pumping over to increase extraction of substances from the skins. This is the most important part of the vinification. Soft pressing.

Rinaldi Panta rei Monferrato Rosso is a blend of 50% Barbera and 50% Cabernet Sauvignon.

This wine is quite tasty, smooth, silky and powerful.
It is loaded with dried red fruit notes from the appassimento of the grapes and it also has a lot of spicy aromas and flavors from the oak ageing.

Grown on limestone soils. 
The average age of the vines is 30 years old. 
10% of the wine is appassimento. Appassimento is an Italian term for drying harvested grapes, traditionally on bamboo racks or straw mats, for a few weeks up to several months to concentrate the sugars and flavors. This process is used in making Amarone, Recioto and Sforzato.
This drying method is not traditional in Piemonte but is popular in other part of Italy like in the Veneto region.
Thanks to this new method the wine is rounder and softer, boasts beautiful notes of red dried fruits.
Pantarei is aged 14 months in French oak ((the wood is Allier, medium toast) barrels and 6 months in bottle before release.

Delicious with wild game, grilled meat and strong cheese.

Familia Zuccardi 'Finca Piedra Infinita' Gravascal is made from 100 Malbec.

WINE DATA:

Grape Composition: 100% Malbec

Appellation: Finca Piedra Infinita, IG Paraje Altamira,Valle de Uco, Mendoze

Vinification: Manually selected grapes, filling of tanks by gravity. Fermentation with native yeasts in concrete vessels without epoxy. Aging in concrete vessels. The 2020 was a very particular vintage, characterized by limited yields and a high speed of maturity, which made it one of the fastest and most challenging on record.

In the search for the purest expression of the identity of Finca Piedra Infinita vineyard, we reached this small plot of 0.73 hectares. Located on its north-east side, it shows the typical facet of Paraje Altamira soil, with large gravels and granite stones covered with calcareous material at a depth of 50 cm.

Altitude: 3,609 feet above sea level

Soil Type: Short alluvial soil covered with calcareous materials

Alcohol: 14% Total Acidity: 5.6g/l

TASTING NOTES:

Color: Bright ruby color

Aroma: Dark berries, black olive tapenade, and iron

Flavor: Rich on the palate, with firm tanins

Review:

Just short of perfection in 2020, but this is still a world class wine from the brilliant Sebastián Zuccardi, sourced from a 0.74-hectare parcel on gravel and limestone soils within the Piedra Infinita estate. Scented, ethereal and energetic, this is a detailed, complex, unwooded Malbec with blood orange and blackberry flavours and some underlying grip and backbone. The essence of the new Argentina, it’s a wine that inspires and delights

-Tim Akin 99 Points

Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 95.2% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2.5% Cabernet Franc, 1.9% Merlot, 0.4% Petit Verdot

The Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 has notes of red cherry, raspberry, blackberry, iris, vanilla and clove. Ruby in color, this elegant wine has great acidity and lift on the mid-palate. Black currant and warm baking spices linger with a deep and fruity finish. It will provide drinking pleasure through 2047 given proper cellaring.

Review:

-Decanter 94 Points

-James Suckling 94 Points

Rinaldi Barbera Appassimento is made from 100% Barbera.

Intense ruby red in color. Hints of ripe red fruits, cocoa, tobacco and sweet spices on the nose. Complex, velvety and persistent on the palate.

Hand harvested. The bunches are set on racks to dry for 6 weeks. 20 days of skin contact maceration to extract color without bringing too much tannins. No oak, only stainless steel aging to preserve the fruit character.