Winemaker Notes
Blend: 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Cabernet Franc, 20% Merlot
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Quintarelli Giuseppe 2012 Cabernet Alzero (packaged in a heavy glass bottle) is a stunning wine that delivers a level of cautious brawn, intensity and fruit weight that sets this wine apart within the portfolio. The blend is 40% Cabernet Franc, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot, and the grapes all undergo a few months of appassimento. I've been asked about possible perception of VA (volatile acidity) that can sometimes appear in wines made with air-dried fruit. As a much-respected Italian colleague once told me, "serve a dare spalla," ("it gives a shoulder to the wine"), and I can't help but admire the beautifully lifted and upright quality of the bouquet that appears especially radiant and buoyant in this wine. The magic, whatever it is, works.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Producing every style of wine and with great success, the Veneto is one of the most multi-faceted wine regions of Italy.
Veneto's appellation called Valpolicella (meaning “valley of cellars” in Italian) is a series of north to south valleys and is the source of the region’s best red wine with the same name. Valpolicella—the wine—is juicy, spicy, tart and packed full of red cherry flavors. Corvina makes up the backbone of the blend with Rondinella, Molinara, Croatina and others playing supporting roles. Amarone, a dry red, and Recioto, a sweet wine, follow the same blending patterns but are made from grapes left to dry for a few months before pressing. The drying process results in intense, full-bodied, heady and often, quite cerebral wines.
Soave, based on the indigenous Garganega grape, is the famous white here—made ultra popular in the 1970s at a time when quantity was more important than quality. Today one can find great values on whites from Soave, making it a perfect choice as an everyday sipper! But the more recent local, increased focus on low yields and high quality winemaking in the original Soave zone, now called Soave Classico, gives the real gems of the area. A fine Soave Classico will exhibit a round palate full of flavors such as ripe pear, yellow peach, melon or orange zest and have smoky and floral aromas and a sapid, fresh, mineral-driven finish.
Much of Italy’s Pinot grigio hails from the Veneto, where the crisp and refreshing style is easy to maintain; the ultra-popular sparkling wine, Prosecco, comes from here as well.