Winemaker Notes
Pair with barbecue, meat grilled on olive wood.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A pretty red with hints of cloves, raspberries, lemons and rosemary. Medium-to full-bodied, tight and firm with silky tannins and a flavorful finish. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2015 Bradisismo is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Carmenère, a grape that is slowly on the uptick in terms of production, especially in the Veneto region. This is a bold and powerful red wine with a medium to full-weight approach, all enhanced by dense aromas of ripe plum, blackberry and dried cherry. The wine ferments for 12 days in conical tanks and is aged in oak for up to 15 months, with partial new oak. Pair this hearty Veneto red with some sort of braised or stewed meat. Production is 26,000 bottles strong.
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Tasting Panel
Deep ruby color; racy, lively, and fresh, yet intense, long, and tannic— an interesting combo. 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Carménère
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.