And the winners are Bill and Joyce Marshall!
Janie Farnsworth
On Tuesday, April 21, the Tuesday Tasters were hosted by me, Janie Farnsworth, to take a Mediterranean cruise and bring wines from that region. The hostess wishes to thank John Saunders for helping distribute the wine and calculate the winning points. His numbering system will forever be unique only to John.
We had five wines presented for tasting. The fifth place wine was called The Seeker from Veneto, Italy 2012 which is a dry, crisp, vibrant texture featuring apple, pear and peach fruit with hints of white flowers and almonds. Fourth place went to a nice wine from the Piemonte area of Italy called Briccotondo Fontanafreedda 2011. The grape variety is called Barbera. This is a ruby-red wine with purple highlights. The nose is packed with black fruit, especially blackberries and plums with slight spicy overtones hinting at black pepper and cinnamon. The second and third placed wines were a tie. The Maraia Barbera Del Monferrato 2012 is also from the Piemonte area of Italy. The name Maraia means “little rascals” or “rowdy kids” making this a lively wine. The perfume is fresh and intense with clean scents of wild berries, currants and sour black cherry with a light hint of vanilla and toasted oak. The tied wine was a Montecillo Reserva from Spain. Deep cherry with russet rim, clean and brilliant, spicy notes on the nose with vanilla and black fruit balanced by an elegant touch of oak; spice and notes of fine aging on the palate. Good structure, elegant tannins and a pleasant, lingering finish. The winning wine was DaVinci Chianti 2013. This wine was brought by Bill and Joyce Marshall. The DaVinci Chianti has a bright ruby red color and opens with aromas of ripe plum and cherry, accented by peppery notes. On the palate, this wine is medium-bodied and well-balanced with round tannins that linger in its soft mineral finish. It was an enjoyable evening with appetizers and a French tart in your choice of pear or apple. To sum it up, I would say Italy seems to be a favorite of members and their discerning tastes.