Albariño

Albariño is the primary grape used to make dry white wine in the Rias Baixes (Lower Inlets) section of the Galicia region of Northwestern Spain. Considered by many to be Spain's premier quality white wine, Albariño is also known in Portugal as Alvarinho and often used as a component of Vinho Verde.

Weather conditions in the Rias Baixes are generally cool, windy and rainy. Vines must be trained high and open to allow winds to dry them out and avoid the on-going threat of rot, mildew and other fungal diseases. Notably, Albariño grapes develop thick skins here, contributing to their intense aromas.

Typically, wines made from Albariño are very aromatic, often described as having scents of almonds or almond paste, apples, peaches, citrus, and flowers or grass.

Albariño wines are particularly suited to seafood due to their bracing acidity This grape's inherent tartness should be embraced in youth, for wines made from albariño do not age well, and the vibrant aromas begin to noticeably fade within months of bottling.

Tempranillo

Tempranillo is a primary red wine grape for much of Spain, especially those from the Ribera del Duero and the Rioja Alta. It is also a key blending varietal in Port and known by the name of tinta roriz in Portugal's Douro Valley.

While its varietal character is somewhat vague, its aromas and flavours often combine elements of berryish fruit, herbaceousness, and an earthy-leathery minerality.

Rarely bottled as a stand-alone varietal, it is most frequently blended with grenache, (aka garnacha in Spain), carignan (aka mazuelo in Spain) and, more recently, cabernet sauvignon.

Sangiovese

Sanguis Jovis, the Latin origin for the varietal name, literally means "blood of Jove" and it is likely that Sangiovese was known by Etruscan winemakers, although the first literary reference to it was in 1722. It is probably indigenous to Tuscany, whose most famous wine is Chianti.

The basic blend of Chianti was established by Baron Ricasoli in the 1890s.

This averages 70% sangiovese as the varietal base (along with 15% canaiolo [red], and 15% trebbiano [white] and sometimes a little colorino [red]).

Many vineyards are traditionally planted with this varietal mix. It is difficult even for the Italians to keep up with their own ever-changing and very detailed wine laws, which specify permitted grape types, maximum yields per acre, minimum alcohol content, minimum aging standards before sale, etc.

Currently, the minimum amount of sangiovese permitted in Chianti is 90%. Other grapes that may be used now include malvasia toscana, a white grape far superior to the ubiquitous trebbiano. Still, the total white grapes used must not exceed 5% of the blend.

In some ways sangiovese is to Chianti as cabernet sauvignon is to Bordeaux. Both form the base of wines normally blended with other varietals and both by themselves share a certain distinctive elegance and complexity, when well- made.

The fruit is slow to mature and late-ripening. With relatively thin skins, it has a tendency to rot in dampness and does not mature well if planted above an elevation of 1,500 feet. Sangiovese vineyards with limestone soil seem to produce wines with more forceful aromas.

A hot, dry climate is where sangiovese thrives. Because these climatic criteria generally enhance quantity, rather than quality, it takes careful cultivation and winemaking techniques to produce really excellent wine from this grape. The official classification of Chianti itself demonstrates the widely fluctuating range of Sangiovese quality from those identified as ordinary vino di tavola to the highest classico superiore.

Sangiovese is the largest planted varietal in Italy with 247,000 acres, 10% of the entire wine grape crop.

The flavour profile of Sangiovese is fruity, with moderate to high natural acidity and generally a medium-body ranging from firm and elegant to assertive and robust and a finish that can tend towards bitterness. The aroma is generally not as assertive and easily identifiable as Cabernet Sauvignon, but can have a strawberry, blueberry, faintly floral, violet or plummy character.

Typical Sangiovese Smell and/or Flavour Descriptors

Processing Varietal Aromas/Flavours: Bouquets/Flavours:

Fruit: strawberry, blueberry, . orange peel, plum

Oak (light): vanilla, sweet Floral: violet wood

Oak (heavy): oak, smoke, Spice: cinnamon, clove, thyme toast, tar

Tuscan winemakers, experimenting the past few years with blends of sangiovese, cabernet sauvignon and/or merlot have succeeded creating some excellent Supertuscan blends commanding high prices.. Ornellaia - Tignanello - Sassicaia

Nebbiolo

Nebbiolo is considered one of the great wine varieties, bigger, darker and more tannic, even bitter, than most types, but consequently long-lived and prized by collectors. Its native Italian home and most famous appellation of Piedmont, very few nebbiolo cuttings and clones have been exported to other countries.

The name nebbiolo has two probable origins. Ripe nebbiolo grapes have a very prominent "bloom" that gives them a "foggy" or "frosted" look, so the name could come from from "nebbia", Italian for "fog". It is an alternative possibility that the name simply comes from "nobile", Italian for "noble". Nebbiolo also goes by the names Spanna, Picutener and Chiavennasca in various Italian districts.

Cultivated since the 14th Century in Valtellina, an east-west valley in the Lombardy region , this is the only region where nebbiolo is grown in Italy outside Piedmont. Although there are dozens of nebbiolo clones and nebbiolo is prominent in and famous for producing wines like Barolo, Barbaresco and Gattinara, the reality is that this variety makes barely 3% of all the wines produced in Piedmont. There are twice as many acres planted with Dolcetto and ten times as many planted with Barbera.

Part of the reason for this, in spite of its reputation, is that nebbiolo is one of the more problematic grapes for both viticulturists and winemakers. It is very sensitive to both soil and geography and can yield wines that vary widely in body, tannin and acidity, as well as aroma and flavour complexity, when grown in only slightly different locales.

A very late-season ripener, the vines need the best exposures, especially in cooler climates, in order to reach maturity. It performs much better in calcareous rather than sandy soils. Nebbiolo grape skins are thin, but quite tough and fairly resistant to moulds and pests.

Nonetheless, wherever vintners aspire to producing wine inspired by Barolo, nebbiolo is also grown, including Australia, California, New Zealand, South America and South Africa. Argentina has the largest acreage planted, but no region outside Italy has yet shown much potential for high quality wine production from this grape.

Typical Nebbiolo Smell and/or Flavour Descriptors

Varietal Aromas/Flavours: Processing Bouquets/Flavours:

Herbal: floral, truffle Terroir: truffle, earth

Fruit: blackberry, cherry Oak: oak, smoke, toast, tar, vanilla

Spice: smoke, tar, anise, Bottle Age: earth, leather, cedar, licorice cigar box

Wines made from nebbiolo are typically dark, tart, tannic and alcoholic. The best smell of cherries, violets and black licorice or truffles and have rich, chewy, deep and long-lasting flavours.

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