Tor del Colle Riserva Italian Misto (4)

Saturday, September 15, 2012

You know what it’s like. One day, it’s 2007, and you’re just fresh in the bottle. You’re young, you’re stylish, a deep and intense ruby red. You can party like you were a 2-Pack and still be considered precocious. And then, one morning, it happens. You wake up and find the aging has begun.

Oh, you’ve still got lots to give, of course. Maybe you’re a 2007 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Riserva DOC 750ml 2-Pack with a bouquet of cherries, or a 2007 Brindisi Riserva DOC 750ml 2-Pack with notes of vanilla. People still love you, even when your temples pick up hints of orange and your flavors begin to turn towards blackberry and licorice. But once that aging starts, there’s no going back. You’re not precocious any more. You’re dignified. And now everyone HAS to take you seriously. Even if you just want to have a little fun!

Our advice to you is this: take advantage of your 2-pack-ness. Gather ye rosebuds right away, then save the second bottle, let it age. Take it out again down the road and look back on what you’ve learned and how you’ve changed. Because it’s good to be mature, of course… but it’s also good to remember what it was like to be young.

2007 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Riserva DOC 750ml 2-Pack

• Varietal: Montepulciano
• Vinification: Grapes are macerated at controlled temperatures of 77 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit
• Harvest: Third week of September to early October
• Alcohol Content: 13%
• Total Acidity: 5.6 g/l
• Residual Sugar: 3.5 g/l

Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is a type of wine grape as well as a type of red wine made from these same grapes in the Abruzzo region of east-central Italy. The grape is however recommended for 20 of Italy’s 95 provinces. Up to 10% Sangiovese is permitted to be added to the blend. It is typically a fruity, dry wine with soft tannins, and as such is often consumed young. If aged by the winery for more than two years, the wine may be labeled “Riserva.”

• Varietal Composition: Negroamaro 80%, Malvasia Nera 10%, Sangiovese 10%
• Appellation: DOC
• Area of Origin: Brindisi and Mesagne, Apulia
• Harvest Date: Second half of September
• Alcohol: 13%
• Total Acidity:  5.5 g/l

Follows the traditional method of red wine vinification. The fermentation takes a minimum of 15 days under controlled temperature not exceeding 28? C.  It’s aged for at least 2 years; 12 months in wooden casks and 12 months in steel tanks This wine is labeled Riserva when it has been aged for at least two years and the minimum alcohol level is 12.5%.

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