The rival, royal warrant-holding wine merchants Berry Bros & Rudd and Justerini & Brooks face each other across London’s St James’s Street. For generations they specialised in the most traditional of French wines plus port and sherry but now, as reported in detail by Walter in his long introduction to Glorious Piemonte – an audit, they are both, at last, taking Italy seriously.
The wines below represent their current selections from Italian regions other than Piemonte, including some very nice wines indeed.
TRENTINO-ALTO ADIGE
FRANZ GOJER
Very pale yellow with a green tinge. Catchy, lifted and very...
Pale violet ruby. A little bit of horse saddle on the nose, but...
FRIULI
LIS NERIS
Pale straw. Overtly sweet perfumed nose, but at least it...
From a single vineyard with 28-year-old vines, and vinified in...
VENETO
BELE CASEL
Pale straw. Fresh and attractively perfumed on the nose. Strikes...
Very pale straw and with a slow bead. Profound and concentrated...
Secondary fermentation in bottle and not disgorged, hence with a...
NOVAIA
After the harvest the grapes were dried for 30 days. Herbal and...
VIVANI
Pale red. Fresh, light nose and just a little bit green...
TOSCANA
CALAROSSA
29% Cabernet Franc, 16% Merlot, 16% Petit Verdot, 14% Syrah, 14%...
91% Sangiovese, 6% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Sauvignon. Mid ruby...
DUEMANI
50% Merlot, 50% Cabernet Franc. Cement fermented and aged in oak...
100% Cabernet Franc. Debut vintage. Planted 2001. Demeter...
Selected Cabernet Franc, oak fermented as well as aged. Dark...
Oaked Syrah. In fact more oak than Syrah alas. Very sweet. And...
IL PALAZZINO
Light and smoky. A bit sweet then drying. Not a great pleasure.
Smells pretty mature! No great spine or line. A bit expensive.
Sweet and round and easy. At peak? Soft and easy? Just not quite...
Mid ruby. Quite evolved and pretty farmyardy. Nicely evolved...
POGGIO ANTICO...
