Momentarily Clenching Bitterness

'If you go back to the Greeks and Romans, they talk about all three - wine, food, and art - as a way of enhancing life...'

[Robert Mondavi]

FROM PRODUCERS 'Menhir', meaning large standing stone, comes a minimistically packaged stylish Negroamaro: No. Zero '05. It should, like the Puglian monoliths it honours, robustly withstand stylistic fads...

Expectedly densely coloured with a nose of salt beef and well integrated recently sawn cedar, ridged with red fruits and seasoned with select pinches of delights from the spice rack, some raisin and then cranberry. The palate converts these pleasurable, lightly smokey wafts into a gentle, coating, almost chromotagraphically spreading softness with a momentarily clenching bitterness someway towards the finale of the long finish. Red mineral-plush soil, cooling coastal breezes, settled vines and a modern, thrusting but thoughtful, youthful appraoch to winemaking enhance potential into excellence.

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My second Argentine Pinot Noir: Trapiche Oak Cask '06, the producer of which is perhaps over-eager to label the presence of oak, was enjoyed at the Buenos Aires Cafe, Blackheath, a favourite protein purveyor [CLICK, then scroll for previous review]. Warmly coloured with a slight brume and a nose of Gino Ginelli Raspberry Ripple Slice ice cream and an evolving, supple palate with rounded tannins, it was overwhelmed by the almost perfumed black pudding sausages.

FURTHER LINK: The Menhir Story