I did indeed have a bottle of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, which I had a yen for yesterday. I could find only one in my brief run outdoors to do some errands after a long day in front of the screen: Zaccagnini's "Dal Tralcetto" Riserva 2003. The wine was pretty good for $14.99 -- used to sell for $11.99 or less a couple of years ago -- but it was from the hottest year in living memory, so the acidity wasn't typical of a Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (too low of course), and it was richer and sweeter than usual. Still, it was beguiling with its spicy notes (6 months in Slavonic oak after steel fermentation) and almost too ripe fruit, a good pairing with a hamburger from the diner across the street. (I really do go native when I come back home. My mantra: no more prosciutto till I go back to Italy!)
I like Montep' d'Abruzzo because it's generally simple, fruity, easy to drink with a wide range of foods. This one is less simple than most. 3 glasses from me. ( = good but I'm not going to suck the bottle dry).
"Dal tralcetto" means something like "from the little shoot" of the vine.
In these parts, that's called "The Stick Wine." It's always pretty good. There's a quite delicious white counterpart.
Posted by: fredric koeppel | June 21, 2008 at 05:57 PM
Conosco e apprezzo questo vino e il suo produttore. Ciao Terry!
Posted by: vittorio | June 21, 2008 at 06:00 PM
I know you wrote about it rather approvingly a couple of years ago. I can't stand Trebbiano though. Sorry. (There's no there there.)
The stick wine...il tralcetto, perhaps.
Posted by: th | June 21, 2008 at 06:01 PM
Ciao Vittorio, bello che non stai twitterizzando!
Baci dalla Grande Mela.
Posted by: th | June 21, 2008 at 06:02 PM
@Terry,
last night I drank for the first time a Masciarelli's Montepulciano:
Marina Cevtic 2004 (the name is after his wife) 400.000 bottles - price at restaurant 25 euros.
We all liked it a lot (main courses were a mix of lamb, beef, duck).
ciao from Bolzano
alex
Posted by: alex | June 22, 2008 at 04:43 AM
Riserva? In what way?
Posted by: michele colline | June 22, 2008 at 05:13 AM
I don't know. Because the label told me so.
Posted by: th | June 22, 2008 at 08:38 AM
@ Alex -- the stuff goes for a lot higher $$$ here...I haven't had the 2004, which is probably more balanced than the 2003.
Enjoy your repatriation!
Posted by: th | June 22, 2008 at 08:40 AM
In the AIS guide it doesn't show riserva and looks like their 'vino base'...maybe they do that for the American market. As we all know, it usually is riserva for yields
and degree of alcohol....
Posted by: michele colline | June 23, 2008 at 05:11 AM
And ageing requirements....can't forget that...
Posted by: michele colline | June 23, 2008 at 05:16 AM
this tasted like the same old stuff...bullshit for the US market, no doubt.
Posted by: th | June 23, 2008 at 08:13 AM
Oh my god, it's gorgeous. Maybe they won't card me this time at Astor Wines...
Posted by: Lisa Qiu | June 24, 2008 at 04:25 PM