Bastianich Plus 2013
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine
Spectator
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This is insane. It's like putting cloves, white pepper and blanched almonds all in your mouth at the same time. Crazy. Full body, ripe fruit and a long and flavorful finish. Fantastic and electric. 100% friulano with 10% of this dried fruit. Best ever from here.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The back label on the 2013 Plus shows a whopping 15% alcohol content. Thankfully, it goes largely unnoticed. The wine opens to an off-gold color with faint amber highlights. Candied fruit and other elements of an oxidative style mix with notes of caramel and pineapple, along with honey-roasted chestnut, brown sugar and maple syrup. All of this opulence comes with a touch of sweetness.
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Wine Spectator
This golden-hued, medium- to full-bodied white is round and creamy on the palate, with soft acidity balancing the rich hints of crushed almond, baked pear, candied lemon peel and honeycomb. Smoke-tinged finish.
Other Vintages
2015-
James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker -
Wine
Spectator
Thriving in the NE Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia near the border of Slovenia, Friulano makes a uniquely high-pitched and vibrant white with a delicate perfume. Extensive in the area by the early 1930s, today Friulano grows in all of the best zones and is usually, but not always, bottled as a single-varietal wine. Somm Secret— The Friulano grown today, while named for its present home of Friuli, is actually the Sauvignonasse grape, a minor cultivar that came from Bordeaux.
The source of some of Italy’s best and most distinctive white wines, Friuli-Venezia Giulia is where Italian, Germanic and Slavic cultures converge. The styles of wines produced in this region of Italy's far north-east reflect this merging of cultures. Often shortened to just “Friuli,” the area is divided into many distinct subzones, including Friuli Grave, Colli Orientali del Friuli, Collio Goriziano and Carso. The flat valley of Friuli Grave is responsible for a large proportion of the region’s wine production, particularly the approachable Pinot grigio and the popular Prosecco. The best vineyard locations are often on hillsides, as in Colli Orientali del Friuli or Collio. In general, Friuli boasts an ideal climate for viticulture, with warm sunny days and chilly nights, which allow grapes to ripen slowly and evenly.
In Colli Orientali, the specialty is crisp, flavorful white wine made from indigenous varieities like Friulano (formerly known as Tocai Friulano), Ribolla gialla and Malvasia Istriana.
Red wines, though far less common here, can be quite good, especially when made from the deeply colored, rustic Refosco variety. In Collio Goriziano, which abutts Slovenia, many of the same varieties are planted. International varieties like Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc are also common, but they tend to be Loire-like in style with herbaceous character and mellow tannins. Carso’s star grape is the red Teranno, notable for being rich in iron content and historically consumed for health purposes. It has an earthy, meaty profile and is often confused with the distinct variety Refosco.