Cataldi Madonna Toni Montepulciano d'Abruzzo 2017
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Bright ruby red color. The bouquet on the nose is a rich, textured expression of dark fruit with balanced oak and smoky notes. On the palate it is dry and warm with elegant tannins and medium body; mature fruit notes accompanied by pleasant acidity give this wine a fresh full character, very refined and long on the finish.
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The nose provokes immediate intrigue, juxtaposing mint chocolate chip and cherries with savory, umami flavors of grilled meat and soil. The cherries mature on the palate, gaining depth and breadth with the addition of raspberries and plums, and chocolate and coffee. The tannins that are compact but not unyielding and acid that remains decisive carry it through a vibrant finish.
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2018- Vinous
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The winery is run by his son, Luigi Cataldi Madonna, who continues the important working philosophy whose goal is to safeguard and enhance the specific characteristics of the terroir. Ofena, the city where the winery is located, is in a mountain's valley at 380 meters (1246 feet), to the feet of Gran Sasso, which is traditionally called "oven of Abruzzo". Thanks to the exceptional exposition to the sun and to the sensible diurnal tempratures, this area has remarkable qualities for wine making, also thanks to the composition of the soil.
Montepulciano is the second most planted red variety in Italy after Sangiovese, though it is achieves its highest potential in the region of Abruzzo. Consistently enticing and enjoyable, Montepulciano enjoys great popularity throughout central and southern Italy as well. A tiny bit grows with success in California, Argentina and Australia. Somm Secret—Montepulciano is also the name of a village in Tuscany where, confusingly, they don’t grow the Montepulciano grape at all! Sangiovese shines in yet another Tuscan village, here making the reputable wine called Vino Nobile di Montepulciano.
A warm, Mediterranean vine-growing paradise, in Abruzzo, the distance from mountains to seaside is relatively short. The Apenniness, which run through the center of Italy, rise up on its western side while the Adriatic Sea defines its eastern border.
Wine composition tends to two varieties: Abruzzo’s red grape, Montepulciano and its white, Trebbiano. Montepulciano d’Abruzzo can come in a quaffable, rustic and fruity style that generally drinks best young. It is also capable of making a more serious style, where oak aging tames its purely wild fruit.
Trebbiano in Abruzzo also comes in a couple of varieties. Trebbiano Toscana makes a simple and fruity white. However when meticulously tended, the specific Trebbiano d’Abruzzo-based white wines can be complex and long-lived.
In the region’s efforts to focus on better sites and lower yields, vine acreage has decreased in recent years while quality has increased.