Tag Archives: wine tasting

Azelia

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IMG_5607I recently discovered, and befriended, the winemakers at Azelia. Located at the bottom of Castiglione, next to Paolo Scavino, you find the not so small winery of Azelia. It just so happens that Azelia, Cavallotto and Scavino are all related– welcome to Barolo!

At the Azelia winery, Lorenzo the son is now the 5th generation of winemakers. Lorenzo, named after his grandfather, works with his dad at the winery. When you go on the tour, you will pass by a corner with a bunch of wine stacked. This is wine from the vintage Lorenzo was born, and it will be saved until a wedding or a birthday. A very nice idea, I wish my parents had been into wine when I was born.

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Azelia makes a fairly wide range of wines, red, from Dolcetto to Barolo Riserva. What is interesting about Azelia, is that a large portion of their vines are very old. The vines used to make the Barbera Punta is around 60 years old. So the Azelia barbera is rather different from a lot of other barbera’s from the Barolo region.

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If you want to visit the winery, you can call ahead or send an email. Check out their website for more information.

Hedonism Wines

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IMG_6159Hedonism wines was of course on my To Do List when I was in London. I had asked around, and most everyone told me that this was a Must See. And they were right. The store was incredible.

When you walk in, the first floor is filled with wine, the bottles surrounded by very nice decor, and of course lots of wine paraphanelia. The selection is good, however quite expensive.

When you’re done perusing the first floor, the basement is next. Down here you find all the treasures. I am not sure where to begin, with the impressive selection of Burgundy wines or the Dom Perignon room. Yes, it has it’s own room.

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Then there are the massive bottles, 5 litres, 12 litres, that are just casually hanging out. But let’s not forget the Romanee Conti area. I have never been so close to a bottle before, and I suspect I will never be so close again. The prices made my eyes bleed. But it was a wonderful experience.

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If you want a taste of wine you can head over to the *tasting area*. Let us dwell on the word *taste*. Here you can buy a card, and then taste your way through over 40 wines. If you wanted to you could of course select one wine many times, but it was quite expensive. But an experience nonetheless.

I would say my trip to Hedonism Wines was a success. And I’ll definately go back!

You can check out their website here!

 

Renato Corino

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Renato Corino is the son of Giovanni Corino and the brother of Giuliano Corino. The two brothers, Giuliano and Renato decided to work separately, instead of working together under their fathers name.

Renato Corino started producing his own wines in 2005. The Cantina is located right in Arborina, a prime location for a winery, and he of course produces a Barolo Arborina. He produces Barolos, but also Dolcetto, Barbera and Nebbiolo. Renato works alongside his son, Stefano. Stefano incidently combines winemaking with biking, and participates in several local bike races.

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During my visit we tasted some wines not yet bottled: Nebbiolo 2014, Barbera 2014, Dolcetto 2014 and Barbera Pozzo 2013. Then we resumed the “regular” tasting. The wines have a familiar taste, since they are made in the same areas as the other wines I often drink. It was a very nice visit, the Corino’s are very hospitable and ‘sympatico’. And it was nice to meet someone my age (there are many “old” people in the Barolo area…)

Elvio Cogno

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Today I visited the Elvio Cogno winery. Nadia Cogno showed me around the beautiful cantina that sits atop a hill just outside Novello in Barolo. Cogno used to be partners with Marcarini in La Morra, but in 1990 they decided to move to Novello. After 4 generations of winemakers, it is Valter Fissore and Nadia who run the winery today.IMG_5370

During my visit I got to taste the Anaschetta, Dolcetto Mandorlo, Barbera “Bricco di Merli”, Langhe Nebbiolo Montegrilli, Barbaresco Bordini, Barolo Cascina Nuova, and the Barolo Ravera. I think my favorite was the Barolo Ravera. Although the Nebbiolo was also very good!

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I thought it was interesting how they put the barbera in oak but not their langhe nebbiolo! In my mind it’s wonderful that each winery has it’s own quirks and ideas.

Vineyard Road Portfolio Tasting 2015

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Vineyard Road had their portfolio tasting at Eastern Standard today.

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I was very excited to meet with Riccardo Sgarra with Paolo Scavino. His wines have been relevant in the Cantina Granveien household recently, and I was eager to learn more about the winery.

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Riccardo had a whole lineup, starting with their only white, going through the more basic wines and ending with their barolos. Hopefully I’ll be able to visit the winery this summer

In addition to Paolo Scavino, I stopped by a Riesling table, where they had a bottle of Keller Riesling. Although Riseling is not my favorite, it was a good experience.

Vineyard Brand has a great selection, a good variety and very nice people, so the tasting was a great experience.