A Recanati Wine-tasting [Wine Wednesday]
Cabernet Sauvignon
On Sunday, I had the pleasure of attending a wine-tasting. Since I seldom get to do wine-tastings (although I went to one in November), this was kind of a bit different for me, since I’m used to tasting whiskeys, beers, etc., so this is a nice change of pace from them. The wine-tasting was entirely made up of wine from the Recanati winery in Israel and there were six wines presented that evening.
Rosé
The first wine we drank was the Rosé, which was a blend of 70% Barbera and 30% Merlot, with an ABV of 13%. On the nose, I got fruity/berry, while the palate yielded perhaps a red grapefruit, although not particularly sweet. As to the finish, I got just a little bit of a bitterness.
Chardonnay
For our second wine of the evening, we had the Chardonnay, which was also 13% ABV. I smelled some oak on the nose, which got me interested (I like oakiness). I thought it was fruity and clean.
Then, we moved on to the reds, all of which were 14% ABV, contrasted to the 13% of the white wines.
Yasmin Red
In the reds, we started off with Yasmin Red, which was a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (80%) and Merlot (20%). It was also the only מבושל wine of the night. Although no one else agreed with me, this wine smelled deliciously like pastrami. I thought it was good, I just couldn’t help but smell pastrami.
Next up was the Cabernet Sauvignon, which seemed oakier – which I liked – and, at 5 months being French oak barrel-aged, made sense. We quickly moved on from there, so I wasn’t able to get a good sense of it.
Then we moved on to the final two red wines, both reserve wines of theirs, both of which had been aged 16 months in French oak barrels!
Reserve Merlot
The first of these two was the Recanati Reserve Merlot, which was noticeably oakier (yay!), more complex, “grippier”, and fruity. I greatly enjoyed this smooth and “grippy” wine.
Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
The final wine of the night was the Recanati Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, which was also fruity, oakey, complex, and impressive. On the palate, I found it to be smoother and rounder than the Reserve Merlot.
One thing I learned at the wine-tasting is that Pinot Noir grapes do not typically grow well in Israel, so they are seldom grown there.
While I had known that I had liked Cabernet Sauvignon wines, I hadn’t realized the difference in taste and feeling that a Merlot brings in contrast to it. I also discovered that I enjoyed the “grippiness” of the Merlot and am looking forward to trying more.
