A couple of Piedmont reds made with less-than-familiar grapes
Tenuta La Pergola Freisa d’Asti 2012, Piedmont, Italy (£12.99 Red Squirrel Wine)
Lovely vanilla-tinged strawberry (fresh and just-cooked) and summer pudding flavours backed up by a note of iron and a whack of earthy tannin. Reminds me of Portugal’s Baga, and definitely needs food – ham hock? S-
Tenuta La Pergola Cisterna d’Asti Superiore 2010, Piedmont, Italy (£15.99 Red Squirrel Wine)
Warm, mature and plummy, with rich red berry softness, a touch of freshly turned earth and a backbone of tannin. Lovely welcoming style. S(-)
They are just around the corner! Will drop by and pick up a couple of each the next time I go to Asti. Seen their wines (distinctive labels) but not knowingly tried. Should be a touch cheaper than Blighty too :) Thanks for that Simon.
Just came across an odd bottle of the Friesa d’Asti you reviewed lurking in my cellar! (Pergola 2012) Very anxious it would have lost the fresh strawberry freshness it had in youth. Well whilst not everyone’s cup of tea and certainly not to be considered an age worthy wine, it was surprisingly drinkable… tannins have soften a fraction and fresh strawberries have given way to a certain earthy spiciness… fruit a little too dried but intriguing nonetheless
Freisa is weird – I think you need to drink it when it’s young and fruity, despite the tough tannins, as your experience suggests.
But it’s a great word ‘Intriguing’… I use it for wines I definitely want to try but would be more than happy to share them with several others rather than keep it for my wife and me!