- Grape: Foja Tonda
- Alcohol: 13%
- Wine: Foja Tonda
- Vintage: 2014
- Winery: Albino Armani
- Region: Terradeiforti Valdadige
- Location: Dolcè, Veneto, Italy
- Date: 4/8/23
- Distributor: Total Wines
Curious Synonyms: Casetta, Maranela, Lambrusco a Foglia Tonda, Lambrusco Casetta
Nerd Alert: This obscure red variety was planted in the Adige valley for many centuries. Grown sin ce the Middle Ages and well known in the 18th Century when Alto Adige was annexed into the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The variety was ignored until recently. Mostly exclusive to this DOC. The Casetta has strains particularly long-lived, and it is not uncommon to find productive plants dating about 70 years ago. In the 1990s, vines over 100 years old were discovered and a reactivation was started with the support of the Viticulture Institute of San Michele all’Adige.
Personal Note: I still have unopened wines from my trips to Europe and California the past two years. Hard to believe but…I did buy a lot of wine and I only review one a week. This one is from the San Francisco trip and I am surprised at how many “rare” or “ancient” or “historic” grapes I have been able to find since the beginning of this journey. This wine had both of its most common names on the label.
Let me tell you something. Over the almost three years doing this, there are wines you open and are ok, others grow on you but there are some wines that you open them, catch their aroma and succumb to their flavor on first sip. This is one of those wines. I mean it is from Alto Adige which to me translates to high quality but this grape is on fire. It does have 9 years on bottle and I enjoy my wines matured so subjectiveness is important.
The wine has this dark omnious color as if it was ready to change tones but I’d still call it dark red. On nose it had this old world aroma which I associate with earthiness and cloves together with black fruit. On palate you can tell the wine is mature for the subtle prune piquancy, full body and with tamed tannins and medium acidity.
Have you tried this grape?
