When I go through my mid-life crisis and feel the need to sell my worldly belongings and travel to Italy I'll probably start my visit at this winery. I've featured them in the past in wine club and on the list at Bluebird. Since I have a very very very long time until I hit mid life 😉 I'll just keep learning about all the goodness this winery has to offer. This month we are featuring the G. D. Vajra 'Kyè' Freisa. Freisa being the grape varietal, Kyè:, according to Milena & Aldo Vaira, "the sun or the moon? To us, this is the seduction of Freisa, a wild, untamed grape." Whoa, how am I supposed to follow that up? Remember I'm just trying to introduce you to all the awesomeness of the wine world, everyone's pallet is subjective and different. This is made more clear upon researching this little grape. Industry leaders have said of Freisa wines as being "immensely appetizing" to "totally repugnant wines."😳😳🥺🥺 Please know I try not to sell things that are repugnant.
On the contrary, this literally woke up pallet. (Most of my trade tastings take place on Wednesday mornings). This week was a little harsh with single vineyard Sauvignon blancs. The wines were geeky and I'm pretty sure melted the remaining toothpaste flavor out of my mouth. Back to tasting the Fresia in an early morning tasting-I'm sure I've mentioned it before but I think about food all-the-time. Naturally my mind wanders when I'm tasting a wine what I would pair it with, pizza was my first choice. In no particular after that; Fried Chicken, Duck, Veal, and the wine would cut through the richness of our Cuban sandwich.
The color is a standout translucent garnet red. Red raisiny-fruit were the first round of aromatics. The same fruit hit my pallet combined with spicy leather, still a juicy mouth feel but be prepared for the hefty tannins and a lovely finish. #foodwine
We were in the Northwestern part of the boot with the Fresia grape we somewhat travel to the northeastern part of the boot to Friuli, to discover a grape we have in our backyard in the Columbia Gorge AVA. The white wine feature this month is the 2022 Ago Tocai Friulano.
Tocai Friulano is also known as Sauvignonasse or Sauvignon Vert, which leads to erroneously associated with Sauvignon Blanc. Friulano grapes are known for the white wines in Friuli Italy-usually imparting lively citrus notes, hints of floral and minerality. Let's head back in time, 2015, to Washington state where the masterminds at Cor Cellars planted one and half acres of Tocai Friulano "due to our love of Northen Italy," in their vineyards in Lyle, Washington. 2018 yielded their first vintage of the wine. I defer to the winemaker notes because I truly could not say it any better:
"The 2022 AGO Tocai Friulano moves like a Balanchine ballerina: poised, lithe and elegant with an undercurrent of energy and power. This unexpected and unique varietal blooms with white blossoms, soft petals as it pirouettes across the palate."
Dream Dinner @ 🐦 with this bottle of wine: Small Plate Menu- Cauliflower and Brussels. Salad-Radicchio(Pea Shoots, pork belly, seasonal fruit, Parmesan, honey miso dressing) with Parmesan Halibut. At this point I'd look like the guy in Money Python being offered a "wafer thin mint." but If I still had room for an Entree-Shrimp and Grits (currently with green curry and mango salsa). "But sir it's wafer thin".