Orders are available for pick-up at Restaurant Nicholas at 160 Route 35 South Red Bank, NJ 07701 during the following times:
Monday: 9:30-3:30; Tuesday – Friday: 9:15am – 9:00pm; Saturday: 11:00am – 9:00pm; Sunday: Closed
$15.00 $13.00
The town of Abruzzo in Central Italy is nicknamed the green region of Europe thanks to its three national parks, 38 protected areas (more than ⅓ of the whole town) and the numerous lakes and mountains scattered throughout town. It’s often an overlooked area, less travelled than the big name regions, though for many wine lovers, Abruzzo is like El Dorado– the holy grail of big red wines, all available at Tuesday Night prices.
Within Abruzzo, the winery Barba is tucked away on the hill ridges above the Vomano river, where a mild daytime climate with long sunny dates gives way to cool nights influenced by the nearby Adriatic Sea. The soil is heavily influenced by Plio-Pleistocene deposits, serving as the essential building blocks for deep, full-bodied red wines with tremendous character.
At Barba and throughout Abruzzo, Montelpulciano is king. Nothing can top the inky dark wines with wonderful black fruit aromas and tremendous natural structure and firm, chewy tannins.
In the 2015 vintage, Abruzzo, much like the rest of the Italian wine regions flourished. Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate in their vintage review of Abruzzo, called it “a happy vintage that was easy to farm, and generous from all points of view.” That’s been true of every 2015 that I’ve tasted, but especially true with the samples I got from Barba.
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95 Points, Jeb Dunnuck – 95 Points, Lisa Perotti-Brown
The oft 100-point winemaker, Jayson Woodbridge had this to say when tasting his 2021 ‘Stargazing’ Sonoma Pinot: “The wine is vibrant and complex with subtle dark fruits and berries, grandmother’s cherry pie, minerals, and a slight touch of rain-soaked earth, intertwined with a balance and very pleasing easy-going luxury. Should have been priced higher but what the hell.” I have no doubt this clerical error will be addressed in the vintages moving forward. But for now, this is a cult Pinot for under $100/bottle.
93 Points, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate – 93 Points, Jeb Dunnuck
“Vignon’s 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape delivers even more than I hoped for based on a previous sample. Hints of garrigue, roses, cherries and raspberries appear on the nose, while the palate is full-bodied, silky and long, with an intense, almost briny finish. The assemblage is 50% Grenache, 10% each Mourvèdre and Syrah, plus smaller proportions of seven other permitted varieties, while the élevage includes foudres, demi-muids, concrete and wooden tanks, plus terracotta amphorae.”
Winemaker Kian Tavakoli (Opus One, Clos du Val) continues to excel even while others struggle. In 2017, he still managed to deliver a beautiful and opulent Napa Valley Cabernet that’s both dark and juicy. The wine hails from both Coombsville and Rutherford, giving it distinct characteristics and a lot of drive. Deep ruby to the rim with excellent concentration, notes of Bing cherries, raspberry pie and hints of vanilla. On the palate, big wonderfully jammy fruit with young but impressive tannins and great length. The finish leaves notes of black cherry, and baked blueberry pie. Fantastic Napa value.
The secret to Philippe’s tightly wound, complex Pinot Noir is a combo of ancient vines, natural farming techniques, and low yields. The wines are built to age, with incredible tension and length. And the secret to me securing his other-wordly 2017 old-vine Gevry-Chambertin can be chalked up to a great relationship and over a decade supporting superior Burgundian winemaking. The wine is scary good. The nose is wild, filled with spiced dark raspberries, red flowers, and baking spices. The palate is elegant and racy, with a dynamic tension that runs right through its minute-long finish. This is a high-toned, wound-up Pinot, that is starting to hit its prime and is really turning out to be a ‘must-have’ for true Burgundy lovers.
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