Slotovino Hall of Fame. 1st update in 5 years!

Slotovino Hall of Fame

Shocking, but it's 5 years almost exactly since our last update to the Slotovino Hall of Fame. This is quite appalling since this list of unfamiliar and rare grape varieties is our very raisin d'etre as it were.

The new varieties admitted to our Hall of Fame outnumber the ones preesnt in August 2012 which is as it should be. He have every expectation that our discoveries in the next 5 years will be as numerous.

Here then are the additional varieties to be added to our list;

White

Aidani
Albarin
Arbane
Avesso
Azal
Bellone
Bianco d'Alessano
Bical
Catalanesca
Dafni
Dore
Feteasca Regala
Fiano Minutolo
Goustolidi
Kakotrygis
Kangun
Keknyelu
Kidonitsa
Kiralyleanyka
Kovidinka
Malagoussia
Malvar
Malvasia de Colares
Malvasia Puntinata
Mavro Kalavritino
Merseguera
Nuragus
Olivella
Petite Arvine
Plyto
Resi
Romorantin
Rossese Bianco
Roter Veltliner (aka. Fruehroter Veltliner)
Rotgipfler (aka. Zelenac)
Savatiano
Szeremi Zold
Thrapsathiri
Tinaktorogos
Torrantes de Pico
Vidiano
Voskehat
Xarel-lo Vermell
Zelen
Zierfandler



Red

Areni
Abouriou
Alvarelhao/Brancellao
Avgustatis
Bobal
Chambourcin
Chenancon
Espadeiro
Etraire de l'Adui
Feteasca Dragosani
Fumin
Haghtanak
Kadarka
Khndoghni/Sireni
Kotsifali
Krasnostop Zolotavsky
Lecinaro
Liatiko
Limniona
Malbo Gentile
Mandilaria
Mando/Mandon
Mavrodafne of Cefalonia
Mavrotragono
Mavroudi
Menoire
Negrette
Negretto/Negrettino
Nero Buono
Neronet
Norton
Novac
Olivella/Sciacinoso
Pollera Nera
Rossara
Rojal
Royal
Schiava/Vernatsch
Sumoll
Tamurro Nero
Termarina Nera
Trepat
Turan
Uva Rra
Vlahiko



The combined list is now as follows;

White

Aidani
Albarin Blanco
Antao Vaz
Arbane
Auxerrois
Avesso
Azal
Bellone
Bianco d'Alessano
Biancolella
Bical
Bombino Bianco
Bukettraube
Catalanesca
Cividin
Dafni
Doradilla
Dore
Elbling
Encruzado
Eva de los Santos
Feteasca Regala
Fiano Minutolo
Goldriesling
Goustolidi
Gringet
Incrocio Manzoni
Johanniter
Kakotrygis
Kangun
Keknyelu
Kerner
Kidonitsa
Kiralyleanyka
Koshu
Kovidinka
Len de L'Oiel
Loureiro
Malagoussia
Malvasia de Colares
Malvasia Istriana
Malvasia Puntinata
Maria Gomez
Mauzac (in all its 7 varieties)
Mavro Kalavritino
Merseguera
Mtsivane
Muller Thurgau
Nuragus
Olivella
Ondenc
Ortrugo
Passerina
Pecorino
Perle
Petite Arvine
Pignoletto
Plyto
Resi
Romorantin
Rossese Bianco
Roter Veltliner (aka. Fruehroter Veltliner)
Rotgipfler (aka. Zelenac)
Savatiano
Spergola
Szeremi Zold
Terret
Thrapsathiri
Tinaktorogos
Torbato
Torrantes de Pico
Trajadura (aka. Treixadura)
Tsolikouri
Verdil
Vidiano
Verduzzo
Vilana
Vitovska
Voskehat
Welschriesling (aka. Riesling Italico)
Xarell-Lo
Xarel-lo Vermell
Zelen
Zlahtina
Zierfaendler


Red


Alibernet
Ancelotta
Abouriou
Alvarelhao/Brancellao
Areni
Avgustatis
Baga
Blauer Wildbacher
Bobal
Bonarda del Oltrepo Pavese (aka. Croatina)
Canaiolo
Carcaghjolu Neru
Casavecchia
Casetta
Centesimino
Chambourcin
Chenancon
Cornalin (aka. Humagne Rouge)
Dornfelder
Douce Noire (aka. Charbono, Corbeau, Bonarda)
Espadeiro
Etraire de l'Adui
Feteasca Dragosani
Folle Noire (aka. Fuella Nera, Jurancon Rouge)
Frappato
Fumin
Gaglioppo
Gamaret
Garanoir
Gascon
Graciano
Gignolino
Grolleau
Gropello
Haghtanak
Hondarrabi Beltza
Incrocio Manzoni
Juan Garcia
Kadarka
Khndoghni/Sireni
Koshu
Kotsifali
Krasnostop Zolotavsky
Lecinaro
Liatiko
Limniona
Maglioppo
Malbo Gentile
Mandilaria
Mando/Mandon
Marselan
Mavrodafne of Cefalonia
Mavrotragono
Mavroudi
Mencia
Menoire
Moravia Agria
Negrara
Nerello Capuccio
Negrette
Negretto/Negrettino
Nero Buono
Neronet
Norton
Novac
Olivella/Sciacinoso
Osoleta
Palagrello Nero
Perricone (aka. Pignatello)
Persan
Piedirosso
Pineau D'Aunis
Plavac Mali
Pollera Nera
Poulsard
Prieto Picudo
Pugnitello
Raboso
Ramisco
Ribeyrenc
Rome
Rossara
Rossese
Rojal
Royal
Saperavi
Schiava/Vernatsch
Schioppettino (aka. Ribolla Nera)
Sciacarello
Sumoll
Tamurro Nero
Termarina Nera
Tinta Barocca
Tinta Cao
Tinta Negramoll
Trepat
Tsimlyanskiy
Turan
Uva Longanesi
Uva di Troia
Uva Rara
Vermentino Nero
Vernaccia Nera
Vlahiko
Vranec
Xinomavro

Slotovino roll call of Honour

As well as the Slotovino Hall of Fame for rare grape varities discovered on our journeys, we try to pay homage to those pioneers who rescue endangered species.

In 2010 we tried to honour the following. It's worth reproducing the whole post since it has been buried under 7 years' verbiage.

To these we'd like to add

Andre Manz (Dona Fatima)                          Jampal
Plaimont Producteurs                                    Arrufiac
Chanton Visp                                                  Resi
Longanesi                                                        Longanesi
A.A. La Sabbiona                                           Savignon Rosso
Alfonso Soranzo                                             Cavrara, Pattaresca,Turchetta
Ognibene family                                             Negretto/Negrettino
Cinque Campi                                                 Malbo gentile
Alberto and Claudia Peretti                          Temarina Nera
Bernabe Navarro                                             Fourcayat
Pierpaolo Lorieri                                             Vermentino Nero
Leonardo Piertafesa, Tenuta le Querce         Tamurro Nero
Hardimos Hatzidakis                                      Assyritiko, Mavrotragono
Gianluca Bisol                                                  Dorona


As well as the above, here is our embryonic Roll Call of Honour together with the grapes relevant to each name;

Giuseppe Apicella, Alfonso Arpino and Luigi Reale - Tintore  
Emilio Bulfon - Cividin, Cjanorie, Forgiarin, Moscato Rosa, Picolit Neri, Sciaglin, Ucelut  
Casali Viticultori - Spergola  
Francisco Figueiredo and others - Ramisco  
Jean-Pierre and Philippe Grisard - Persan, Etraire de l'Adui  
Walter Massa - reviver of Timorasso and leader of a new wave of winemakers in South East Piemonte 
Jose Luis Mateo Bastardo, Caíño Redondo, Caiño longo, Zamarrica, Brancellao, Sousón, Arauxa,

Jose Luis Mateo

Dona Blanca and Monstruosa de Monterrei in Galicia;
Heinrich Mayr for nurturing the white heirloom variety Blaterie at his Nusserhof property near Bolzano, Alto Adige  
Robert & Bernard Plageoles, 7 types of Mauzac, Ondenc, Prunelart, Verdanel etc.  
Domenico Pedrini and Gianni Chiste' of Azienda Agricola Pravis, Lasino (near Trento), Negrara and Gropello di Revo back from increasing obscurity in the Trentino area.  
The Rasse family (Rene and his sons Georges and Denis) for maintaining the idiosyncratic St. Jeannet appelation (near Nice) when almost all other vignerons (there were 70 in the 1950s) have sold their land to developers. It is in this case the Terroir if not the varieties which were endangered although some rare Braquet is grown together with Mourvèdre, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Grenache, Rolle, Ugni Blanc, Chardonnay, Muscat and Grenache Noir and the bizarre and ancient method of aging the reds in 'Bonbonnieres' before putting the wine in oak barrels.

The smaller surviving growers include Mimi Lorenzato, Roger Barrière and Lazare Giambi. Agricola San Felice - Pugnitello  
Luigia Zucchi - Nibio the regeneration of the ancient grape variety, Nibiò, which once held position as Monferrato's noblest and highest value. 200 years of neglect nearly resulted in its extinction, but producer Luigia Zucchi has fronted the campaign for its rebirth. There are no doubt many more and we will add to the list, but this is a start and suggestions will be gratefully received.

Pasticcio

                                                         Sir John Soane - Pasticcio

Our occasional series of mixed-bag bottles has gone under the names of Valderi-Valdera, Pot-Pourri, Gemischter Salat and Salmagundi. Now Pasticcio - a good old musical term for an opera cobbled together from numbers taken from works by the same or diverse composers.

Pasticcio di Rigatoni

'Pasticcio' was first used in the 16th century for a meat and pasta pie and is still used for that by the Greeks ('Pastisio') by the way.

Today's Pasticcio consists of the following wines we have enjoyed in recent weeks and months. Some have been mentioned already in this blog but not tasted.

the elegant Buscicchio Pietrafesa couple of Tenuta Le Querce, Barile, Basilicata Italy and Primrose Hill, London UK giving a tasting of their wines at the Princess of Wales pub, Chalcot Road, London

We have written about how this almost extinct variety was revived by Le Querce but until this convenient tasting we hadn't actually tasted the wine made from this grape. The impression was very positive indeed. Generous, fruity with its own personality. one to join the Slotovino Hall of fame (we must revive that auspicious academy!). This wine has legs in more sense than one. Complimenti!

Staying in Italy, we found this delicious 11.5% inexpensive blend of Ansonica 'con altri vitigni autoctoni.' They guard this information closely. This is sometimes because the local varieties are not permitted but in the case of this prominent producer it is more likely chosen from the Sicilian varities included in ther other whites such as Cattaratto, Grillo and/or Zibibbo. We're not quite sure why but this excellent value wine is only available in Italy according to Winesearcher.

For this no less delicious Biancolella, you only have to go to L'Antico in Kings Road, London where Franco will fetch it for you if you ask nicely.

 

 

We found this 100% Bellone at Enoteca Costantino in Roma, but you can get something like it from Swig. What they sell doesn't state the grape Bellone on the label but we are assured that's what it is. Frascati and Castelli Romani grapes can include a maximum of 10% and 30% respectively of local varieties in addition the various Malvasias and Trebbianos permitted in the DOCs. Bellone is one of these 'Altre uve bianche locali' which is why our bottle only mentions Lazio IGT. Ian D'Agata has a very high  opinion of Bellone calling it 'an outstanding grape variety, one of the best in Italy today.' We agree on the strength of this example from Marco Carpineti of Cori - "Capolemole".

We were charmed to discover the sparkling reds of the Penisola Sorrentina a while back. Now we have tasted this Piedirosso/SciascinosoAglianico rosso frizzante naturale we have ordered another couple of bottles; the ultimate endorsement.

 

founder francisco Napoleao

On to Portugal and two wines from the Vinho Verde appelation. We took advantage of an offer  for free shipping from the excellent Lisbon merchant Napoleao and bought some of their more resaonable low alcohol Vino Verdes.

Vinhao is the grape of red Vino Verde. Not all Vinhao is delicious. This one is.

Vinho Verde branco can have all sorts of grapes in it; Trajadura, Loueiro, Azal. Avesso, Arinto de Bucelas (aka. Pederna) and Alvarinho but the first two are very typical. Not all white Vinho Verdes are good but this one (Alvarinho + Trajadura) stood out, especially at only €7.99.

East now to Hungary. This Kiralyleanyka was part of our Hungarian haul from the Hungaricum shop at Budapest Airport. Despite our disappointment with Kiralyleanyka under 13% tasting neutral, this one - Bolyki - was nicely aromatic and characteristic at 12.5%. It quite restored our high opinion of this grape.

Next door in Romania (Bucharest Airport Duty Free) we had found this bottle of white wine from a variety called Sarba. It had stood in our cupboard since October 2015 so we were apprehensive as to its state but there was no need to worry. Many native white Romanian varieties (Mustoasa Maderat, Busuioaca de Bohotin) have an inclination towards sweetness as does Sarba. It is a hybrid from Grasevina (Welschriesling/Riesling Italico) and an unnamed pollinator. Maybe this sweetness helps it survive poor storage? Memorable.

Next the only French area - the Commune des Riceys - to boast three appellations; Champagne, Cotaux Champenois and Rose des Riceys. Ricey is also the southernmost appellation of the Champagne area bordering on Bourgogne. Rose des Riceys is made from Pinot Noir and is never sparkling. If still wines from Champagne are expensive (this one was) it may be that with every bottle, two bottles of Champagne are sacrificed since the wine would have been a component of two bottles of (sparkling) Champagne As Tom Stevenson says, the wines like this are 'quaint' and 'a much lesser beast that those of Burgundy.' Nevertheless it was a rarity and certainly pleasant to drink.

The Negrette we bought around the corner from Chambers Street wines at Frankly Wines on W. Broadway was fantastic. What a great grape Negrette is and why cut it with Syrah? It just makes it less Negrette-ish. Is there some reason it's so difficult to find Negrette in purezza? Something's afoot. Why does this lovely bottle need such an apologetic label?

This Pinot Gris/Pinot Blanc blend from the Netherlands was a huge hit at a dinner with what can only be described as some wine connoisseurs present. We scratched our heads for something they might never had had before and Dutch wine was the answer. Excellent as well as obscure.

On to the New World, except Hunter Vally Semillon is a classic and as Jancis Robinson says 'Australia's gift to the world.' As readers of this blog know, we certainly agree with her and perhaps not co-incidentally, although from the Barossa Valley, we found this upscale bottle in Will Lander's Portland restaurant. Like HV Semillon, this was low in alcohol, 11.2%. Quite wonderful.

Our final ingredient in this Pasticcio is something completely different, our Norton from Missouri. In case you haven't been following us on this, we had two types of Norton, this and the reserve from Stone Hill Winery of Hermann MO. delivered to a friend in New York City to await our visit there in March 2017. This was the only way we could get our hands on this interesting so-called US native variety given the complicated rules for shipping and even purchasing wine in the USA.

Norton is regarded as the only old American hybrid not to show any signs of foxyness. A DNA study has shown it to have Vinifera ancestry together with Vitis Aestivalis. Enfarine Noir has been suggested as the Vinifera component.

Whatever the real story, Norton on this evidence is a variety worth cultivating. It is said to be vigorous and resistant to mildew. We think old hybrids generally are outdated but not Norton!

London Wine Fair, Olympia May 22 - 24, 2017

The London Wine Fair is quite large by UK standards but much more mainstream than RAW or the Real Wine Fair. There are discoveries to be made though but these are often hidden and require time to be winkled out.

Following our discovery of Armenian wine at ProWein, Duesseldorf a month previously we headed upstairs for the 'Esoterica' section of the London Wine Fair at Olympia which is where smaller agencies and importers are to be found.

the kind ladies of Armenia Wine Company

Armenian Wine Importers Ltd. Founder Charles Masraff is on the left.

Amazingly there were no less than two Armenian outfits on this mezzanine floor, Wines Unearthed and in 'Esoterica' proper, Armenian Wine Importers Ltd. Just to be complicated there was a third company, Ginvino 'Bringing you the best wines of Armenia' on the ground floor with the big guys.

We started with the Armenia Wine company but their grapes - Areni, Voskeat etc. were already familiar to us so the kind ladies there directed us to Armenian Wine Importers just around the corner. There we met Charles Masraff and his colleague. Charles is half Armenian and lived in Yerevan for a number of years. Comparatively recently he founded this company and is importing a handful of interesting wines.

One of these, Kataro is from Khndogni - a grape found mainly in Nagorno-Karabakh and used in Armenia, Uzbekistan, Iran and Russia where it is also called Scireni. Producers now favour the name Sireni as an easier one to use and so do we especially as there are other Armenian grapes beginning with the letter K such as Kangun and Karmrahyut not to mention lots of Georgians, Ukrainians and others beginning with the same letter. The only fly in the ointment is that the most famous Armenian red variety is Areni - a possible point for confusion with Sireni?

Togh is the Reserve version of Kataro's Sireni.

there were also reds from Areni, a white from Voskehat and a sparkling wine from a grape called Khatoun Kharji (60%) and Voskehat (40%) from a producer called Keush.

Khatoun Kharji has yet to be included in 'Wine Grapes' but it may be found in Galet.

Founder of Ginvino (right) with clients

Ginvino is the unlikely name of another Armenian wine company this time London based whose stall on the ground floor sported an evocative amphora (called Karas in Armenian). Ginvino import Van Ardi wines among others.

 We did the tour downstairs but without careful study of the show guide there were certainly many interesting varieties we could have tasted but didn't.

Close perusal of the catalogue after the event turned up some fascinating gems we wish we had discovered at the time.

One of these was Fekete Járdovány to be found at the Wines of Hungary stand. The producer, our friend Gere, describes the grape as follows;

Fekete (literally black) is a grape variety unknown for even local wine experts. It is practically not grown anywhere, Attila Gere, the iconic winemaker in Villány however has a tiny vineyard of this ancient grape of the Carpathian Basin. He carries on several experiments with the research centre of Pécs, and his single varietal Fekete Járdovány is a result of this experiment. The grape extincted with phylloxera, but it came to life again in 2011, when the first vintage was made. The 2014 vintage of the 100% Fekete Járdovány has just been released. The wine was aged for 6 months in barrique, and available in limited quantity. Light, fruity wine with a nose of sour cherry and rose pepper. On the palate it is easy going, lovely and spicy – slightly similar to Kadarka.

There were other unusual varieties among the Hungarians. Generosa is an Ezerjo x Savagnin Rose (Roter Veltliner) cross obtained in 1951 and released in 2004. It just shows what a long gestation these varieties have between discovery and full production.

Kabar, another new one on us - is destined for the production of Tokay. Bouvier and Harslevelu are the parent grapes.

This rose is from Menoir which we like very much as a red wine. Attempts to link Menoir/Medoc Noir/Kekmedoc to French varieties such as Mornen Noir, Cot/Malbec or anything else seem to be doomed and Menoir looks like a native Hungarian variety.

the following is a list of goodies taken from both the LWF and Esoterica guides;

Evmolpia. A recent Mavrud x Merlot cross from Bulgaria. Vaskovino specialises in sugn Bulgarian grapes.

Moscatel Tinto (or Negro) is Mission/Pais/Listan Negro. Las Bodegas had a wine from Argentina with this name for the grape involved.

Morenillo is in Galet but not 'Wine Grapes'. It is also known as Barillol. Georges Barbier had a wine from Catalonis including this grape and Garnatxa Tinta.

Arbois is a synonym for Menu Pinot. Amanda's Loire Valley Wines had two wines of Arbois.

Ethical Edibles had a Vino Nobile di Montepulciano with Mammolo listed as No. 1 in a blend including Canaiolo and Prunolo Gentile. This is our first sighting of Mammolo in any wine. They also had a Bianchetta Genovese which is difficult to find outside Genova.

If you like Juhfark, Witness Mountain Ltd seem to be the people to contact. They had 5 versions on show.

Maltby and Greek is known for their Greek wines but Southern Wine Roads is no less active with over 35 indiginous Greek varieties including the rare Katsano, Gaidouria and Zakinthino.

We also read - too late - that we had missed not one, not two but three Belgian producers. That was a real pity. it just shows the importance of preparation for these events.

Salena Franchitti after whom the estate is named

One exhibitor for whom we were prepared was Salena Estate Winery of South Australia.

Ever since Darby Higgs gave us a bottle of Salena's Bianco D'Alessano we have been huge admirers of this winery.

They also make Montepulciano,

Touriga, Lagrein and Cabernet

the blend varies from vintage to vintage

Touriga Nacional, Lagrein, Sangiovese, Graciano, Tempranillo, Vermentino, Riesling and Moscato as well as the more usual Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Chardonnay, Semillon, Sauvignon etc.

The estate is over 200 acres and produce organic wines, bulk wines, own label wines and ptivate label wines

John Thorne is Salena's UK representative. His company also represents a Champagne house and an English Sparkling wine estate, Sixteen Ridges. John is not only very effective - you can buy Salena Estate wines at Oddbins - he is a very amiable and kind person who arranged for us to obtain a case of Salena's Bianco D'Alessano without paying a fortune in shipping charges.