A Wine Lover's Weekly Guide To $10 Wines - A Vino Novello Dated 2010
It's that time of year. Many businesses are finally going into the black. If you live in our part of the world, winter is almost knocking at the door. And the new wines have arrived. This once smashing marketing campaign started with the French back in the 1930s. Italy does a lot of Vino Novello, also the result of a special process called carbonic maceration that ferments whole grapes. Nearly half of the 9 million VN bottles comes from the northeastern region of Veneto that makes many other forgettable wines such as Soave and some fine ones such as Amarone.
Today's producer is a cooperative founded in 1933 that in their own words "advises and coordinates the activity of around 200 grape growers" on a total of some 500 hectares (about 1250 acres) in the hillsides northwest of Verona. Interestingly enough their website does not mention this particular wine. A companion article reviews a $15 French Beaujolais Nouveau Villages.
OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review are purchased at the full retail price.
Wine Reviewed Negrar Novello del Veneto IGT 2009 12.0% about $9.50 Because the supplier provided no marketing materials I'll quote from the back label. "NEGRAR Novello del Veneto is a dry red wine with aromas of ripe red fruits. The taste is fresh with flavors of ripe plums, cherries, and blackberries. Serve slightly chilled with antipasto, prosciutto pizza, figs, grilled vegetables, tallegio cheese or mushroom risotto." And now for my review.
At the first sips this wine was harsh providing a bit of sweetness and no tannins. My wife who drinks little but is known to appreciate fine wine said she thought I peeled a banana when I opened this bottle. The first meal started with Japanese Wasabi rice crackers. The banana taste appeared. The main dish was a prepared eggplant parmagiana doused with plenty of grated Parmesan and grated Romano cheese. The banana taste was dominant. This wine was raw, but not entirely unpleasant.
The next meal consisted of a slow-cooked beef ribs and potatoes. Now I got black cherries and the definite sensation of soda pop. I added a generous amount of Louisiana hot sauce and I had the sensation of eating candy. The wine darkened when it met the potatoes. Then came the side of zesty guacamole. The Novello expanded and the sweetness was gone. Dessert was fresh strawberries; in response this wine had a burnt taste.
My final meal was an omelet with black pepper, Mediterranean spices, and a touch of chicken bouillon. The wine displayed good length and acidity but was grapey. When it met Greek-style eggplant this new wine was round but muted.
Then came the traditional tasting of the two cheeses. In the presence of cottage cheese this liquid tasted of bananas and cherries. Paired with a Swiss it offered some cherries but came up quite short.
Final verdict. No way would I buy this wine again. And I have no intention of trying any such others with the exception mentioned above. Slowly but surely new wine sales are sliding. Why am I not surprised in the slightest?