Arnaldo Caprai Italian Wines of Character

There was a time that most Italian wines were considered inferior to what was coming out of France and California. Chianti was definitely “in” among the youth of this country but the serious wine enthusiasts avoided the other Italian wines as though they were infected with the plague. Why? On our first vacation trip to Italy we spent some time in Piedmont and found the wine there, even the home made wines in little bistros, were to say the least, exceptional. The only reason we could come up with was that the Italians were keeping their better wines to themselves in order to prevent foreign wines from invading their captive market.

Italian wines have their own and very individual characteristic flavor and aroma about them and this “magic” can only be found in wines from Italy. One producer is Arnaldo Caprai whose current releases we recently sampled and we found them to be of exceptional quality and the equal to the best of the best from anywhere.

Arnaldo Caprai 2015 Grecante Grechetto ($20). Throw away that Chardonnay and try a different white wine with an Italian twist. The aroma of the Grechetto is big, powerful, very much up front, and alive with apple, nectarine, lemon, and fresh cut grass. The flavor reprises the apple backed up by apricot and lime. There is also a positive but perfectly balanced fruit acid, which helps to amplify the very long and complex finish. While the wine is somewhat similar to a Savignon Blanc, it is different enough to warrant your attention; it certain got ours.

Arnaldo Caprai 2013 Montefalco Rosso ($23). All of those magnificent flavors and aromas that have made the Sangiovese grape so popular can also be found in abundance in the Sagrantino, a close but slightly different relative of the Sangiovese. Montefalco Rosso is a blend of Sagrantino and 15% Merlot resulting in extremely complex dark fruit aromas with the accent on plums and cherries. The flavor exhibits the same plum and a cherry element, mingled with raisins and oak, which then continues on to a long and delightful finish. This wine can accompany almost anything but is outstanding with, as you might expect Italian styled dishes. This is a truly regal wine and a credit to modern Italian winemaking.

Arnaldo Caprai 2010 Sagrantino Montefalco Collepiano ($48). This offering from Arnaldo Caprai is also made from the Sagrantino grape and results in a wine of excepcional depth and quality. Like most of the Italian wines, the color is the deepest of ruby displaying brownish edges derived from the long aging in barrels given to this wine. The aroma is a host of red fruit flavors concentrate mainly on raspberry, violet, and tea leaf with licorice, leather, and pipe tobacco residing comfortably in the background. The flavor is a blast of red fruits, blueberries, cranberries, and big, ripe red cherries leading to a finish that is not just big, it’s enormous. While, this wine costs a bit more than many other premium red wines in the marketplace it is, in our opinion, most certainly is worth its price.

Not meaning to steal some of Arnaldo Caprai’s thunder but we just came across a dynamite 2010 Barolo from Damilano ($26). Barolo is a very deceptive wine. From its lighter color, one would expect the wine to have a very light body and be on the fresh, jammy, fruity side. Not so; this Barolo has a heavy, hardy body that that is the perfect accompaniment to the heavier red meats and of course all of the Italian fares that are smothered in tomato sauce. The aroma is expansive, displaying plums, dried roses, tar, licorice, and way in the background the aroma of fine mushrooms. The flavor is fruity, big, and bold reflecting plums and pomegranates. There is some acid in this wine as well as tannin but the extra aging given to the wine by Damilano has soften these and made the wine very drinkable right now..