Every year we put time and effort into finding a commercial comparison for the upcoming LE wine release. While this will never be exactly the same as what you can expect from your wine, it does serve to give you an idea of what you may expect. If you are interested and want to try this wine in advance, or pick it up to try against your home crafted wine later, here’s the pick for the LE16 Vermentino from Tuscany.
La Pettegula Vermentino 2015, Toscana IGT Banfi. This wine is readily available and retails in the $18-24 range. The nose on this wine led with rock, grapefruit zest, tarragon, apple/peach and finished with minerality. The taste started with a non-sweet peach/apple, moving into refreshing and mouth watering lime, ending with crushed rock minerality. This wine beat out our second choice marginally, as it is moderately less acidic and mineral than the other.
We tasted this wine with a few pairings. With Camembert, it really highlighted the cheese, bringing out the earthiness of the rind – quite spectacular. It did not however enhance the wine. Try with triple cream brie on baguette instead. With the WinExpert Turkey Picatta recipe, this combination for pairing was the winner. The cream and earthiness of the recipe enhanced the mouth feel of the wine, while tempering somewhat the acidity.
Poggio al Tufo Vermentino 2013, Tommasi, Tuscany. We were really able to detect the green apple and lime/citrus in this wine. It was crisp and mouth wateringly acidic, with the (phenol) bite on the end with pronounced minerality. Against this sample, we expect our home crafted version to be slightly lighter in body, more floral and zestier, with a bit less acidity and minerality.
I would love to hear if anyone tries these wines against their own, and how you feel they compare. Also – take the plunge – make one of the pairing recipes and experience if the wine transforms with the dish!
THIS SELECTION IS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE IN STORES! JANUARY 2017
