Made from organic grapes and weighing in at a modest 12 percent stated alcohol, the lithe Domaines Schlumberger 2021 Pinot Noir “Les Princes Abbés” dances on the palate.  Like the head of Janus, it displays both the aromatic red fruitiness and leafy nuances, the hallmark of fine Pinot Noir

“The Campo del Drago vineyard is the very highest in elevation in the Capanna area and is Castiglion del Bosco’s coolest vineyard site, so this wine comes in at a touch less octane than the Normale in 2019, at 14.5 percent alcohol. The 2019 Campo del Drago is outstanding on the nose, with the bouquet wafting from the glass in a refined blend of red plums, cherries, Cuban cigars, bonfire, a lovely base of soil tones, a touch of brown spices, just a wisp of fresh oregano and a judicious framing of cedary oak. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, focused and structured out of the blocks, with a good core of fruit, firm, chewy tannins and fine length and grip on the well balanced and youthfully complex finish. This has plenty of tannin that will need to be resolved before this wine starts to drink with generosity, but it should absorb its oak nicely over the long haul and eventually drink very well indeed. 2035-2075+.”

Despite the higher elevation of the vineyards used for the Castiglion del Bosco Brunellos, this wine comes in listed at a full fifteen percent octane in 2019. Readers may recall that this wine is fermented with native yeasts and raised in barriques, with twenty percent new oak used each vintage. The 2019 version offers up a deep and impressively pure bouquet, revealing scents of red and black cherries, red plums, cigar wrapper, a lovely base of soil, brown spices, woodsmoke and a gentle touch of new oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, focused and complex, with a beautiful core of fruit, fine soil undertow and grip, firm tannins and a long, impressively well balanced and complex finish. This wine is impressively cool on the backend, with perhaps only a touch of heat on the finish. One feels the ripeness of 2019 most noticeably in the texture of the oak tannins on the finish, as the higher octane of the juice will leach out a bit more wood tannin from the new barrels, so this is a bit chewier out of the blocks than previous examples I have tasted. It should resolve nicely with extended cellaring, but will take a bit longer in this vintage. 2035- 2075+.

The 2022 Friulano regular bottling from Livio Felluga is a lovely wine, showing pretty and stylish ripe fruit and tipping the scales at 13.5 percent octane in this vintage. The wine’s aromatic constellation is bright and complex, hopping from the glass in a mix of pear, lime, green olive, a lovely foundation of white soil tones, spring flowers and a topnote of orange zest. On the palate the wine is vibrant, complex and full-bodied, with lovely depth of fruit, fine mineral undertow, zesty acids and lovely focus on the long, bouncy and well balanced finish. There is just a whisper of reductive bitterness on the finish right now, which dissipates nicely with a bit of time in the decanter. Fine juice. 2024-2030.

Friulian sauvignon blanc is such a lovely wine and Livio Felluga makes one of the finest I have tasted. Their 2022 version is also showing a bit of reduction from its closure when first opened, so aeration prior to serving is again necessary to enjoy the wine properly. With air, it offers up a lovely nose of gooseberry, lime, a touch of casaba melon, damp grass, a fine base of soil and a topnote of white flowers. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, zesty and well balanced, with a good core, lovely soil signature, bouncy acids and fine focus and grip on the long, complex and nicely balanced finish. This is fine juice, just make sure you decant it before serving! 2024-2030.