Peter Vinding Diers
- World Famous Critic Hugh Johnson Picked Him to Start Royal Tokaji
- A Legend in Winemaking Circles
- Elite Level Technique in the Vineyards and the Cellar
- Ask Your European Winemaking Friends - We Hit the Jackpot!
- Syrah's "Perfect Terroir"
- So "Transparent," "Elegant," "Complex"
- "Who Is This Guy?!?!?" (A Dozen of Our Clients)
- A Craze Among the Top Sommeliers in Europe
- After This Offer, He's All Sold Out
"These were not internationally moulded, dark, concentrated monsters, but elegant, complex Syrahs with finely chiselled tannins and modest alcohol levels." - Walter Speller, Jancis Robinson
"Their transparency clearly indicated a unique origin. Somewhere in Sicily the grape seemed to have found its perfect terroir." Walter Speller, Jancis Robinson
2020 Peter Vinding-Diers Montecarrubo Cuvee Speciale
- Nose: Evocative of the Most Gorgeous Bordeaux Crossed with Elite Barolo
- A Hint of Spice
- Sexy, Almost Slutty Roses
- A Gorgeous, Almost Floating Fresh Rose
- Jumpy Aromatics Leap out of the Glass
- Palate: Utterly Perfect
- Perfect Raspberry, Some Tobacco
- Gorgeous Sweet Raspberry Fruit
- God's Raspberry Liquor.
- Gorgeous Silky Texture
- Lightly Savory in an Elegant Way
- A Bit Salty
- Incredibly Salivatory
- Silky, Integrated Tannins
- Has the Structure and Balance to Age
- Still Great after 6 Days Open - A Masterfully Well Made Wine
2020 Vinding Montecarrubo "Cuvee Rudolf"
- Nose Plum Flower, Gorgeous Beyond Belief
- Spices, Black Olives, Wild Cherries
- Jam Your Nose in a Live Flower Good
- One of the Best and Most Intensely Elegant Under $45 Noses I've Ever Had
- Palate: Rich Raspberry Fruit
- Black Pepper, Licorice
- A Hint of Black Olive
- Hints of Cinnamon
- That Precision You Only Get from Supremely Talented Winemakers
- Brilliant Contained Density
- Internal Aromatics Like Inhaling a Flower Garden
- Succulent Beyond Belief
- Still Incredible on Day 5
The Meteoric Rise of Peter Vinding-Diers
The previous statement is, admittedly, sort of silly. Peter Vinding-Diers has been famous for
longer than I've been in the wine business. But he was mostly famous among uber wine nerds and the world's top critics, not US wine buyers.
- He restarted Royal Tokaji with wine legend Hugh Johnson.
- He is a world expert on the importance of native yeasts after his famous 1985 experiment where he fermented 3 barrels of the same must with yeasts from Lynch-Bages, d'Angludet and Rahoul. The 3 wines reflected the 3 properties and the experiment was very influential in our understanding of the importance of yeasts in winemaking.
- One of the top US Italian wine critics has requested samples so these will likely be quite in demand in a short while.
- This guy is an absolute legend.
We had to chase hard to get these wines. And when we did, we were over the moon. We sold a decent amount and then waited until people tried them. And the response has been adulation and, quite frankly, shock. Diers is a legend for a reason. He's making world class Syrahs in Sicily. And you know I drink more world class Northern Rhone wines than pretty much anyone in the States. So when I say these are world class, please consider the source.
The Style
Peter "retired" to Sicily with his wife around 20 years ago and planted mostly Syrah vines. His wines are perhaps the most elegant expression of Syrah available today.
They are almost more Northern Rhone than present day Northern Rhone wines. They have all of the classic Syrah aromatics, but more on the floral side and less on the gamey side. But the fruit weight and alcohol are lower than what is typical in the Rhone. They are stunningly elegant.
This, of course, makes zero sense given how far South Sicily is. So how does he do it? Here are some guesses as to why the wines are less fruit-forward and more balanced.
The vines are all bushes instead of the classic supported vines that we are used to.
The soil is volcanic with limestone and marine fossils. Vinding-Diers calls it a "paleolithic vineyard." Poor soils likely balance out the fruit expression which allows the secondary and tertiary flavors to shine. The winery is in the hills near the Ionian sea, which may cool the vineyards.
At any rate, what is important is how the wines taste.
The Wines
The first wine is the 2020 Vinding Montecarrubo Cuvee Speciale for $32.99 a bottle each on a 4 pack.
The nose is simply a thing of beauty. The most gorgeous Syrah perfume seen on this planet. Sexy, almost slutty roses. Liquid sex. A gorgeous, floating, fresh rose. Powerful, and yet ephemeral. Everything is so well integrated it's hard even for me to distinguish the various flavors and scents. The aromatics are what I call jumpy - they leap out of the glass and into the nostrils. Almost the platonic ideal of Syrah aromatics.
The palate is perfect. Perfect balance. Raspberries. Some tobacco. Simply perfect. Elite silky texture. God's spice. Elegant beyond belief. Gorgeous sweet fruit. God's raspberry liquor. Sweet raspberries. It reminds me a bit of the Podere Forte we sold but perhaps a bit less fruit forward and more perfumed. It's almost like perfectly clean mountain water infused like crazy with spiced raspberries.
A hint of the most gorgeous licorice. Lightly savory but in an elegant way. Incredibly salivatory. Silky, integrated tannins. This has the structure and balance to age. The juiciness and touch of savoriness just make your mouth water. Balancing minerality. So good.
The finish is so elegant. Clean, laser-like precision. You get the fruit but more echoes of the non sweet aspects of fruit than sweet fruit if that makes sense.
I had a last sip on day 6 after significant oxygen exposure. The wine was still incredible after 6 days. So sexy and sensual. Absolutely delicious. Masterfully well made. This is mostly syrah with a small amount of cab franc and a teeny bit of Merlot.
This is one of those wines that you have to try if you like Syrah. It is very different from the other top Syrahs in the world (the Rhone and Ziereisens's Syrah from Baden) and the best Syrah I've had from Italy by a long shot.
The second wine is the 2020 Vinding Montecarrubo Cuvee Rudolf for $42.99 each on a 4 pack purchase.
The nose here is beautifully rich raspberry, plum flower and gorgeous beyond belief. Some black pepper. Licorice. A hint of black olive. Wow. So complex. Spices, wild cherries. Hints of cinnamon. This is jam your nose in a live flower in the garden good. Just absolutely intoxicating. One of the best and most intensely elegant noses on an under $30 wine I've ever had.
The palate is fresh, stunning and sweet, fresh raspberries. Masterful. Such deliciously sweet fruit. And it's not just fresh - it has that precision that you only get from supremely talented winemakers. This wine has that brilliant contained density that allows you to appreciate the nuanced complexity. Internal aromatics are like inhaling a flower garden.
As you swallow, it's just insane. So fresh. Wild raspberries just linger all over the palate. Wild aromatics. It almost warms the palate with its intensity. The finish is long. Almost adheres to the palate. So fresh - succulent beyond belief. Tremendously salivatory.
This is 100% Syrah. FYI I had this on day 5 and this was still incredible. The balance here is incredible. It's a masterclass in winemaking.
2020 Peter Vinding-Diers Montecarrubo Cuvee Speciale - $34.99
($131.96 4-Pack)
2020 Peter Vinding-Diers Vinding Montecarrubo Cuvee Rudolf - $44.99
($171.96 4-Pack)
No comments:
Post a Comment