2018 Cantina Roeno, Teroldego della Vallagarina “I Dossi” Vallagarina Veronese Trentina, Italy.
The deeply hued black/purple and garnet 2018 Roeno I Dossi Teroldego Vallagarina IGT Rosso is a beautifully aromatic, complex and concentrated example of this rare and unique Dolomiti varietal and makes for a wine that has distinct character that reminds me of Chinon (Cabernet Franc) and Cross-Hermitage (Syrah) love child with dark fruit, spice, mineral tones, meaty elements and lovely florals. There’s a lot to love in this Roeno Teroldego della Vallagarina, with its very dark almost Petite Sirah like color and its layering of blackberry, wild plum, mulberry and black cherry fruits, along with an accenting of black olive, bell pepper, dried minty herbs, cedar, graphite, tartare and crushed violet flowers. This textural medium to full bodied effort impresses in the glass and has started to evolve into a very engaging wine with a firm underpinning of tannin, subtle acidity and now displays a rewarding mouth feel, along with a good length and persistence that makes it a superb companion with a hearty meal. The Roeno Winery, which has a unique array of varietals planted, is located near the border between the Veneto and Trentino, in the land known as “Terra dei Forti” or land with no borders, with the estate surrounded by majestic Dolomite mountain slopes that flank the Adige River. There’s a bunch of cool things being made here and this wine is just the tip of the iceberg and I highly recommend searching out these Roeno offerings.
After years of guessing and study, it was through DNA analysis, that revealed that Teroldego, native to the Trentino area, together with the Schiava Gentile, is a close relative of Lagrein and Marzemino, and a cousin of Dureza, which all are relatives of Syrah. In modern times, Teroldego has been championed by the famous Elizabetta Foradori and her wines remain the grape’s finest and most coveted efforts, they need to be on your bucket list of Italian red wines, but as a starter version of Teroldego, this Roeno is an outstanding way to begin your exploration of this varietal. For their Teroldego della Vallagarina, Roeno uses 100% de-stemmed and carefully hand harvested grapes that are fermented with maceration on the skins in temperature controlled stainless steel vats with pump overs to extract the Teroldego’s intense color, structure and fruit density. After primary fermentation the wine is pressed to large mostly used neutral oak casks, where the winery says it goes through natural secondary (malos) fermentation and matures for about a year before being settled in tank and then bottled. This was the first time I’ve tried the Roeno wines, by the Fugatti family, who’ve lived and worked here for multiple generations, and I look forward to sampling the full range of imported options, which is still pretty limited in the States, as I see that they do some Interesting stuff, including a dry Riesling, that looks like one of their signature wines. I also understand they have an ultra rare red made from 100% Enantio (which I had never even heard of) from vines planted in 1865, which is on my radar now to discover as soon as possible!
($22 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive