Spotlight
on Soave
24 wines tasted
Soave, from the Veneto in North East Italy, has a reputation
for producing rather neutral, boring white wines. It’s partly
deserved. Pop into your local supermarket and buy their cheapest
Soave. It will be a commodity wine, with some fresh acidity but rather
neutral flavours. Indeed, production here is dominated by cooperatives
whose emphasis has always been on quantity rather than quality. I hope
this doesn’t sound snobbish: after all, the world needs cheap wine
and a good deal of pleasure can be had from simple, crisp neutral
whites, well chilled down, in certain circumstances.
But to dismiss all Soave as dull and uninteresting would be
doing a great disservice to those producers who are doing good work
here. What this tasting showed is that the Garganega grape, often with
some help from a bit of Chardonnay or some new French oak, can make
profound white wines packed full of flavour and interest. An
interesting shift has been from Pergola training towards more
conventional trellising, which generally produces better quality.
Hillsides also help: the majority of these wines are from hillside
vineyards in Soave Classico.
The leading lights in this region are widely acknowledged to
be Inama, Pieropan and Anselmi. Of these, Anselmi no longer uses the
Soave DOC: instead he labels his wines as IGT Veneto. It has to be
said that this was a rather select bunch of wines tasted here, but
none the less I was surprised by the interest and quality
demonstrated.
As with many more serious Italian wines, they are
underappreciated in the UK. As a result, their availability is poor,
and you’ll generally have to hunt around independents and Italian
specialists to get hold of these wines.
Producer
profiles: Anselmi, Inama,
Pieropan
Inama Soave Classico ‘Vigneto du Lot’ 2001
From an experimental vineyard planted in 1993: instead of pergola
training, the Garganega grapes are grown in a permanent cordon and are
spur pruned. 50% new Allier oak is used. Striking rich herby, toasty
nutty nose. Rich exotic ripe palate with straw and herb edge to the
savoury nutty palate. Excellent
Inama Soave Classico 2001
Made from hand-harvested pergola-trained Garganega grapes,
fermented and aged in stainless steel. Quite a distinctive herbal edge
to the nose: bright and fruity. Rounded rich palate with lots of
flavour and a savoury minerally edge. An interesting, characterful
wine. Very good/excellent
Azienda Agricola Prà Soave Classico Superiore ‘Colle
Sant Antonio’ 2000
Very different style to the others: almost sweet. Lifted acidity
on the really interesting old-style nose, which is herby with a touch
of caramel. Rich, rounded palate with a nice texture. An interesting
style showing good concentration and lots of complexity. Very
good/excellent
Leonildo Pieropan Soave Classico Superiore ‘La Rocca’
1999
Nicely complex nose showing
elegant herb-tinged fruit with a waxy edge. Full flavoured, complex
savoury palate with a slight toastiness and good minerality. Very
good/excellent
Inama Soave Classico ‘Vigneti di Foscarino’ 2000
Made from a selection of old vines grown at the top of Monte
Foscarino. Pergola trained Garganega grapes. Remarkable forward herby
nose with waxy, nutty complexity. Really rich, spectacular palate with
a spicy, herby edge. Quite brilliant: a lovely complex savoury white
wine. Very good/excellent
Anselmi ‘San Vicenzo’ 2001 Veneto
Anselmi doesn’t use the Soave appellation for this wine, but
that’s where it comes from. It’s a blend of Garganega, Chardonnay
and Trebbiano. Quite a complex nose with bright lemony fruit, floral
elements and a slight nuttiness combining well. Lively palate is still
quite fresh and youthful. Very good/excellent
Cesari Soave Classico ‘Nibai’ 2001
Garganega and Trebbiano. Savoury, herby, waxy nose. The palate
shows a nice density of clean, savoury fruit. Really lovely and quite
chunky, with a nutty character. Very good/excellent
Leonildo Pieropan Soave Classico Superiore ‘Calvarino’
2000
Tight savoury nose shows herby complexity and some mineral notes.
Crisp, savoury palate is quite tight-knit and complex, with good
acidity. Understated, with good concentration. Very good/excellent
Ca’ Rugate Soave Classico 2001
Full, nutty savoury nose with a fresh acid lift. Distinctive
nutty, fruity palate with good acid. Full flavoured and satisfying
with a hint of minerality. Very good+
Ca’ Rugate Soave Classico ‘Monte Alto’ 1999
Matured in new French barriques. Deep gold colour. Striking
savoury butterscotch, herby and toasty nose, Very intense savoury
palate with high acidity and more butterscotch character. An extreme
style, showing lots of herby fruit and oak. Intense and quite old
fashioned, and a little too oaky. Very good+
Masi Soave Classico Superiore ‘Col Baraca’ 2001
Some barriques used here. Attractive herb-tinged fruit. Good
concentration of flavour. Fresh, with good acid. Interesting. Very
good+
Carlo Bogoni Soave Classico Superiore ‘La Ponsara’
2000
Attractive savoury herbal nose with a toasty edge. The palate is
crisp, savoury and nutty with good acidity. Tastes a bit old
fashioned, but in the right sort of way. Very good+
Terre dei Monti Soave Classico Superiore ‘Vigna
Valentina’ 2000
Garganega fermented in French oak. Intense lemony, slightly spicy
nose with subtle toasty oak. Chunky, savoury palate falls off a little
on the finish but is still attractive. Very good+
Bolla Soave Classico ‘Tufai’ 2001
Interesting nutty nose with a slight floral twist. Full but
delicate palate shows a good concentration clean, fresh nutty fruit
with a nice savouriness. Good balance. Very good+
Santi Soave Classico ‘Sanfrederici’ 1999
A blend of Garganega and Chardonnay that spends 6 months in Allier
oak. Toasty oak on the nose meshing well with the herby fruit. Very
savoury, modern palate with nutty, toasty edge to the crisp fruit. A
rich, well made style. Not typical, but still very well made. Very
good+
Suavia Soave Classico Superiore 2001
Very pronounced herby nose with lifted acidity. Palate is
attractive with good balance between the lemony fruit and herby notes.
Good acidity. Very good+
Sartori Recioto di Soave 2000
Interesting stuff, this. Gold colour. Attractive lemony/herby
nose. Rich palate has an unusual herby edge with lots of sweetness and
a rich texture. Very good+
Ca’ Rugate Recioto di Soave ‘La Perlara’ 1999
Unusual nose with lifted acidity and sweet caramel and herb notes.
The palate is very rich and sweet with a rich, viscous texture.
Syrupy, with relatively low acidity. Very good+
Bertani Sereole Soave Classico Superiore 1999
Warm, rounded, forward nose shows lovely nutty, waxy fruit with a
toasty oak edge. The palate is attractive but very oak dominated with
sweet vanilla character. Very good+
Pasqua Soave Classico Superiore ‘Sagramoso’ 2001
Crisp, fresh and a bit neutral. Simple clean fruity style. Very
good
Sartori Soave Classico Superiore ‘Vigneti di Sella’
2001
Three months in medium toast French oak. Some restraint here: good
lemony fruit with a slight toasty edge and good acid. Very good
Azienda Agricole Prà Soave Classico Superiore 2001
Bright, crisp lemony fruit dominates with a slight toasty edge and
some waxy notes. Attractive if a little simple. Very good
Bertani Soave Classico Superiore 2000
Herby, cabbagey nose. Good concentration on the fruity, rich
palate. Nicely savoury. Very good
Carlo Bogoni Soave Classico Superiore 2001
Bright fruity herby nose with a mushroomy edge. Mouldy tasting
palate. Two bottles were consistent. Not obviously corked though.
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