{"title":"GB Private Tasting 9.17.25","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"h86","title":"Cavalchina Bardolino","description":"\u003cp\u003eLight, lifted, and quietly charming, this opens with sour cherry, red currant, and red apple peel, layered with dried rose, sweet herbs, and a faint almond note. The palate is featherweight and fresh, driven by bright acidity and very fine, unobtrusive tannins that keep the wine agile and easygoing. Subtle savory tones of dried herbs and stone dust carry through the mid-palate, finishing clean, dry, and refreshingly delicate. A classic Bardolino that favors freshness and drinkability over depth, best served with a slight chill and simple food.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Select Sellars","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46708020838633,"sku":"803202","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0579\/2805\/7022\/products\/image_bcd9b65b-37da-43a7-b9ec-8a12f4462384.png?v=1632001873"},{"product_id":"villa-sparina-gavi-2020","title":"Villa Sparina Gavi Green Label 2021","description":"\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThere are a couple of wines that started my love affair with wine, and Gavi is one of them…\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eDown a dirty alleyway, inside a 12-seat Italian restaurant, out came a chef pouring glasses of Gavi. Crisp, refreshing, vibrant, chasing-the-blues-away good – Gavi. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eI had no idea what it was, but no matter, its joie de vivre got to me.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThen he brought a portable burner tableside with a large block of Sicilian pink salt right on top of the flame. Once the salt was burning hot, he seared a tuna loin on it. Next came a splash of ultra-fresh olive oil, a squeeze of blood orange and Meyer lemon, and a dusting of shaved scallion. Voila! Straight onto the table for a family-style meal. And, of course, evermore Gavi.  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe two combined – Gavi and salt-seared tuna – I can still taste to this day. And nothing I’ve had since duplicates the romantic interplay of those two ingredients. In fact, I have spent my life trying to duplicate it – seeking out the Gavi that made it so great. And I finally found it – Villa Sparina’s Gavi.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThis Gavi opens with notes of red pears, followed by a sense of bracing refreshment, like cool mountain air running down a ski slope. There are deep layers of flavor and expression here, to a level that will leave you savoring it for 20 years or more, just as I have been. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe palate is full and luxurious with a fantastic combination of sea brine, lemon, hints of roasted hazelnuts, and savory herbs. It finishes with a return to green apple-tinged minerality, with a stunning length to the back of the palate. This is Villa Sparina’s plot of 100-year-old vines—some of the oldest in the region—and its concentration and power, balanced with elegance and finesse, is simply breathtaking. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWine Spectator has compared Gavi to Chablis, but I don’t think that does Gavi justice. All of the dry concentrated minerality of Chablis is here, yet it is something entirely unto itself. Further, when I think of the best Grand Cru Chablis, from its finest producer, the price per bottle soars. Here is Gavi’s grand cru, from its greatest practitioner, at a price where I would almost be willing to serve it to my in-laws. Don’t miss this highly sought-after wine!\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAnd yep – Villa Sparina bottles all of its Gavi in a custom bottle shape that comes from a 200-year-old bottle found at the winery. The 750 mls. look a little like an old-time hand grenade. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Johnson\/Phillips","offers":[{"title":"750ml","offer_id":45318296142057,"sku":"1624790","price":6.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"1.5L","offer_id":44728464212201,"sku":"1227411","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0579\/2805\/7022\/files\/IMG-1984.png?v=1756313611"},{"product_id":"varvaglione-12-e-mezzo-primitivo-dal-salento","title":"Varvaglione 12 e Mezzo Primitivo del Salento","description":"\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eMany Americans make the assumption that Zinfandel is a purely home-grown domestic grape. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eAnd they’re actually wrong. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThere is even a legend about Agoston Haraszthy magically creating Zinfandel in the rolling hills just outside of Healdsburg, Sonoma County. That’s totally incorrect, too (although it is true that Agoston founded a vineyard in Wisconsin, near Prairie du Sac, then became what’s considered the Father of California Wine, and much later in life, was eaten by a crocodile in Nicaragua). \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWhat\u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e is \u003c\/em\u003etrue about Zinfandel is that it is delicious everywhere it is planted, and it has covered a lot of ground. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eLooking back, Zinfandel was first brought to America from the Imperial Austrian Nursery in Vienna. It landed on Long Island and was a mid-19\u003csup data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eth\u003c\/sup\u003e century sensation in Boston, where it was known as Black Saint Peter, for its rich, early ripening fruit. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBut it’s not native to Austria (at least not present-day Austria). The Imperial Nursery’s cuttings were Croatian, where it was and is known as Crljenak Kaštelanski.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eZinfandel, or at least Crljenak Kaštelanski, migrated across the Adriatic Sea, from Croatia, to Italy. There it spread up and down the east coast, until it reached the town of Liponti, just outside Gioia del Colle, in Puglia (the heel of the Italian boot) some time in the late 18\u003csup data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eth\u003c\/sup\u003e century.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eA priest (whose name is lost in the empty wine bottles of time) noted how our Zinfandel was always the first to ripen in his vineyard. He named the variety Primitivo, from the Latin Primativus, or first to ripen. And while all this history is fun, I find drinking is the best way to get an education. Especially from great Primitivo:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe Varvaglione Primitivo has glass-saturating ruby color and opens with an intense expression of black currants, dried figs, cinnamon and vanilla wood. Harmonious and velvety on the palate, the taste sensations evolve into a rich Ranier-cherry aroma intermixed with nutty spices and caramelized fruit. The finish gives you a classic sense of a beautiful Adriatic sunset – mellow, warm, and with a rich abundance of the good life. As the 12 e Mezzo name suggests, the perfect time to start drinking Primitivo is half past noon – and if you do, certainly don’t stop!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThis drinks like a $25 California Zinfandel, and if it didn’t have the funny name and long history to explain, it would be priced like one, too. Think of it as the Italian side of the extended Zinfandel family, and amare with abandon. Cheers!  \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eP.S. - Why the somewhat funny, or longer name?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe current scions of the Varvaglione family - Marzia, Angelo and Francesca – all women under 30, wanted to update the style of the wine and labels. Wine: bringing the wine down to a fresh, easy drinking 12.5% non-jammy style. Labels: all developed from the fashion industry, where these charismatic women first worked before returning home to run the family estate. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Select Sellars","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45499359002857,"sku":"880803","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0579\/2805\/7022\/products\/image_7ec69c77-0d52-43a3-88e6-98aa1d71bafb.png?v=1636841939"},{"product_id":"tua-rita-rosso-dei-notri-igt","title":"Tua Rita Rosso Dei Notri IGT \"Super Tuscan\" 2023","description":"","brand":"Winebow","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44534846357737,"sku":"","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0579\/2805\/7022\/files\/IMG-8385.png?v=1712606222"},{"product_id":"castellani-vermentio","title":"Castellani Vermentino 2022","description":"","brand":"AVA","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47710532993257,"sku":"6107","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0579\/2805\/7022\/files\/CastellaniVermentino.png?v=1724519521"},{"product_id":"zenato-valpolicella-ripasso","title":"Zenato Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore","description":"","brand":"Winebow","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48468347748585,"sku":"30290324","price":23.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}]},{"product_id":"garzon-tannat-reserva","title":"Garzon Tannat Reserva","description":"","brand":"Winebow","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48521125789929,"sku":"30318133","price":16.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}]}],"url":"https:\/\/waterfordwine.com\/collections\/gb-private-tasting-9-17-25.oembed","provider":"Waterford Wine and Spirits","version":"1.0","type":"link"}