WCC DOMENICO SELECTIONS TASTING WITH JEFF MAZEN
@ The Chef's Table in Cafe Capriccio, Albany, NY (1/18/2012)

Jeff Mazen, co-owner of Domenico Selections, brought a number of his wines to share with my Albany-area tasting group. He and his partner Strappo Hughes have built impressive portfolio of quality wines. Sadly, Domenico has since shut its doors.

We met in a private room of Cafe Capriccio, my favorite restaurant in Albany. Chef/Owner Jim Rua did the cooking in the room with us. This special room is called the The Chef's Table. The food was terrific as usual. All in all, it was a delightful evening of food, wine, and friends!

The guys arrive and set up their glasses.

Chef/Owner Jim Rua preps the Antipasto.

Chef's Table room at Cafe Capriccio.

Chef/Owner Jim Rua and Jeff Mazen.

Flights 1–4 with Antipasto & Salad

• 2010 Azienda Agricola Costantini Antonio Colline Pescaresi IGT - Italy, Abruzzi, Colline Pescaresi IGT
  Crisp, fresh, delicious wine. Layers of flavor. Very impressive value at around $15. Grape is Pecorino. (90 pts.)
• 2010 Aquila del Torre Colli Orientali del Friuli Sauvignon - Italy, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Colli Orientali del Friuli
  Lighter than the Pecorino and less complex, but still a tasty wine. (88 pts.)
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• 2008 Cascina Roccalini Dolcetto d'Alba - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Dolcetto d'Alba
  Fragrant red berry nose. A lot of trying tannins. A little too much bite for me. Maybe it needs a couple more years? (86 pts.)
• 2009 Cascina Roccalini Dolcetto d'Alba - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Dolcetto d'Alba
  Similar to the 08. OK, but needs to mellow. (87 pts.)
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• 2008 Cascina Roccalini Barbera d'Alba - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba
  Delicious bright red fruit in the nose. Full and tasty in the mouth. Excellent Barbera which should drink well for 5-8 years. (90 pts.)
• 2009 Cascina Roccalini Barbera d'Alba - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba
  Even more ripeness than the 08, but still with a good sense of balance. This might prove even better than the 08 down the road. (90 pts.)
• 2007 Cascina Roccalini Barbera d'Alba Superiore - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba Superiore
  Chunky vanilla nose. Thick and gunky with too much oak for me. Others liked it a lot more, and it may mellow with time, but for now, I like the less-oaked, non-superiore Barberas better. (88 pts.)
Jeff says that the owner/winemaker Paolo Veglio has decided to go back to making Barbera without new oak, so the 2007 will be the only one made that way.
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• 2007 Azienda Agricola Costantini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo - Italy, Abruzzi, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo
  I passed on this the first day. I thought it might be too much.
  Day 2: Big oaky, red fruit nose. A little gunky and thick for me. Too spoofy.
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The gang awaits the next round of wines.

Jeff introduces the wines while Jim Rua looks on.

Flights 5–6 with the Pasta Course

• 2005 L'Arco Rosso Veronese IGT - Italy, Veneto, Veronese IGT
  Ethereal nose. A stunningly elegant wine with great length. This is the most pleasure-giving and subtle wine of the evening so far. This really wowed me. Don't know if it will make old bones, but tonight and for several years to come, this is a winner. (93 pts.)
• 2005 L'Arco Valpolicella Classico Superiore - Italy, Veneto, Valpolicella, Valpolicella Classico Superiore
  Bigger and more extracted than the L'Arco Veronese above, but still has its elegance. Should improve for 5-10 years. Just a hint of sweetness on the finish is still appealing. Says Ripasso on the back label, but Jeff says it means nothing. (93 pts.)

• 2004 L'Arco Rùbeo Veronese IGT - Italy, Veneto, Veronese IGT
  Glorious, sweet red fruit nose with hints of spice. Thick and sweet in the mouth. Very Amarone-like with more than a hint of sweetness on the finish. This and the Pario might have shown better at the end of the meal with strong cheeses.
• 2005 L'Arco Pario Veronese IGT - Italy, Veneto, Veronese IGT
  Even more Port-like. The alcohol must be 18%. Too sweet on the finish at this stage of the meal. This and the Rubeo would have shown better at the end of the meal with strong cheeses.

Flights 7–9 with the Meat Course

• 2005 Cascina Roccalini Barbaresco Roccalini - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
  Tannic red fruit nose. Very tannic in the mouth with intense red fruit. As it warms and opens in the glass, it shows a more subtle nose of red fruit, licorice and tar. Oddly, it seems softer after trying the 2007, even though the 2007 seems clearly softer and less tannic after this. This is a truly classic Barbaresco, elegant with just the right amount of tannin and power. A great value at $40. I would put this down for 8-10 years. (93 pts.)
• 2007 Cascina Roccalini Barbaresco Roccalini - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
  Sweet red fruit nose. Stunning, classic Barbaresco in the mouth. Lots of tannin, but the tannin is soft and sweet. I would expect it to shut down soon, then open up in 5-8 years and drink beautifully for another 10 years.
  Day 2: Tannins much more aggressive today. Really has shut down hard. (94 pts.)

I added these from my cellar just for fun and to act as a reference point.

• 1998 Casa Vinicola Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
  Continues the mixed experience I have had with this wine. It's elegant, but has more tannin than I think the fruit can carry. Not an estate bottled wine. (89 pts.)
• 1999 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
  Wow, what a difference from the 98. This is all there. A riveting, ethereal wine. I wonder if this got the Rabaja grapes that wasn't made in 1999? It is certainly well above the average for a base Barbaresco. Note that this is estate-bottled. Should drink well for another decade. (95 pts.)

• 2008 Musto Carmelitano Aglianico del Vulture Pian del Moro - Italy, Basilicata, Aglianico del Vulture
  Big, thick, and long. Licorice and black fruit. This is serious stuff that should drink well for a decade or more. (92 pts.)
• 2007 Terra di Vento Petrale Colli di Salerno IGT - Italy, Campania, Colli di Salerno IGT
  Too aggressive for me at this point in the evening. Not rated.

Flight 10 with Dessert

• 2010 Cascina Gilli Malvasia di Castelnuovo Don Bosco - Italy, Piedmont, Monferrato, Malvasia di Castelnuovo Don Bosco
  Sweet strawberry nose. Tastes just like a classic Brachetto to me. A delightful wine that should be lots of fun at parties. (90 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

Summary

The Roccalini wines and the L'Arco wines and some others are clearly excellent wines and very good values. I have already added a few to my cellar!

Well-done, Jeff and Strappo! And many, many thanks for sharing these with us.

All original content © Ken Vastola