MCF Rare Wine
An Old-School Montepulciano Powerhouse
A customer emailed me the other week asking for some wines for an upcoming weekend dinner party, and specifically asked if I had any really good Montepulciano.
I asked him how 'really good' he wanted to go.
'$50-100 would be fine,' was his response.
Now, I had some really good Montepulciano at the low end, and I had some REALLY good stuff, way up at the high end, but nothing at the moment in that $50-100 range.
Then I remembered an epically good wine from Abruzzo that I'd tasted several times in the last year, and loved, but up until now, had only been circling around...
...it seemed the opportune moment to finally back up my big talk about how enamored I was with it.
Enzo and Lucia Pasquale are the last winegrowers living in the village of Prezza, overlooking the Peligna Valley, the genetic birthplace of the Montepulciano grape.
Their estate, Praesidium, makes super classic, old school, let-it-all-hang-out Montepulciano, that are both full-throatedly rustic, and also super serious.
In really great vintages, they use the grapes from a single hectare of their oldest vines this produce this well-mannered beast of a wine, the Riserva A Marianna, in this case, from the powerhouse 2019 vintage.
It's dark and brawny, with all manner of meaty earthiness, and loads of mineral/iron/tobacco-y/leather-y nuance baked into every inch of it. Even with over six years of age on it, its structure is still very present, but all that dark fruit has no problem carrying the tannins.
It's a monster, yes, but with such a charmingly polite side to it, too.
It's fabulous right now (especially with a rich, meaty, comforting winter dish), it gets really good on day two, and I'm keen to observe what it develops into over the next 5-10 years.
There are lots of Montepulciano that over-deliver in the sub-$30 price range, and there are a handful of legends in the $100+ range, but there aren't many that deliver this much in the sub-$100 range...
...this is absolutely one of them...and probably the best, one, too.
PRAESIDIUM
Montepulciano d'Abruzzo A Marianna 2019
You may order by replying to this message or calling 212.255.8870.
Matt Franco
MCF Rare Wine, Ltd
249 West 13th Street NYC 10011
212.255.8870
Looking for a wine you loved from a past newsletter or a favorite you can't find anywhere? Email Raphael at raphael@mcf-rarewine.com, and we'll do our best to find it for you!
