Vertical tasting of Luce, 1999 - 2009, at Trattoria Giancarlo

 The Date and Time: Tuesday, October 23, 2012 6PM to 10PM
The Event: Vertical tasting of Luce conducted by Lamberto Frescobaldi.
His family has been making wine since the fourteenth century.
The Venue: Trattoria Giancarlo
The Target Audience: wine writers.
The Availability/Catalogue: most of the wines are no longer generally
available.
The Quote/Background: Luce della Vita began as a co-production with
Robert Mondavi. Tim Mondavi made the wine (Sangiovese and Merlot blend)
with Lamberto but it wasn't named until the wine was in the bottle in
1993.
The Wines: We sat down and tasted through 11 vintages of Luce, from
2009 back to 1999. In lesser years, the Merlot side is higher (2002)

**** BEST -- Four Stars (91+ in Quality/Price Rating terms):
-Luce 2003 – Italianate, my fave of the evening
-Luce 2006 (mocha tones)
-Luce 2000, 60% merlot, French style
-Luce 2004, 60% merlot but Euro dryness
-Luce 2007 – overthetop elegance

***1/2 BETTER -- Three and a Half Stars (88 – 90 in Quality/Price
Rating terms):
-Luce 1999
-Luce 2001
-Luce 2002 – 75% merlot, soft Californian
-Luce 2005 dusty
-Luce 2008 layers of fruit but shorter finish
-Luce 2009 needs time at this point

The Food: At the reception, we had crostini with pesto, crostini with
dried tomatoes, and crostini with porchetta and truffle oil to
accompany the Danzante Prosecco NV ($16.95 licensee only). Later, with
leftover Luce wine and magnums of decanted Lucente 2010, we had a
dinner --
Baked whole mushrooms, balsamic vinaigrette, grilled polenta, parmesan
Risotto in Chianti, grilled figs and sheep's milk cheese
Grilled striploin, olive oil infused with crispy sage, garlic and red chilli, sweet potato and
rapini
Dessert: Vanilla gelato over warm apple crostata
The Contact Person: pdelpeschio@awsm.ca
The Event's Marketing Effectiveness and Execution (numerical grade): 92

Chimo!  www.deantudor.com