MacCurtain Wine Cellar and Tuscany’s Capezzana, with a quartet of stunning reds, combine to spread a warming cheer on a miserable wet night in the city.

Pierpaolo

MacCurtain Wine Cellar and Tuscany’s Capezzana (with a quartet of stunning reds) combine to spread a warming cheer on a miserably wet night in the city. 

It wasn’t just the wine on Tuesday. There was a warm welcome from Sean Gargano and his crew at the Cellar. They also came up with some excellent small plates. Even tried to keep the summer going with a delicious Pet Nat (from the Veneto).

Ricotta

Sean, co-owner with Trudy Ahern,  did emphasise that wine always comes first here, that the food is secondary. In fairness, though, the food we were served was top notch and quite appropriate to the wines.

Soon, we got down to the serious (not really!) business of tasting those wines with gentle guidance from Pierpaolo Guerra of Capezzana who was accompanied by Marcus Gates of importers Liberty Wines.

Sweet potato

First up was their “baby wine, the everyday drinking wine”, the Barco Real di Carmignano 2019, a youthful, light and easy drinking blend of Sangiovese (75%), Cabernet Sauvignon (15%), Canaiolo and Cabernet Franc. Pierpaulo explained that French grapes have a very long history here as we sipped this aromatic and fruity wine with a spicy finish. 

Barco Real is called the “Baby” because the fruit is sourced from slightly younger fruit and also spends less time in oak than the Villa di Capezzana 2018 that we would meet next. This was certainly a little more serious, full bodied with a concentrated finish and a slight touch of peppery spice. Again it is a traditional blend, this of Sangiovese (80%) and Cabernet Sauvignon.

By the way, all their wines (even their superb olive oils) are organic. Sean made a point of this as organic is “very important to us” at MacCurtain Street Wine Cellar.

Speck and Macroom Mozzarella

Sean makes a point

Next on the list was the Ugo Contini Bonacossi 2016 from a vineyard where conditions are ideal for growing Sangiovese, the only varietal in this excellent wine. It has aromas of cherries and a touch of spice, red fruit abound on the palate and the full bodied beauty has a lengthy finish.

We finished with the Ghiaie della Furba. This 2018 had a tough growing season but all ended well. The yield was lower than normal (down 40%) but the quality was excellent. And so was the fruit and spice from the oak in the aromas; it was full bodied and balanced in the mouth and again a long and fruity finish. 

It is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (40%), Syrah (35%) and Merlot (25%). Not quite a Bordeaux blend but a good one!

Mortadela (left in sandwich) and Spicy Sausage

The Capezzana estate, 24 km north west of Florence, is owned by the Conti Contini Bonacossi family. The family is mentioned in a contract dating back to 804 AD, written at the time of Charlemange. So they have been there a long long time and now a new generation is firmly in charge and,  going by these wines, making an excellent job of it.

In contrast to the ancient vineyard, the MacCurtain Wine Cellar is just a baby, a few months only. But already you can see that Sean and Trudy have give the intimate venue quite a personality. Look out for similar events in the months ahead!

Rainy night out. Red wine in

GREEN GREEN OLIVE OILS OF TUSCANY

OLIVE OIL MASTER CLASS

Three of Tuscany’s makers featured at an Olive Oil Master class in Ballymaloe Cookery School last Wednesday (9/11/11). Capezzana were represented by Beatrice Contini Bonacossi, Federico Giuntini Masseti was there for Fattoria Selvapiana while Liberty Wines’ David Gleave MW stood in for Giovanni Manetti of Fontodi.

Tuscany is more or less on the northern edge of the kind of climate in which the Olive tree grows and so is very susceptible to changes in the weather, especially the frost which has been known to more or less wipe out the olive rows.

Federico remembered the one in 1985 as a disaster. “The trees had be severely pruned to ground level and it took us all of ten years to get a good crop again.” There were a number of difficulties this year mainly due to the very cold weather in December and this has resulted in an oil that isn’t as green and spicy as normal.

Still, the arrival of the new season’s oils in Tuscany is a big event, according to Beatrice: “It is like a fete and the restaurants mark it by putting on special menus. It is very important for Tuscan cuisine and we always cook with good oil.”

We started our tasting with the multi-varietal Capezzana, harvested a little earlier than usual. Like the others, this was quite a bright green in colour, soft and fruity with a light spice and great delicacy, perfect for drizzling over freshly baked bread and using in dressing for salads.

Just two varietals in the Fontodi, the Frantoio accounting for 80%. Another lovely oil for salads or soups or for drizzling over pastas and salads. David Gleave remarked again that it wasn't quite as spicy as usual, lacking a little of what he termed austerity. I think most of us were maybe relieved that it wasn't as spicy as normal!

The Selvapiana was also neither as green nor as spicy as usual and, according to Federico, was part of a small crop after two bad winters in a row. But it was a lovely viscous liquid with enough of a spicy finish and he particularly recommended having it on toasted bread.

The lunch dishes that followed our “lessons” were a practical and tasty demonstration of the use of Olive Oil in cooking. We started with delicious Pumpkin and Faro Soup with a topping of Parmesan and the Selvapiana oil.

Then onto a light and lovely plateful of Roaringwater Bay scallops with lemon, chilli, coriander and the Capezzana oil. Needless to say, plenty of bread was used with these two dishes.

The main course was Slow Cooked (15 hours) shin of beef with Allegrini, thyme, garlic and black pepper served with braised winter greens and Golden Wonder Fontodi Mash.

Pretty full at that stage but still room for a delightful Raisin, Orange and Walnut biscotti served with a knockout Capezzana Vin Santo, a sweet wine that requires much patience and investment to bring to the table. But well worth the wait!

Oh, and by the way, it wasn’t the only wine on the table as we got to taste samples of Fontodi’s Meriggio 2010 (100% Sauvignon Blanc), Selvapiana’s Chianti Rufina 2009 and their flagship Vigneto Bucerchiale Chianti Rufina Riserva 2007, then the 80% Sangiovese Capezzana Carmignano Villa de Capezzana 2007 (91 points on the Wine Advocate) and next the terrific Fontodi Flaccianello Della Pive 2008 (92 points in the Wine Advocate).

Quite a line-up of wines but the focus during the morning was very much on the oils. And it was hard to believe that just a week ago, the olives were still on the plant in beautiful Tuscany.

The wines and the oils are distributed in Ireland by Liberty Wines who have a new website which you may see here.