Has anyone tried this Piccolo Cru red wine from Napa?

[Huskee]

Thanks for the info!

[WayneT]

The name alone is interesting. Piccolo is the Italian word for small and Cru is a French word denoting a grade of wine from a chateau or growing region. That blend, though, is made from five primary Bordeaux grape varietals so it mimics a Bordeaux blend. Might want to cellar a few bottles of that.

Calistoga is a great little funky town at the northern end of Napa. Lots of old deuce coups and roadsters there.

[Jerod Broussard]

I wouldn't call it robust, but a hallmark flavor filled with copious amounts of undertones nonetheless.

[CalebLowery]

In the leaves of plants, they make up to 50% of the dry matter. In wine, tannins are part of the so-called "structure" of the taste. They make the wine seem dry. Tannins occur mostly in red wines and to a lesser extent in rosé and orange wines. In white wines, they may appear as a result of barrel aging. I remember Weinjoker publishing a list of the best wines and people tasting them. The results were amazing. Almost all the dry wines with tannins were mistaken for semi-sweet wines. In the taste of wine, tannins give bitterness and an astringent sensation - tartness. Strong black tea without sugar is almost a pure taste of tannins.

[Huskee]

I do like Sangiovese! Thanks for the recommendation.

[Dick Anderson]

You're approaching a "Super Tuscan", just lacking a little (or a lot of) Sangiovese. If you'd want to try something from over the hill, in Sonoma County, perhaps a Ferrari-Carano Siena? Same price range; the Sangiovese adds a bunch to the fruitiness

[58limited]

I'll have to check it out. Been to Calistoga once. Located there is one of the only three "Old Faithful" type geysers in the world. This geyser came about when a person digging a well tapped into a natural hydrothermal formation. They sell the mineral water from there, similar to Perrier.

[Huskee]

If you've tried this, what did you think?

I normally lean toward the big bold tannin-heavy reds, and I pay less attention to overall flavor. This one has those squeaky-teeth tannins, but it also has a lot of flavor. And not in the jammy, fruity way necessarily. It is a blend, in descending order, of Cabernet, Merlot, Malbec, Cab Franc, and Petite Verdot (anything "petite" is a bold tannin grape).

My brother in law who is a huge wine aficionado, and has visited Napa a lot, tells me the Calistoga area of Napa (northern Napa) is known for very flavorful wines. I would totally agree in this case. It is really good. I ended up ordering 6 bottles of it for those good brisket, steak & ribs dinners. This runs about $25-30/bottle, so not grocery store cheap but also not "expensive".