Tasted five of their wines with an excellent dinner helmed by Charlie Deal, formerly chef owner of Jujube in Chapel Hill--one of my favorite restaurants in CH. This is a relatively new winery (around 2003) founded by Walter who had already been a vintner if I recall around the Veneto.
'21 Vermintino was refreshing, featuring grapefruit and other citrus nuances, grown on sandy soil close to the coast of Bolgheri.
'21 Mediterra: smoky and a bit of volatile acidity at first. Strawberry fruit with plenty of acid and not much tannin on the palate. 40% syrah, 30 Merlot and 30 Cab Sauv. Young vines. My impression was of a smoky syrah with the other two in the background to provide a bit of acid structure and smoothness. The winemaker confirmed it's blended to emphasize the syrah, grown closer to sea on sand and clay soil (like syrah in the Rhone region). 91 from Vinous. $23
'20 Seggio: Merlot, CS, CF, Petit Verdot 10%. Spicy along with the fruit, some tannin with a long finish featuring cherry and more spice, a touch of heat. Merlot sets the tone, making it very pleasing. PV adds mineral and helps with the pretty long finish. Totally enjoyable but lighter and doesn't stand up to the steak in the same way as the Sondraia, next. 93 points from Vinous. $40
'19 Sondraia, CS, Merlot and CF. Much more tannin. Pauillac style, CS dominant at 65%. Mint is strong, calling to a CA cab. This will be better in a couple years. Blacks cherry. Hint of green (he says yellow, sweet) pepper. Tannins and aromas with air are dusty, like a Rutherford Bench cab. I suppose this too is a bench-type cab grown mostly on Bolgheri valley floor but farther in from the sea than the others. Goes great with the steak. Will really shine in 2 years. Cherry echoes with the steak's fat and char. My favorite among these. Also 93 from Vinous, which I think is too stingy, 94 from me, clearly better than the Seggio which is also very nice; with age this could go to 95 points. $70
'19 Dedicato a Walter 100% Cab Franc. Less tannic than Sondraia with lots of spice on the finish. Has the herbal note of CF. I prefer Sondraia because it's a bordeaux blend done right. This also has some oak influence. With more air got more interesting and appealing with cherry and black fruit. This is barrel fermented in 100% new porous oak (should not impart a lot of extra flavor to the wine itself). Several different vineyards used around Bolgheri.$170
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