Independent Wine for Father's Day • Foodie Explorers

Wish him well with wine

Independent Wine reminded us that it is soon time to celebrate Father’s Day (Sunday 20th June) and after a year of lockdowns and limited outings to pubs and restaurants what better way to show you care than with a bottle or two of quality wine. The following wines are available gift wrapped with free nationwide delivery from Independent Wine in time for Father’s Day.

Ridolfi Fiero 2017 | Toscana IGT

This is from a small, organic-certified winery in the Montalcino region near Siena in Tuscany as we tasted the 2017 vintage.

James Suckling (American wine and cigar critic; former Senior Editor and European Bureau Chief of Wine Spectator) described the Fiero as a “new wine to watch out for” awarding it a score of 91/100. It’s a blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Sangiovese which is harvested by hand in late September and fermented using natural yeast. The grapes are not crushed but pressed softly. then, following three weeks of fermentation, the wine rests on the skins for a further three weeks to extract richer colour and tannins. The Merlot is aged in small French oak ‘barriques’, while the Sangiovese is aged in large Slavonian oak barrels.

So what did we think? It’s a clear 4 out of 5 wine for us. It has a mild coffee aroma (from the oak) with hints of plum and pepper. Taste-wise it’s a bold wine with lots of dark fruit like sour cherries and blackberries. It has a reasonable tannin level with some sediment in the bottle so is towards the drier end of the scale.

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It’s a food wine so best enjoyed with something strong and rich like duck, game or venison, although we paired ours with a fabulous Chateaubriand and horseradish Sunday roast.

Demarie Roero Arneis DOCG 2019

We also had a white, the Roero Arneis 2019 DOCG from Paolo Demarie’s vineyard in Vezza d’Alba in Roero, just fifteen minutes north of Alba in the North-west of Italy.

This time the wine is unoaked but again the grapes are gently pressed, with the resultant juice left in contact with the skins for 24 – 36 hours, which is then fermented in stainless steel tanks and bottled as quickly as possible to preserve the delicate aromas. On the nose, this Roero Arneis has delicate aromas of honeysuckle, elderflower, apricot stone and minerals, with elegant notes of jasmine and acacia flowers. In the mouth, it’s dry and very refreshing thanks to high acidity, with medium alcohol and medium body.

This was another 4 out of 5 rating for us and wine critic James Suckling again scored this 91/100. There are aromas of pear, peach, flowers and even banana. This is also a dry wine but with fresh citrusy flavours of lemon & lime and quite an acidic finish. Like the first wine, it’s also one which is best with food. How about a tomato and olive oil starter? Serving suggestion below. 🙂

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