| XXX |
|
|
The Big Palace.
The big man at Time Warner, Dick Parsons, owns a vineyard in Montalcino, aptly named Il Palazzone ("The Big Palace"). I met Dick one night, late Spring 2005, at Odeon in Tribeca. He was appreciating a glass of wine at the bar with a friend. I approached him, thanked him for his leadership as Chief of the company and told him that after nine-years of service at Time Inc. I would be moving to Sicily to pursue a career in wine. Dick was affable and supportive as we talked about wine for a few minutes and charming as he puffed up the chest in his already massive frame as he told me he was about to get a 96-point review from Wine Enthusiast magazine for a recent release of his 1999 Brunello Riserva. It is true, amongst his daily duties at the world's most influential media company, his ten acres of land in the famed hamlet of Tuscany is producing some serious grape juice. We kept in touch over the summer, the harvest and when I wrote to him after the holidays to tell him I was going to be in the "neighborhood" of Montalcino, he immediately connected me with the general manager of his vineyard. Laura Gray, of Scottish descent, has lived in Tuscany for over 15 years. She is a certified sommelier who owned her own restaurant and wine bar in the Montalcino area and now splits her time with Parson's vineyard and Terralsole, owned by Mario Bollag from Switzerland. Dick purchased Il Palazzone (and all its inventory) from Bollag and they continue a close working relationship. Il Palazzone is a 5-minute car ride to the center of Montalcino, which puts him at high altitudes (1,200 ft+), good southwest exposure, cool climates and strong, drying winds. Thus providing very aromatic and fruit forward wines from ten year old vines. He also rents 2.5 acres of land from Terralsole whose hilly exposure to sun (Terralsole translated to "land of the sun") creates ultra ripe fruit and adds a bit of body and structural complexity that Il Palazzone needs for its aging. I was in Montalcino in January and vineyard maintenance was on hold because of the weather, it was too damn cold to be pruning at this time of year. But one thing I noticed is that a row of vines was recently planted between the current crops. The hope here is to maximize the land and see if there is possibility to increase yield. Il Palazzone only produces a little more than 10,000 bottles a year. As for Dick's estate, although a small sign points you in the right direction, it is hard to find. Laura told me to meet her early one morning at Bar Le Terazze, one of the high points of the town outside the historic city center. I got in her car and we drove a few minutes through tree covered, winding roads to Il Palazzone's vineyards. Laura also serves as the hospitality host for the estate's agriturismo. She has received many a late night phone call from guests who, after too many glasses of wine at dinner, have forgotten the way back to the vineyard. There are two houses on the property. Dick's house and an apartment for rent. The vineyard divides the houses and Dick's residence has one of the best features of the estate - the horizon pool looking out over the countryside. Because Il Palazzone shares the winemaking facility with Terralsole, it is a fairly distant drive to the cantina/winery (10-15 minutes by car, obviously longer by tractor). But the grapes are placed in crates when harvested to reduce stress and premature fermentation on the drive to the cantina. And this is where the fun begins. But before I get to that, Laura was telling me that Dick is always on hand for harvest (circa October), along with many of his NYC friends from the business world. She was telling me that it is great to see Executives from Fortune 500 companies acting with such care during the harvest - to the extent that they would pick out a single grape from of bunch if it looked at all damaged or unfit for wine making. Having worked a harvest of 100+ acres this summer, it is nearly impossible to show so much care and attention, but I guess that is the beauty of being a boutique producer of such high quality. Aside. The estate of Terralsole is unique. Bollag has pretty eclectic taste in art and trees - yes, trees. There are many wrought iron sculptured works on the property surrounded by Cyprus, olive and the occasional pine and palm trees. The house and cantina are centrally located on the property with the house rising above the winemaking facility. The cantina is state of the art. During harvest, the grapes are driven up to what appears to be the roof of an underground cellar with a number of skylights, which lead to the stainless steel tanks. Therefore, during sort and destemming, gravity draws the grapes into the tanks and there is limited use for pumps that add undue stress to the fruit. Terralsole also has a pool, which sits directly above the cellar, which minimizes the heat on a hot tar (or tin) roof. This is an interesting set design, but I am not sure if it is technically beneficial to adding coolness to the cellar. Maybe. Coupled with Bollag's external landscape, the warm, woody interior of the estate houses a collection of eclectic art. And it is visible on his bottles where he employs some Haitian images. It is no Picasso on a Mouton bottle, but the warm pastel colors fit with the image of the sun and its seductiveness. As for the Il Palazzone wines. Here are my tasting notes. 2001 Brunello: needed a few more months of bottle time after 4 years in botti (tonneaux) barrels. The large (500+liter) botti don't impart the heavy oak taste but subtle toastiness, The grapes do the talking - black cherry and chocolate textures and a warm finish that will be silky in time. 1999 Brunello: although older and aged more, the color of the wine was as intense as the '01 and the berry fruit had stand at attention prominence. 1999 Brunello Riserva: I believe the reserve wine splits time in barriques and botti to impart the heavy oak from the smaller barrels and then the flavors gets softened because the botti allows a little more oxygen into the aging process and the flavors are redistributed. But the shared time in both really adds to the complexity and texture of the Reserve wine - graphite and hints of tar, leather, and chocolate. This was a wonderful wine with a long finish. 1997 Brunello Riserva: 1997 is consider the best of the best vintage in Tuscany during the 20th Century. And it shows in this wine. Almost ten years old, it is as powerful as a Clydesdale and elegant as a thoroughbred. This wine is fabulous. Best when paired with a Peter Luger steak for two, but it is still drinkable with the finest meats and cheeses you can find. Macerated berry flavors, an earthy terroir taste and silky tannins for a fine finish. - 1999 Terralsole Brunello: Bollag's presentation of his wines are more immediate. He prefers to barrel his wines in small oak barriques to soften the wine and impart a super long finish of liquid chocolate cake. A delicious wine, drinkable now.
Wine Post - March'06 Back to home...
|
|
|