Campania Wine Tasting Featuring the wines of Guastaferro back to the 2004 Vintage

"The cheapness of wine seems to be a cause, not of drunkenness, but of sobriety.  ...People are seldom guilty of excess in what is their daily fare...On the contrary, in the countries which, either from excessive heat or cold, produce no grapes, and where wine consequently is dear and a rarity, drunkenness is a common vice."

--Adam Smith, "The Wealth of Nations"

That means if you drink 2 bottles of wine a day you’re not a drunk but rather a connoisseur of wine.  Hey, I don’t drink two bottles of the same wine we are doing scientific work with wine here at Wine Watch and we usually put 8-10 different wines on the table here for one of our wine events.  There are so many wines and every year is a new vintage, there is no way to become a “winentist” unless you stay up on your drinking studies.

And when we hit a subject we hit it hard!    We have two incredible tasting on the calendar this month with some of the greatest producers of Campania Mastroberardino and two days later we are featuring dozen different vintages from Guestalfero Winery,  one of the small cult wineries of Campania that for years sold their grapes to wineries like Feudi di San Gregoria and Mastroberardino. 

Cantine Gustalferro is a family-owned winery that has been growing grapes in the Taurasi region of Campania for generations.  The son Raffaele decided when he took over his father’s vineyards that they would try to establish their own family’s name instead of making others famous from wines made with their 175-200 year old Aglianico grapes, one of which was the 1968 Taurasi Riserva from Mastroberardino that I mentioned in my last e-mail, one of the legendary wines of this region.

What makes Gustalferro special is their 2.5 hectares of pre-phlloxera 175-200 year old vines and their unique clone of this varietal that exists on their property.  These vines have survived in Gustalferro’s vineyards because of their unique location in Contrada piano d’Angelo which is covered in volcanic ash sand which the root louse cannot survive in the dry volcanic soils of this vineyard.  The Gustalferro family has also taken great care oof their vineyard by maintaining the traditional “tennecchia” trellising system that the Celts brought to Southern Italy. The vines are trained together with a tree to cover the average persons height.  This training of the vine gives them strong support for less humidity and airflow.

These wines are a treasure from the past and gives our “wine drinking people” a chance to have a taste of ancient winemaking.  Gustalferro in a short period of time has become one of the cult wine producers of Aglianico in Taurasi. 

Join us as we experience the Aglianico of Guestalferro back to the 2004 vintage along with a special meal inspired by the cuisine of the South of Italy.   The fee for this tasting is $195 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com. 

CAMPANIA WINE TASTING FEATURING THE WINES OF GUASTAFERRO BACK TO THE 2004 VINTAGE
Saturday, May 18, 2024
7:30 PM

2016 Guastaferro Aglianico Menimi
2017 Guastaferro 'Primum' Riserva, Taurasi DOCG
2016 Guastaferro Primum Taurasi DOCG
2015 Guastaferro 'Primum' Riserva, Taurasi DOCG
2013 Guastaferro Primum Taurasi DOCG
2012 Guastaferro Primum Taurasi DOCG
2010 Guastaferro Primum Taurasi DOCG
2007 Guastaferro Primum Riserva Taurasi DOCG
2004 Guastaferro Primum Taurasi DOCG

Menu
Charcuterie
Cannellini Bean Soup with Pancetta, Roasted Garlic and Rosemary
Mozzarella in Carrozza with Marjoram Sauce
Neapolitan-style Ragù
Pastiera Napoletana

The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $195 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.  Please let us know when you make your reservations if you have any food allergies or aversions and chefs Toni and Dani will be happy to accommodate you. 

 
All the wines from Gustalferro on SALE at Wine Watch:

2016 Guastaferro Aglianico Menimi Irpina
Price: $35.00     Sale $29.00   
(92 Points) The 2016 Aglianico Memini from Guastaferro is especially spicy, displaying bright cherry with hints of white pepper and cumin, as smoky minerals and hints of dark earth evolve in the glass. On the palate, silky textures are contrasted by zesty acids, with cooling red fruits, giving way to hints of anise and inner florals. The finish is long, lightly structured, yet teeming with energy, as tart cherry and wild berry fruits linger with a buzz of residual acids.  Eric Guido, Vinous (May 2020)

2017 Guastaferro 'Primum' Riserva, Taurasi DOCG
Price: $150.00        Your Price: $132.00        Quantity in Stock: 12
(95+ points) The 2017 Taurasi Riserva Primum is youthfully understated, grumbling up with a bouquet of crushed rocks, worn leather and ash. Time in the glass reveals spiced orange rind, blackberry and rosemary notes. It’s cool-toned and sleek with a growing concentration, as tart black fruits and balsamic tones saturate, building in tannic heft with each sip. This finishes with a black hole of structure, seeming to pull that palate inside out, as hints of sour citrus and residual acids work to balance. Tobacco nuances slowly taper off. Bury the Riserva Primum deep in the cellar. Eric Guido, Vinous (Jun 2023)

2016 Guastaferro Primum Taurasi DOCG
Price: $94.25        Your Price: $82.94        Quantity in Stock: 12
(95+ points) The 2016 Taurasi Primum captivates the senses with an earthy, smokey and beguiling display that smolders up from the glass with crushed rocks, flint and graphite giving way to blackberries, plum, licorice and exotic savory spices. While silky-smooth and pliant at first, tension quickly builds, as tart wild berries and sour citrus give way to salty minerals over a coating of grippy tannins that saturate deeper and deeper with each sip. This mixes elegance with grace, yet it finishes structured, incredibly long and harmonious with notes of inner rose and ash. Flat-out stunning. The 2016 Primum is a classic in the making. Eric Guido, Vinous (Jan 2022)

2015 Guastaferro 'Primum' Riserva, Taurasi DOCG
Price: $183.00        Your Price: $161.04        Quantity in Stock: 12
(96 Points) The 2015 Taurasi Riserva Primum is drop-dead gorgeous, while also being balanced to a tee. Here I'm finding a complex and layered bouquet, showing masses of black cherry offset by exotic, savory spice, that give way to smoky minerals, sage, rosemary, and a hint of animal musk. It floods the palate with velvety textures, before saturating red and black fruits make a dramatic entrance, encased in a complex web of acids and tannin, yet still somehow showing remarkably fresh and energy. The finish is long, displaying attractive ripe red and blue fruits, yet with a coating of grippy tannin that promises many years of development. All of this, and at 13.5%; what a stunning and perfectly balanced Taurasi. This is a beautiful expression of ancient vine Aglianico from Guastaferro Eric Guido - Vinous Media

2013 GUASTAFERRO PRIMUM TAURASI DOCG
Price: $90.00        Your Price: $79.20        Quantity in Stock: 13
(94 Points) Aromas of new leather, aromatic herb, exotic spice, prune and cocoa follow over to the palate along with cherry, prune and star anise. A backbone of assertive, fine-grained tannins and fresh acidity provides an age-worthy structure, while a tobacco note lingers on the close. Drink 2021–2033. — Kerin O’Keefe Wine Enthusiast

2012 Guastaferro Primum Taurasi DOCG
Price: $89.25        Your Price: $78.54        Quantity in Stock: 12
(93 Points) Pipe tobacco, mature black plum, exotic spice, violet and new leather are just some of the aromas you'll find on this structured red. The taut, full-bodied palate is still young and austere, offering dried red cherry, black raspberry, star anise and chopped herb set against a backbone of bright acidity and assertive, fine-grained tannins that grip the finish. Give this time to fully come together. Drink 2024–2037. — Kerin O’Keefe Wine Enthusiast

2010 Guastaferro Primum Taurasi DOCG
Price: $103.25        Your Price: $90.86        Quantity in Stock: 12
(94 points) Deep ruby. Aromas of red cherry, minerals and sweet spices are complicated by spicy oak and lifted by a floral topnote. Silky but dense and concentrated, offering superb clarity and cut to the savory red fruit, powdered stone and spice flavors. Finishes long, with superb richness of texture. Ian D'Agata, Vinous (Nov 2018)

2007 Guastaferro Primum Riserva Taurasi DOCG
Price: $185.25        Your Price: $163.02        Quantity in Stock: 12
7/4/2019 - mgreitzer Likes this wine: 93 Points
Brick, dried cherries, plum, sage and leather. Decanted for several hours and was still a bit closed, but drinking nice and made an excellent pairing with grilled steak. Had a glass on day two and it opened up more. Will try again in a few years, but worth tasting now if you have bottles to spare.

2004 Guastaferro Primum Taurasi DOCG
Price: $173.25        Your Price: $152.46        Quantity in Stock: 12
1/18/2019 - forceberry wrote: 93 Points
Made from grapes sourced from very old (up to 200 years), ungrafted vineyards planted on volcanic soil. 14% alcohol.
Moderately translucent and still remarkably youthful cherry red color with a thin, almost colorless rim. Very vibrant, fruit-driven and quite dark-toned nose with brooding aromas of wizened black cherries, some licorice, a little bit of dried dates, light raisiny tones, a sweet hint of boysenberry jam and a touch of licorice root. The wine feels full-bodied, ripe and very concentrated on the palate with opulent, somewhat sweet-toned flavors of black cherries, sour cherry bitterness, some juicy red plums, a little bit of sanguine iron, light astringent lingonberry tones, a hint of gravelly minerality and a touch of parsnip. Overall the wine feels very muscular and robust with its quite high acidity and still very tightly-knit, assertive and pretty grippy tannins. The finish is tough and noticeably tannic with pronounced grip and very ripe flavors of sour cherries, gravelly minerality, some tart lingonberries, a little bit of crunchy cranberry, light sweet-toned plummy tones, a hint of licorice and a touch of peppery spice.

A still remarkably youthful and bold Taurasi that feels more like 4 years old than 14 years old. The wine certainly shows pronounced ripeness with a lush edge to its fruit, but despite its richness and big size, the wine never once comes across as a crowd pleaser. It's as tough and tannic as any Taurasi and still in dire need of further aging. Very impressive stuff with remarkable purity and sense of concentration, let it wait for another 10-15 years in the hopes that the tannins would resolve a bit.

Notes on Guastaferro from Vinous
Guastaferro produces outstanding reds from some of the region’s oldest Aglianico vines and is really a name to keep in mind when it comes to great Taurasi. The wines, traditionally made, are rich, very deep and fleshy, offering a curious mix of rustic and refined elements. I was extremely impressed by what I tasted from the estate this year; these very ageworthy Taurasis are bright and fresh but concentrated and complex and are some of the best reds from Italy I have tasted this year. Well done... Ian d Agata

Raffaele Guastaferro took control of his father’s pre-phylloxera vineyards and vines at a young age, with the intent of creating his own family label. For many years, this fruit went to Feudi San Gregorio, but Guastaferro realized that his family was sitting on a gold mine. Within his vineyards were two hectares of old, old vines, between 175-200 years old. These vines had been planted using an ancient technique of twisting multiple shoots together to create a massive pergola, which resembles a grove of trees more than a vineyard. It was from this stock of vines that he began replanting the rest of his parcels through massal selection, which produces his Taurasi Primum, while Riserva makes use of these old vines to the fullest.These are some of the most exciting wines coming out of Campania today...EG