I was finally at the last two wines for the tasting at the Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan.  I am always amazed at the caliber of fine wines that I get to taste when I am there, and I attribute it to the use of the Coravin system which keeps the wine fresh and there would be much less waste for the store, especially since some of the wines offered for tasting are not your run of the mill wines, and that is so enticing when I stop by there.  So, I finished off the tasting by having a Gaja and an Amarone della Valpolicella.

The first wine that I will mention is Gaja Ca’Marcanda Promis Toscana IGT 2016.  My host at the tasting asked if I was aware of this wine, and I gave him a quick short abbreviated story of the first time that I had the wine, and it is hard for a Raconteur to give a short version.  The Gaja estate was founded in 1859 with five acres of vineyards.  Angelo Gaja is credited for modernizing winemaking in the Piedmont.   In 1994 he took over the two-hundred-ninety-acre estate in Bolgheri that he named it Ca’Marcanda which translates into “House of Haggling” and I am sure that it was named with a tongue in the cheek and some definite sarcasm and humor.  This wine carries the Toscana IGT because it is a blend of Merlot and Syrah, though the first time that I had it, the vintage of 2000 there was also some Sangiovese as well.  This wine was tasty and had a nice long finish.

The last wine of the tasting was Tommaso Bussola Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG 2012 from Azienda Agricola Tommaso Bussola.  In 1977 Tommaso Bussola took over his uncle’s estate and in the early 1990’s a new winery was constructed.  This wine is made with the classic trio of grapes Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara to get the proper accreditation.   After the harvesting of the grapes, they were allowed to partially dry and were crushed in January.  The wines were racked after sixty days and then again ten days later.  The juice was then aged for twenty-four months in a mixture of a quarter of the new in new Slavonian Oak, a quarter in new American and French Oak, and the balance in second time used barrels.  My notes on this wine were “wonderful” with a great nose and a taste of black cherry and a finish that just lingered on and on.  In fact, the taste lingered and finished so well, that when I got home, I made a special tweet about having the wine, and I usually show more restraint, but I was totally happy with this wine and I think that I may have surprised some of my usual crowd.  This is one to really go looking for, in my humble opinion.