Taurasi 'Cinque Querce'

Score

94

"A very meaty, spicy Taurasi with cedary and tarry accents, highlighting more fruit-driven elements of blackberries and dark cherries. It’s really deep and dense, but remarkably polished and agile for a wine of 15% alcohol and nearly 7 years of age. There’s tension and beauty here, not simply raw power and opulence. Drink now."

Score

93

"Moderately saturated red-ruby. Musky aromas of red currant, aromatic herbs, spices and flint. Smooth and fine-grained, conveying a distinctly refined quality to the big, juicy red cherry and sweet spice flavors. Showcases outstanding balance and length, finishing with solid extract and excellent length."

Score

90

"The 2011 Taurasi Vigna Cinque Querce is a plump and juicy red wine with a bouquet of dark tar, spice and raisiny fruit. You do taste the dry heat of the vintage, thanks to the wine's opulent ripeness. The alcohol clocks in at 15%. The grapes are fermented in stainless steel, and the wine is aged in both barrique and botte grande for 48 months. Some 10,950 bottles were made."

Score

94

"The black-pepper and walnut aromas are intense on the nose. Ripe fruit, too. Full body, round and velvety tannins and a flavorful finish. Drink or hold."

Score

94

"Inky-hued. Perfumed, elegant nose of red cherry, tar, licorice and bitter herbs, complicated by cocoa and coffee. Then big and strapping, with still slightly astringent tannins; this needs lots of time. Long and powerful, but light on its feet."

Score

91

"Showing good balance, the 2010 Taurasi Riserva Vigna Cinque Querce is a powerful, full-bodied wine. The bouquet deals out intense aromas of dried fruit, cinnamon, clove and campfire ash. The wine closes with 15% alcohol, and you definitely feel that power. Like the other important red wines from Salvatore Molettieri, this wine ferments in stainless steel. Only this Riserva ages for a long 60 months in both barrique and large oak casks. Only 2,916 bottles were made."

Score

94

"Deep ruby. Menthol, dark berries, ripe red cherry and oaky vanillin aromas and flavors are complicated by hints of coffee and black pepper. Multilayered and very dense, but strikes me as less perfumed and less graceful than the 2011 Taurasi. Finishes very smooth, long, clean and fresh. No shortage of power here, but manages the neat trick of never going over the top."

Score

92

"Readers will find a great, mid-tier introduction to Aglianico in the 2008 Irpinia Campi Taurasini Cinque Querce. Smoke, bacon fat, wild cherries, tobacco and savory herbs are all woven together beautifully in this absolutely impeccable joy of a wine. The 2008 is deep, rich and resonant, yet not at all heavy in any way. There is plenty of grip on the finish, yet the 2008 can be enjoyed today with a little aeration. This top-notch Aglianico from Taurasi-designated vineyards is superb. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2018. Salvatore Molettieri and his son, Giovanni, make bold wines that capture the richness and power of Aglianico. The estate is located in Montemarano, long regarded as one of the most prestigious zones for Aglianico."

Score

94+

"Deep ruby with an amber rim. Brooding coffee and cocoa nuances complicate rich dark cherry and blackberry syrup on the nose. Large-scaled, dense and juicy, showing tactile flavors of dark berries and chocolate complemented by a note of underbrush. This long, smoothly tannic wine pulls off the neat trick of being a behemoth while staying light on its feet. Still, it needs a lot of time to show its best. I wouldn’t touch a bottle for at least another five years but it may well go on for another two decades after that."

Score

91

"The 2007 Irpinia Campi Taurasini is quite typical of the vintage. Layers of silky fruit flow effortlessly from this open, accessible Aglianico. The finish is compelling for its textural beauty. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2021. Molettieri can be counted on for rich, stylish wines that capture the essence of Aglianico. The wines have improved dramatically here in recent years."

Score

92

"Molettieri's 2007 Taurasi Vigna 5 Querce is a big, big wine. Mocha, espresso, game, tar, licorice and dark raspberries meld together in an unusually ripe, flashy Taurasi. The 2007 boasts tons of richness and sheer power, but it needs at least another year to settle down and incorporate its oak. Unlike most Molettieri Taurasis, the 2007 should drink well with minium cellaring."