SERVE | Cuvée Guillaume | 2014
pinot noir | feteasca neagra

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The wine we are going to review today is a blend of  pinot noir and feteasca neagra varieties, which is a quite unusual blending formula – Cuvée Guillaume 2014 by SERVE. Pinot noir is the most difficult grape to grow, yet it is capable of expressing ‘terrior’ like no other variety, while feteasca neagra is the one that made romanian wines famous, and in fact, is the reason why Guy Tyrel de Poix left his homeland and the family owned ‘Domaine Peraldi’ estate in Corsica and moved to Romania, Ceptura, Dealu Mare, where he established S.E.R.V.E (Societatea Euro Româna de Vinuri de Excepție) with one clear target in mind – to produce wines of exceptional quality that will be an essence of romanian terrior. But enough theory, without further ado, let’s get straight to the tasting!
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

Visual
Clear and transparent copper color, with brick-orange hues towards the rim of the glass.

Olfactory
The nose is strong, filled mostly with red fruits and savory flavours: sour cherry, dried tomato, cherry tree wood, redcurrant, sun dried wood, red plum, cranberry, soil dust, dried plum, black plum jam, dried cranberry and some very nuanced hints of rubber. An instant later the nose is filled with notes of red pepper, nutmeg, anise, orange tea and some elegant notes of tobacco leaf.

Gustatory
The wine is extra-dry, with strong alcohol level, high acidity and fine tannin. It feels warm, astringent and quite rough, with a fruity yet savory accent. This is a quite sharp, angular and aggressive wine, as it tastes austere, green and firm. The wine feels a bit lean at first, but make no mistake, this is a quite expressive and muscular wine, a bit off its balance, with a decent amount of alcoholic warmth showing through.

Aftertaste
It has a long finish and an astringent, sharp and rough aftertaste.
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This is definitely a good Wine of Romania and the overall rating says the same, with 89.8 points scored it is right there, among the best wines we’ve tasted so far. Please click on the chart icon on the left in order to get to the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines we’ve tasted to date.

Conclusion: this is a wine in its prime that is not worth any more any more bottle ageing as it feels a bit unbalanced, rough and quite austere. We have to admit that the wine has an old world pinot noir style written all over it, yet it feels enriched with the elegance and finesse of feteasca neagra variety. Its grippy green tannins and the alcoholic warmth makes it an ideal pairing partner for any fat-rich or spicy dishes, like for example a honey and bourbon glazed veal bites or some crispy beef bites tossed with a sweet and sticky sauce, as this is exactly how one should counter-balance all the warmness and angularity of the wine, with the spiciness and sweetness of the dish. Noroc!

WineStatistics tasting results:

S.E.R.V.E.
Cuvée Guillaume | 2014

grape: | pinot noir | feteasca neagra |

region: Romania | Dealu Mare

overall rating: | 89.8 |

maturity: in its prime

conclusion: good | recommended

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(c) The WineStatistics ratings are based solely on our own knowledge of the world of wine and on our personal wine tastes, which may, or may not, differ from yours – the reader. There are no absolutes of right and wrong in wine appreciation.