CARLEVANA | Raritet | Rara Neagra | 2016
rara neagra
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Tonight we are going to review a single varietal rara neagra wine – Raritet Rara Neagra 2016 by Carlevana. Rara neagra, also known as babeasca neagra, is an indigenous grape variety that is famous for its ability to highlight terroir and produce wines with light body, velvety tannins and high acidity. Some experts even compare rara neagra to pinot noir in terms of structure and finesse. This wine is part of the ‘Raritet’ wine series and is the successor of the Raritet Rara Neagra 2014 wine, both aged in french oak barrels for 24 months, but let’s not get carried away by the the theory side – on to the tasting!
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:
Visual
Pale garnet color, quite transparent, with hazy copper hues towards the rim of the glass.
Olfactory
The nose is strong, filled mostly with red and black fruits flavours: sour cherry, red plum, redcurrant, cranberry, black mulberry, black plum, blackberry, blackcurrant, cherry seeds and cherry tree wood. An instant later the nose is filled with noble notes of sun dried oakwood, nutmeg, anise, red and black pepper and some delicate hints of tobacco.
Gustatory
The wine is dry, with high alcohol level, high acidity and ripe tannin. It feels quite opulent, supple and lean, with a nuanced fruity-seedy accent. This is a quite crisp, tart youthful wine, as it tastes plump, a bit woody and slightly savory, with a touch of alcoholic warmth showing through. The wine is a bit off the balance and angular, mostly due to its overwhelming acidity. It has a fair overall balance, as it definitely lacks some harmony and structure on the palate.
Aftertaste
The wine has a long finish and an balanced, tart and seedy aftertaste.
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This is definitely a fine Wine of Moldova and the overall rating says the same, with 90.3 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 fine example of a wine that lacks muscles and complexity, as it is still too young to be enjoyed, a wine that is still on the rise. We would suggest for 2 to 3 more years of bottle ageing, so that the wine gets enough time to settle down and gain some much desired harmony. All in all, the wine has a nuanced fruity-savory palate, with a touch of alcoholic warmth showing through on the mouthfeel, therefore we would recommend to pair it with meaty dishes that are rich in umami-sweet accents, like for example a roast beef tenderloin with red wine sauce or a medium-rare sirloin steak. Enjoy!
WineStatistics tasting results:
CARLEVANA
Raritet | Rara Neagra | 2016
grape: | rara neagra |
overall rating: | 90.3 |
maturity: on the rise
conclusion: fine | highly 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.
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