FÁUTOR | Negre | 2016
feteasca neagra | rara neagra

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Tonight we are going to perform a trip into the past and re-evaluate a wine that we’ve already reviewed before – Negre 2016 by Fáutor Winery. This is a wine that we hold close to our hearts, as it is a 100% genuine Wine of Moldova, made only with local, indigenous grape varieties – a wine blend of feteasca neagra and rara neagra, that has been aged for 6 months in new french oak barrels and produced in a limited edition of only 12400 bottles. We’ve already mentioned the enormous potential of local varieties, and it seems that we are now amidst a historical rise in overall quality and popularity of indigenous wines, a rise that has been also noted by Andreas Larsson – the World’s Best Sommelier in 2007. That said, without further ado, let’s move on straight to the tasting!
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the two wines:

(rev.2019)

(rev.2020)

Visual

Deep and noble ruby color with ripe pomegranate shades towards the rim of the glass.

Olfactory
The nose is strong, filled mostly with red & black fruit flavours: black cherry, overripe sour cherry, leather, overripe blackberry, blackcurrant, redcurrant, black mulberry, black plum, black raspberry, overripe black plum and some nuanced hints of cherry tree wood. An instant the nose is filled with elegant nots of red & black pepper, nutmeg, cloves, sweet tobacco, cherry seeds, roasted oakwood and some rustic hints of truffle.

Gustatory
The wine is dry, with high alcohol level, high acidity and fine-grained tannin. It feels overripe, noble and seedy, with some hints of former elegance. This is a quite bold, fruity and supple wine, with a firm and quite appealing character and a ripe, fine-grained tannic grip on the mouthfeel, as it tastes woody and round. It has a fair overall balance between all its elements, as it feels crisp and ripe, with a touch of alcoholic warmth showing through towards the end of the palate.

Aftertaste
The wine has a long finish and a quite pleasing, bitter-seedy aftertaste.
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This is definitely a fine wine of Moldova and, with a total of 91.7 points scored, this wine is right there, among the best wines we’ve rated so far. Check our complete database on the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines that we have tasted and reviewed or go to the about us page and find out more about our exquisite rating system.

Conclusion: this is a wine that is over its prime form, as in our view it has already stepped on the decline slope. We would recommend to drink it now, and not submit it to any more bottle ageing, as it is always better to drink a wine a year too soon than a day too late, which is exactly the case here, as proven by this tasting experiment. Despite its slight descent, it is still a great wine: noble and rustic, with subtle spiciness and a quite appealing, fine-tannic grip on the mouthfeel. The most amazing thing about this wine, is that despite its fare share of fruit and subtle oak, it does display some very nice rustic, irony and leathery flavour hints, which makes it a perfect pairing partner for dishes with smooth textures and natural umami flavours, like for example tournedos rossini beef medallions with foie gras and truffles or, why not, a grilled pepper steak. Noroc!

WineStatistics tasting results:

FÁUTOR
Negre | 2016

grape: | feteasca neagra | rara neagra |

region: Moldova | Valul lui Traian

overall rating: | 91.7 |

maturity: past its prime

conclusion: fine | (highly recommended)

(rev.2019)
(rev.2020)

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© 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. Just remember that there are no absolutes of right and wrong in wine appreciation.