TARABOSTE | Pur Aristocratic | 2017
chardonnay | pinot gris | sauvignon blanc

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Today we are going to review a wine that has acquired a legendary status over the last decade – Taraboste Pur Aristocratic 2017 by Château Vartely. This is the winemaker’s flagship white blend and one of the most famous local wines – a blend of chardonnay, pinot gris and sauvignon blanc grape varieties, where chardonnay forms the main body and structure, while pinot gris and sauvignon blanc adds up-front richness, sweet fruits and floral notes. The wine has been also barrel fermented, which means that the wine went through the malolactic fermentation – a process where the crisp, malic acid in the wine is converted to a more softer, lactic acid, thus the wine becomes less tart and more silky. That said, without further ado, let’s move on, straight to the wine tasting phase!
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

Visual
Straw-yellow color with pale lemon hues towards the rim of the glass.

Olfactory
The nose is rich, filled mostly with sweet fruits and dairy flavours: bread crust, yellow apple, hay, butter, yellow pear, straw grass, quince, brioche, peach, eclair, lemon, yellow melon, crème brûlée, camomile, apricot, béchamel sauce and some insittent hints of walnut and almonds.

Gustatory
The wine is dry, with high alcohol level, high acidity and ripe tannins. It tastes citrusy-lactic, lean and zesty, with a nuanced bitter-crisp accent. The wine has a quite round and creamy palate, with a buttery and full-bodied mouthfeel. Overall the wine lacks some harmony and elegance, as it feels a bit austere and angular on the finish, with a fair overall balance, some alcoholic warmth and overwhelming acidity on the palate.

Aftertaste
The wine has a long finish and a quite pleasing, crisp and creamy aftertaste.
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This is definitely a fine wine of Moldova and, with a total of 90.3 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 fine white blend that has yet to reach the summit of its prime form, therefore we would advocate for a couple more years of bottle ageing. Due to the barrel fermentation process, the wine has been enriched with a quite nuanced, lactic profile – full-bodied, buttery and creamy, this wine feels very noble and lean, lacking maybe just a bit of finesse and elegance on the mouthfeel. That said, we would suggest to pair this wine with creamy dishes that are rich in smooth textures, like for example lobster tails with white butter sauce or some classic, béchamel sauce pasta. Cheers!

WineStatistics tasting results:

TARABOSTE
Pur Aristocratic | 2017

grape: | chardonnay | pinot gris | sauvignon blanc |

region: Moldova | Codru

overall rating: | 90.3 |

maturity: on the rise

conclusion: fine | (highly recommended)

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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.