ATÚ WINERY | Saperavi – Codrinschii | 2018
saperavi | codrinschii

We will be evaluating wines in no particular order on no particular schedule. Just stay tuned and you will never miss our reviews. If the wine is tasted more than once, the rating table will be updated so as to reflect all the new impressions and observations.

Today we are going to review a wine blend that is relatively new on the local market – Saperavi – Codrinschii 2018 by Atú Winery. This is a blend of two non-traditional grape varieties: one of georgian origin (saperavi) and the other one (codrinschii) obtained by crossing an indigenous variety (babeasca neagra) with an international one (cabernet sauvignon). The codrinschii grape variety was obtained in 1970, at the Institute of Wine and Vine of the Moldovan Soviet Republic and today Atú Winery is the first and only producer to use codrinschii variety in its wines. That said, without further ado, let’s take a look at the wine tasting results below.
___________________________________________________________________________
Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

//Visual
clarity: clear | hazy | cloudy | misty
brightness: dull | hazy | bright | starbright
concentration: translucent | pale | medium | deep | opaque
color: indigo | purple | ruby | garnet | copper
hue: indigo | purple | ruby | garnet | copper

//Sight
stain: light | medium | heavy
viscosity: low | medium | high
gas evidence: yes | no
sediment: yes | no

//Olfactory
outset: clean | faulty [TCA | sulphur | ethyl acetate | geosmin | brett | oxidation | VA]
intensity: delicate | light | moderate | rich | powerful
fruit profile: red fruits | black fruits | blue fruits | berry fruits
__red fruits: sour cherry | sweet cherry | red plum | red currant | cranberry
__black fruits: black cherry | black plum | blackcurrant | blackberry | black raspberry
__blue fruits: blue plum | blueberry | honeyberry | blue huckleberry
__berry fruits: strawberry | raspberry | wild strawberry | goji berry | wolfberry
fruit character: baked | unripe | ripe | overripe | jammy | dried

//Flavor
non fruit: floral | vegetal | herbal | spice | oak | sweet | animal | earth
__floral: orange blossom | roses | peonies | lilac | violet | lavender
__vegetal: dill | bell pepper | capsicum | asparagus | olive
__herbal: eucalyptus | coriander | currant leaf | tomato leaf
__spice: red pepper | black pepper | nutmeg | cloves | anise | rosemary | ginger | mint
__oak: coconut | vanilla | cinnamon | liquorice | tobacco | coffee | chocolate | smoke
__sweet: caramel | toffee | burnt sugar | molasses | menthol | dried figs
__animal: gravy | capocollo | veal| leather | musk | barnyard | horse saddle
__earth (organic): soil dust | turf | forest floor | compost | mushrooms | truffle
__earth (inorganic): limestone | chalk | slate | flint | aspirin | petroleum | varnish
__wood: [old | new | none] / [dried | roasted | charred]
aroma: primary | secondary | tertiary

//Palate
sweetness: bone dry | dry | off dry | sweet | extra sweet
acidity: low | med(-) | medium | med(+) | high
alcohol: low | med(-) | medium | med(+) | high
tannin: low | med(-) | medium | med(+) | high
__grip: fine | ripe | firm | green | rough
texture: creamy | round | lean
body: light | medium | full
balance: bad | poor | fair | good | fine
__dominant: sugar | acidity | alcohol | tannin | none
complexity: simple | moderate | complex

//Taste
fruit profile: red fruits | black fruits | blue fruits
fruit character: baked | unripe | ripe | overripe | jammy | dried
non fruit: floral | vegetal | herbal | spice | oak | sweet | animal | earth
aroma: primary | secondary | tertiary
finish: short | med(-) | medium | med(+) | long
aftertaste: rough | astringent | seedy | appealing | velvety

//Scoring
ATÚ WINERY | Saperavi – Codrinschii | 2018
variety: saperavi | codrinschii
origin: old world | new world
climate: cool | moderate | warm
country: Moldova
region: Codru
rating: 90.7

//Conclusion
maturity: on the rise | in its prime | past its prime | on the decline
verdict: fair | good | fine | great | exceptional
___________________________________________________________________________

This is definitely a fine wine of Moldova and, with a total of 90.7 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.

Verdict: this is a nice wine blend that is still on the rise: grippy, seedy and plump – a quite appealing wine that is perfect for a late evening dinner with friends and family. With overwhelming acidity, this wine needs just a bit more time to round up and smoothen its edges, therefore we would strongly advocate at least 6 more months of bottle ageing. In its current state, the wine is evolving nicely in the glass, thus we would suggest an aeration of 20 to 25 minutes in the glass or in the decanter prior serving. Once it opens up, the wine will deliver rich, overripe black fruit and slightly bitter tannins, which makes it taste supple and angular at the same time. What this wine definitely lacks today is a bit of elegance and finesse, otherwise this is a fine wine indeed.

___________________________________________________________________________
© 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.