CASTEL MIMÍ | Saperavi | 2017
saperavi

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.

Tonight we are going to review another single varietal saperavi wine – Saperavi 2017 by Castel Mimí. Saperavi is Georgia’s main red variety that is also planted on substantial areas in Moldova. Saperavi is a teinturier grape variety, which means that the flesh of the berry is also dark, therefore the wines are very deep in color with nuanced acidity and lots of tannin, which makes them respond well to ageing. In fact the resulting wines are so deep in color that some wineries in Georgia label them as black wines instead of red wines. This particular wine that we are reviewing has been aged for 12 months in oak barrels, but that said, without further ado, let’s take a look at the tasting results.
___________________________________________________________________________
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
CASTEL MIMÍ | Saperavi | 2017
variety: saperavi
origin: old world | new world
climate: cool | moderate | warm
country: Moldova
region: Codru
rating: 90.2

//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 90.2 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 quite opulent saperavi wine that is still on the rise – a bit tart, plump and bitter-seedy, with overwhelming alcohol and a quite wide, acrid finale. It definitely lacks some structure and elegance on the palate, thus another 9 to 12 months of bottle ageing are highly recommended, so that the harsh tannins and sharp acidity will get enough time to settle down and round up on the edges. Despite its angularity, the wine has plenty of tannic grip on the mouthfeel and a very pronounced oaky profile with overripe black fruit and a spicy-hot accent, therefore we would strongly suggest to pair this wine with spicy or barbecued meaty dishes, like for example a pepper steak.

___________________________________________________________________________
© 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.