VIA VITICOLA | Épiphanie | 2019
feteasca neagra

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Today we are going to review a truly unique wine – one that is considered among the best single-varietal feteasca neagra wines ever made in Romania – Épiphanie 2019 by Via Viticola Sarica Niculitel. This wine is made with late harvested feteasca neagra grapes that were sourced from the Sarica – Niculitel vineyard in the Dobrogea region, that is situated between the Danube and the Black Sea, whose warm climate is tempered by the cool sea breezes. This particular wine has been aged for 12 months in new, french oak barriques, and another 12 months in the bottle, before it was deemed ready for release on the market. Feteasca Neagra is an indigenous romanian variety that has been grown for hundreds of years on substantial plantings in the south of Moldova and eastern Muntenia and today, this is the most popular red grape variety in Romania. Wines made from feteasca neagra grapes are usually fruit-forward, complex and structured, wines that often are compared to merlot and cabernet franc, mostly due to their body, fine tannins and elegant textures. There is a rising demand for feteasca neagra wines both, on the local market as well as on the international markets and many experts name this variety as the visit card of romanian wines. But enough theory, that said and without further ado, let’s take a look at the wine tasting results.
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

//Visual
colour: deep ruby
clarity: hazy indigo shades

//Olfactory
intensity: powerful & noble
fruit profile: red fruits | black fruits | blue fruits
__red fruits: sour cherry | cranberry
__black fruits: blackcurrant | blackberry
__blue fruits: blue plum | blueberry
fruit character: ripe & overripe

//Flavor
non fruit: spice | oak | other
__spice: nutmeg | cloves
__oak: light-roasted oakwood | sweet tobacco | liquorice
__other: black soil dust | fresh figs | wildberry | violets & hints of leather
__wood: new / medium roast

//Palate
sweetness: dry
acidity: high
alcohol: high
tannin: high
__grip: ripe
balance: good
__dominant: alcohol
body: round | full body

//Taste
fruit profile: red fruits & black fruits
fruit character: ripe & overripe
non fruit: spice & oak
finish: long
aftertaste: hot & seedy

//Scoring
VIA VITICOLA | Épiphanie | 2019
variety: feteasca neagra
country: Romania
region: Sarica – Niculitel
rating: 93.7

//Conclusion
maturity: developing | age for 3 to 7 years
verdict: great | a legendary wine

//Prediction
RP rating: 90
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This is definitely a great wine of Romania and, with a total of 93.7 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 very fine, firm and fruity-expressive feteasca neagra wine, with an amazing mixture of ripe red, blue and black fruits in the foreground, supported by noble oak flavours and some nuanced hints of violets and leather in the background. The wine feels round but bold, with mouth-watering acidity, ripe yet grippy tannins and an overwhelming alcoholic warmth on the mouthfeel, that leads to a velvety, seedy-hot finale. This is a wine that is still developing into the bottle, thus one that requires another 3 to 7 more years of bottle ageing in order to settle down its flamboyance and develop some finesse on the palate. All in all, this is one of the best representations of the indigenous feteasca neagra wine, with a well maintained balance between primary fruit flavours and those secondary oak-infused notes – a fine example of how a terrior-driven wine can be crafted using tradition and technology, and the end result is a wine that has both, distinctive personality and the footprint of the Sarica – Niculitel terroir. Consider this an official statement: great feteasca neagra wines can be crafted outside of the famous Dealu Mare region as well.

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