VIA VITICOLA | Épiphanie | 2019
feteasca neagra

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Today we are going to perform another trip into the past and re-evaluate a wine that is rightly considered among the best single-varietal feteasca neagra wines of 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. That said and without further ado, let’s take a look at the wine tasting results and see how the wine has changed over the last 12 months.
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

(rev.2021)

(rev.2022)

//Visual
colour: deep ruby color
clarity: hazy garnet shades

//Olfactory
intensity: powerful & earthy
fruit profile: red fruits | black fruits | dried fruits
__red fruits: red plum | cranberry | redcurrant
__black fruits: black plum | blackberry
__dried fruits: dried red plum | dried cranberry | dried redcurrant
fruit character: overripe & dried

//Flavor
non fruit: spice | oak | savory | earthy
__spice: cloves | red pepper | anise | dried herbs
__oak: tobacco | toasted oak | sun-dried oak | cherry tree wood 
__savory: brown olive | leather | hints of iron & veal
__earthy: clay | loam | marl | brown soil
primary layer: fruity–savory

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

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

//Scoring
VIA VITICOLA | Épiphanie | 2019
variety: feteasca neagra
country: Romania | Dobrogea
region: Sarica – Niculitel
rating: 93.5

//Conclusion
maturity: developing | age for 3 or 4 more years
verdict: great | a legendary wine

//Prediction
Predicted RP rating: 90
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This is definitely a great wine of Romania and, with a total of 93.5 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 supple but firm and expressive feteasca neagra wine, with a nuanced fruity-savory nose and well structured mouthfeel. The wine is still in its developing phase, therefore we would recommend to give it 3 or 4 more years of bottle ageing, in order to allow the wine to gain further complexity and round up some of its sharp edges. On the nose the wine brings a mixture of overripe and dried fruits and some nuanced earthy notes in the foreground, followed by a spicy and oaky background and a savory layer in between. On the palate the wine delivers crisp acidity, ripe but seedy tannins and an overwhelming touch of alcoholic warmth that is showing through on the mouthfeel, which leads to a crisp and hot aftertaste. All in all, this is one of the best feteasca neagra wines that we have tasted so far: fruit-forward, rich and slightly angular due to its youthfulness, a wine with a good ageing potential that in its current state lacks some elegance and finesse on the palate. Taking into the account its aromatic profile and structure, we would recommend to pair this wine with spicy or grilled meats, like for example a skillet bourbon steak, a peppercorn-crusted tomahawk steak or a rosemary-garlic flank steak. Enjoy!

(rev.2021)
(rev.2022)

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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.