Roberto Anselmi ownes 15 hektars of vines in Monforte d’Alpone and in Soave. Another 55 hektars in that area is leased. 80% is garganega. On October the 6th he was in Oslo and lead a short tasting of mostly young wines. According to Roberto Anselmi the main problem with many of the wines in the area are that they are from yields that are too high. Making the wines thin and bland in character. This is due to the old pergola-system that keeps yields high. Anselmi is therefore using Cordon/Guyot. He wanted the DOCG to have a more restricted yields and that it was restricted to the best areas of the region. As his sight was not reflected in the DOCG-laws he as a protest stopped bottling his wines with Soave-labelling and is instead using IGT. Anselmi is also using some "sur lie"-aging with some batonnage to give more body to the wines.
San Vincenzo 2007
Straw colour. Balsamic and intense nose. Hints of citrus, green leafs and a slight touch of tropical fruits. Fullbodied Soave in the mouth. Round style with surprising concentration for a basic Soave. Quite polished and a bit modern in style. But fine and pure fruit. Quite crisp acidity and good length. Some anis on the finish. Very good, especially for the price. One of the best vintages of San Vincenzo I have tasted.
Capitel Foscarino 2007
Straw colour, a little lighter than the San Vincenzo. More lime and minerality on the nose. Much better depth and more interesting. Tighter wine in the mouth with more structure. Limey, stoney fruit. Very nice indeed and with fine depth. Again a crisp acidity and nice length. This is a great Soave and should be a very nice food-wine.
Capitel Croce 2006
Yellow colour. The nose shows hints of spicey oak, yellow fruits and almonds. Fuller in the mouth with a fatter style
From the oak. The oak is quite obvious, although there is good fruit underneath. Citrusy and almondy hints. To me some of the depth is lost and the wine is less interesting because of this. Again fine acidity and good length, but a rounder and kinder style of Soave.
Capitel Croce 2001
Slightly deeper colour the the ’06. Aged nose. Very nice. Still apparent oak, but complex with hints of smoke, some petrol, dried flowers and minerality. Fullbodied and round style in the mouth. Again a fat touch from the oak. But the fruit is more open and complex. Seems to have integrated more of the oak than I thought it would. Complex dried flowers, smoke and minerality. Rounder acids and a little lower than ’06. Good length. Very nice and aged Soave.
I Capitelli 2005
Recioto di Soave. Golden/greenish colour. Fruity, tropical nose. Very nice. Hints of botrytis, vanilla, smoke. Sweet and fruity, typical passito-style in the mouth. Fine fruit, tropical with hints of walnuts, vanilla, smoke. Fine and cirsp acidity
Making the wine not too sweet-tasting. Long finish with some dryness. Hints of smoke and walnuts. Perhaps the best young I Capitelli I have tasted. Great wine.
I Capitelli 2001
Golden/copper colour. More apricot on the nose than the ’05. Riper fruits with hints of honey, almonds and a touch of botrytis. Sweeter and fatter wine in the mouth. Again more apricot in the fruit. Riper and a little more monolithic style. Lower acidity and not so crisp mouthfeel. Shorter taste. This is a more simpler style of I Capitelli and is not up to the ’05 in quality at all. Nice.
The wines were typical Anselmi with great Soaves in a quite modern style. No doubt to me the Foscarino is a favourite. But it should be
noted that the present line-up of wines from Anselmi is perhaps the best ever. Is it because of good vintages or is the quality increasing
from this wine-maker?
Arnt Egil Nordlien
Tasting note: Oct-08