Armida “Two Vintage” Barbera - 3 Pack

[svwindom]

@guitartate

\\ Yes I dump them in my recycle all the time and they take them.I live in Arvada.

Thanks! In your mixed paper, or cardboard?

(I live in Durango and we probably don’t have the sophistication of your big-city recycling, but this is heartening!)

[guitartate]

@svwindom

Thanks! In your mixed paper, or cardboard?

(I live in Durango and we probably don’t have the sophistication of your big-city recycling, but this is heartening!)

\\Ah you got me. The big city technology allows me to co-mingle the recyclables. They do seem pressed so perhaps they are a little cardboardy…

[dianefreda]

@free2day33611

How does this Barbera compare with Scott Harvey’s? The reason I ask, while I enjoy most of the Scott Harvey wine, I did not enjoy the Barbera. It was the 2006 Barbera. I had gotten three bottles and opened one in 2009 and one in 2010 and it just was not for me. And I have not had any other Barbera. Maybe I just don’t like the grape (except as a smaller percentage mixed with another varietal)?

I will have to look when I get home and see if I wrote any tasting notes on the Scott Harvey (that was 2 years ago). I just remember the Armida because I took it to a friend’s house to share and after I tasted it wished I had kept it all for me. I bad!!

[richardhod]

@free2day33611

How does this Barbera compare with Scott Harvey’s? The reason I ask, while I enjoy most of the Scott Harvey wine, I did not enjoy the Barbera. It was the 2006 Barbera. I had gotten three bottles and opened one in 2009 and one in 2010 and it just was not for me. And I have not had any other Barbera. Maybe I just don’t like the grape (except as a smaller percentage mixed with another varietal)?

Ha, shows it really is down to taste as I love Scott’s 06 Barberas. Which one did you have, the zippy red-label Mountain one (with a bit of other things added), or the white label reserve, which is much purer and European?
Love to know how these ones compare too.

[winemakerb]

The two vintages are 2007 and 2008. The 2007 had beautiful acid and mouth structure, but was missing fruit and the 2008 was rich and bursting with fruit. At a percentage of 60% 2008 and 40% 2007 the wine was in balance.

[mejojoWOOT]

@svwindom

Please excuse the slightly off-topic post. But can anyone tell me if the pressed-paper-cardboardy cradle thingies that woot wine is shipped in is (generally) recyclable? Or at least tell me what they are actually called so I can find out?

I live in Colorado, if that is at all relevant.

It might be worthwhile to post them on craigslist to see if they can be reused (much better) instead of recycled. Non-Wine.Woot People have needs for shipping and storage.

[rpm]

@ddeuddeg

I’m sure everyone on that tour will recall that, after tasting a couple of dozen wines at Pedroncelli and Dry Creek, then more wine-tasting and lunch (with wine) at Seghesio, many of our palates were not in the best shape to evaluate Armida fairly. Accordingly, when we were in the area last October, bahwm and I, along with mewalk and tenuki, paid them a visit with fresher palates, and the idea that we could get a better sense of what they had to offer. We found it to be a very enjoyable experience, and their wines presented much better than they had on the first visit.
As richardhod points out, “their winemaking philosophy and style (big, bold, spicy, alcohol)” is certainly exhibited pretty much throughout their portfolio, and there are times, such as the filet mignon with bleu cheese and crabmeat we enjoyed at a local restaurant participating in the local “Dining out for Life” benefit, when that’s just what we need.
I thought they had told us last October that Jessica was no longer the winemaker at Armida, but their website shows otherwise. Too many months, too many bottles of wine, together with advancing age, may have clouded my memory.

ok…
I think that the website is mostly 2010 dated, so it’s not safe to assume from the website that the lovely Jessica is still the winemaker. Perhaps the poster ‘winemakerb’ could elucidate…

[winemakerb]

@ddeuddeg

I’m sure everyone on that tour will recall that, after tasting a couple of dozen wines at Pedroncelli and Dry Creek, then more wine-tasting and lunch (with wine) at Seghesio, many of our palates were not in the best shape to evaluate Armida fairly. Accordingly, when we were in the area last October, bahwm and I, along with mewalk and tenuki, paid them a visit with fresher palates, and the idea that we could get a better sense of what they had to offer. We found it to be a very enjoyable experience, and their wines presented much better than they had on the first visit.
As richardhod points out, “their winemaking philosophy and style (big, bold, spicy, alcohol)” is certainly exhibited pretty much throughout their portfolio, and there are times, such as the filet mignon with bleu cheese and crabmeat we enjoyed at a local restaurant participating in the local “Dining out for Life” benefit, when that’s just what we need.
I thought they had told us last October that Jessica was no longer the winemaker at Armida, but their website shows otherwise. Too many months, too many bottles of wine, together with advancing age, may have clouded my memory.

Hello there wooters,
My name is Brandon and I’m the new winemaker at Armida winery. The beautiful inked-up winemaker Jessica had a beautiful baby girl and is expecting another on the way. The owners of Armida didn’t think that I would make it this long, so they haven’t updated the website with my ugly mug.(soon to be rectified…sorry) I blended this Barbera that Jessica had made, a true collaborative effort. Please come by and visit me and taste some of the wines that we are making now.

[rpm]

@winemakerb

The two vintages are 2007 and 2008. The 2007 had beautiful acid and mouth structure, but was missing fruit and the 2008 was rich and bursting with fruit. At a percentage of 60% 2008 and 40% 2007 the wine was in balance.

OK, so the 2007 has had 36 months in cooperage, and the 2008 24 months, right? (late 2008 through December 2010) Did the blend go directly from cooperage to bottle, or did it spend some time as the final blend in some sort of cooperage? Inquiring minds and all that.

[dzphilip]

Haha! Love the writeup, especially since I’ve been watching the Tudors on Netflix.

So, my girlfriend and I are both new and under-educated on wine. She likes red wines, but hates tannin-y ones. I find that blended reds are easier for her to handle, and the Vinturi I got from woot makes those blends even easier.
What, generally, is the red with the least amount of tannins? I don’t know if it helps, but for white wines she is in love with Moscato. I guess that means that she likes really fruity, non-acidy wines.

Halp!!!

[winemakerb]

@mkentosh

How dark are the bottles?

We use a standard antique green coloring on all of our bottles.

[winemakerb]

@rpm

OK, so the 2007 has had 36 months in cooperage, and the 2008 24 months, right? (late 2008 through December 2010) Did the blend go directly from cooperage to bottle, or did it spend some time as the final blend in some sort of cooperage? Inquiring minds and all that.

The final blend was never in cooperage together. I pulled from the best tasting barrels from each vintage and then bottled 2 weeks later.

[free2day33611]

@richardhod

Ha, shows it really is down to taste as I love Scott’s 06 Barberas. Which one did you have, the zippy red-label Mountain one (with a bit of other things added), or the white label reserve, which is much purer and European?
Love to know how these ones compare too.

It was the red label Mountain one. And yes, it does come down to individual taste. I do really enjoy all the other Scott Harvey wines I’ve had.

[winemakerb]

@dzphilip

Haha! Love the writeup, especially since I’ve been watching the Tudors on Netflix.

So, my girlfriend and I are both new and under-educated on wine. She likes red wines, but hates tannin-y ones. I find that blended reds are easier for her to handle, and the Vinturi I got from woot makes those blends even easier.
What, generally, is the red with the least amount of tannins? I don’t know if it helps, but for white wines she is in love with Moscato. I guess that means that she likes really fruity, non-acidy wines.

Halp!!!

Before I bore you with a tannin seminar, I will answer that Pinot Noir or Blends should generally have less tannins. Pinot because of the thin skins (it still can have a lot of tannin either from oak or seeds) and blends are usually made to be drunk earlier and are intentionally made with less tannins. This Barbera that we are offering has some soft tannins, but with the aid of your venturi I believe that your girlfriend won’t think that it is too astringent. You can even impress her by saying that Barbera and Moscato originally both come from the same country, Italy, and Italy is romantic. Thank me later.

[winemakerb]

@rpm

ok…
I think that the website is mostly 2010 dated, so it’s not safe to assume from the website that the lovely Jessica is still the winemaker. Perhaps the poster ‘winemakerb’ could elucidate…

Hello there wooters,
My name is Brandon and I’m the new winemaker at Armida winery. The beautiful inked-up winemaker Jessica had a beautiful baby girl and is expecting another on the way. The owners of Armida didn’t think that I would make it this long, so they haven’t updated the website with my ugly mug.(soon to be rectified…sorry) I blended this Barbera that Jessica had made, a true collaborative effort. Please come by and visit me and taste some of the wines that we are making now.

[dzphilip]

@winemakerb

Before I bore you with a tannin seminar, I will answer that Pinot Noir or Blends should generally have less tannins. Pinot because of the thin skins (it still can have a lot of tannin either from oak or seeds) and blends are usually made to be drunk earlier and are intentionally made with less tannins. This Barbera that we are offering has some soft tannins, but with the aid of your venturi I believe that your girlfriend won’t think that it is too astringent. You can even impress her by saying that Barbera and Moscato originally both come from the same country, Italy, and Italy is romantic. Thank me later.

Extra points for the geography lesson
In for one, it’s always nice when the winemaker is involved!
And I’ll thank you now, since later I’ll be celebrating my b-day with an assortment of Michigan wines…

[k1avg]

@winemakerb

The two vintages are 2007 and 2008. The 2007 had beautiful acid and mouth structure, but was missing fruit and the 2008 was rich and bursting with fruit. At a percentage of 60% 2008 and 40% 2007 the wine was in balance.

Sounds sensible to me. I remember reading a blurb in WE a little while ago about how odd it is that (outside of sparklers and really awful grocery store tripe) vintage is basically the only remaining sacred cow in winemaking, despite the balance one can achieve through blending vintages with different strengths. It’s good to see someone finally breaking down that barrier.

[richardhod]

@k1avg

Sounds sensible to me. I remember reading a blurb in WE a little while ago about how odd it is that (outside of sparklers and really awful grocery store tripe) vintage is basically the only remaining sacred cow in winemaking, despite the balance one can achieve through blending vintages with different strengths. It’s good to see someone finally breaking down that barrier.

Crusted Port does this too, and very well although it is done with the grapes that didn’t make it into the declared vintages…

And - incidentally - congrats to Jessica! And that nicely puts paid to those wishful thoughts that I’m sure more than a few of us might have been entertaining… 8)

[emmy83]

So if this is the same place that made the La Famiglia Barbera, would the winemaker be able to compare that offering to this wine? It seems like a lot of people here bought that and enjoyed it (myself included). Thanks!

[k1avg]

@richardhod

Crusted Port does this too, and very well although it is done with the grapes that didn’t make it into the declared vintages…

And - incidentally - congrats to Jessica! And that nicely puts paid to those wishful thoughts that I’m sure more than a few of us might have been entertaining… 8)

Congrats for what? Did she accomplish something I’m not aware of?