Expert Review
Bart Hopkins 67Wine.com | Bart as many of you know by now has the great ability to find delicious well made wines from time producers. Selvagrossa a winery in the Marche region of Italy, owned by brothers Alberto and Alessandro Taddei farm just a handful of hectares (think of a hectare as a football field squared) of vineyard in and around the town of Pesaro, a few kilometers from Adriatic. Muschen is their entry level wine and is absolutely a joyous red made of 50% Sangiovese, 30% Merlot, and 20% Cabernet Franc.
The 2022 “Muschèn” is a blend of those three grape varieties and it is fermented and aged in stainless steel to keep maximum freshness and fruit flavors. Muschèn is the quintessential everyday Italian red, with that classic red fruit on the nose from the Sangiovese, a plushness in the mid-palate from the Merlot, and complex herbs and mineral notes from the Cabernet Franc. Bart thinks you will love his discovery.
Winemaker Description
Muschen translates to ‘firefly’ in the local dialect and is the nickname of winemaker Alberto Taddei, who farms 4 hectares along the Adriatic coast with his brother Alessandro. A blend of 50% Sangiovese, 30% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, all of which are fermented separately in stainless steel then blended. This wine shows tones of brambly berries and plums with fresh mint accents and brooding tobacco and spice elements on the finish.
Brothers Alberto and Alessandro Taddei farm just a handful of hectares of vineyard in and around the town of Pesaro, and this Adriatic-influenced region produces wines of incredible personality. Pesaro is an overlooked treasure of a village in the northern Marche, hugging the Adriatic coast. As you travel by car south and west of the village, you find yourself winding down hillside roads with lush green pastures, farms, and an occasional factory or two.
Libero Taddei, the grandfather of the current generation, Alberto and Alessandro, diversified his livelihood by planting vines on the hillsides. Sangiovese was a natural selection, but grapes such as Merlot and Cabernet Franc were also found to be well suited to the vineyards. Today at Selvagrossa, there are almost four hectares of vineyards that surround Mamma Anselma’s house and the winery, and another half hectare they work with in a coastal vineyard north of Pesaro. The farming has been certified organic since 2017, but Selvagrossa has practiced sustainable farming for many years. The winery at Selvagrossa is very simple, not a lot of bells and whistles, but it makes delicious and complex wines.
The 2022 “Muschèn” is a blend of 50% Sangiovese, 30% Merlot, and 20% Cabernet Franc. No oak is used; it is fermented and aged only in stainless steel. “Muschèn” is the quintessential everyday Italian red, with that classic red fruit on the nose from the Sangiovese, a plushness in the midpalate from the Merlot, and some complex herbs and mineral notes from the Cabernet Franc.
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