Wine from nowhere
Posted on 4 March 2012
Interesting tasting today. Three wines from the most unusual of wine places: Albania. (Well, Uzbekistan makes wine too). A friend brought these bottles from a trip there; apparently they belong to the very best that vinous Albania has to offer. Information on Albania is very limited on the internet although there is this basic website as well as this Facebook page (in Albanian only, and offering a good laugh when you Google translate it).
Light and declining but drinking nicely.
I didn’t expect much so these wines were actually a positive surprise. The Aquila Liquori Kallmet 2005 (sources are unclear on whether Kallmet is the place name, grape variety, or both) is the least expensive of my trio at 10€, a light-coloured wine with a herbaceous, Cabernet Sauvignon-like impression, somewhat chewy and tannic on the palate although obviously a warm-climate style (southern Italy definitely came to mind). At six years this is declining and oxidative but a reasonably drinkable, pleasant wine.
Tannic and wholesome, with big concentration.
The Kashmer 2007 from Çobo is a more substantial wine, a blend of CabSauv, Merlot and Shesh i Zi which apparently is Albania’s leading red grape. It clocks in at 14% alc. and despite the Bordeaux blend component, tastes definitely Mediterranean, with intense roasted and stewed fruit and a phenolic, rich finish. This has pretty good concentration and is an assertive, convincing style, retaining some crispness too. One criticism is that it’s already evolved and actually oxidises pretty quickly after opening, becoming rather unpleasant on day 2 (inluding a rancio character). But a serious wine and shows a dedication to quality, notably in the above-average concentration. (See this article about Çobo).
Powerful and fleshy, an impressive wine for Albania.
Ultimately the wine I liked most was the Primitivo Prestige 2004 from Skënderbeu (apparently Albania’s volume leader). Using a grape variety from across the Adriatic in a similar climate, this is a full-blown Primitivo with varietal notes of dried tomatoes and stewed summer fruits. Palate shows a lot of power with notes of oak and sun-dried grapes, with a bit of leafiness and vegetality balancing the phenolic richness. Holding well for its age, this is really an impressive wine for Albania (would make a pretty good bottle for Greece or Apulia, for that matter).
Taxation exists even in Albania.
I didn’t expect much – who would, tasting Albanian wines for the first time – but these wines were actually a positive surprise. They have a rustic character, showing a bit overextracted and overripe, with what is called ‘low fruit’ (especially on the palate), and oxidising fairly quickly after opening – but admittedly they were open too late, nearly a year after having been brought from Albania. Clearly there is some potential when winemaking is fine-tuned, yields go down and wines are bottled earlier, but for a first tasting this was pretty impressive. I’ve already had some good tasting from nearby Montenegro and Kosovo, which further reinforces my impression that Albania could make seriously good wine.
Disclosure
Source of wine: gifts from a wine friend.