Tried tonight w/ the gang down at ArroyoVino:
1. Skerk Vitovska DdOC: Carso-Kras (NCeNF; 12.5%; www.Skerk.com; www.OMWines.com) 2009: Med.gold somewhat cloudy color; some earthy/apple/apple cider slight floral/carnations/marigolds/musky quite interesting/unusual nose; rather tart some phenolic/tannic/apple cider bit apple/quince slight floral/marigolds/pungent some stoney/mineral/earthy quite dry/savory flavor w/ not a lot of fruit; quite long tart/dry some phenolic/tannic some earthy/stoney/mineral bit apple/quince/apple cider very savory finish; some like a Ribolla w/o the fruit; a very interesting & savory wine. $35.00 (WoP)
____________________
An a wee BloodyPulpit:
1. OliverMcCrum recently started bringing in the wines of SandiSkerk and has been quite excited by them. So I've been dying to try them and this was my first one. I was favorably impressed. Made from a Vitovska, a variety indigenous to the area, it is a cross of MalvasiaBiancaLunga X ProseccoTondo. The Malvasia Bianca is a rather neutral Tuscan variety not held in much esteem. How it got all the way up Friuli to commit some unseemly act w/ Prosecco is anybody's guess. Seems a long ways to go to fornicate.
SandiSkerk is a "natural" winemaker. He uses skin-contact in fermenting his whites to give them a tannin level that allows him to lower his SO2 additions. This wine was made w/ 30 days of skin contact in large oak vats w/ 4-5 punchdowns a day. Despite the extended skin contact, it did not have the phenolic overload that some such wines display.
This is only the 5-6'th Vitovska I've tried. I still don't have a good feel for the varietal character of Vitovska. Because of the skin-contact, I doubt this Skerk is a good data point for getting a handle on that.
I rather liked this wine for its savory character and it went quite well, surprisingly, w/ my Sopressata-wrapped grilled aspargras and fresh favas. I'm no longer a Skerk virgin and much the better person for it.
Tom