Sella & Mosca, “Tanca Farra” Alghero DOC 2015 (about $29)
Italian Wine for july, 2021
The Sella & Mosca winery is located not far from Sardinia’s medieval coastal town of Alghero in the northwest corner of the island. With 1,200-acres under vine the Sella & Mosca estate is among Italy’s largest and also most notable wineries.
With its warm Mediterranean climate, hilly terrain, volcanic soil, sunny dry climate and mollifying sea breezes, Sardinia is an ideal place for growing grapes and wines have been produced here for thousands of years.
Founded in 1890 by two professional colleagues from northern Italy, the Sella & Mosca winery today produces a number of red and white still, sparkling and sweet wines. While they focus primarily on native varieties such as Cannonau, Carignano, Torbato and Vermentino the estate also grows some international favorites such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.
Cannonau, a relative of the Grenache grape, is the most widespread native red grape variety in Sardinia and one of the oldest grape varietals in the Mediterranean basin. Pure Cannonau wines tend to be dark-colored, robust and structured wines with prominent tannins, low acidity and ripe dark fruit flavors.
Sella & Mosca’s 2015 “Tanca Farra” is a 50-50 blend of 
estate-grown Cannonau and Cabernet Sauvignon. The grapes are picked in September or October depending on when they achieve optimum maturity and then fermented at controlled temperatures. The wine is aged for 12 months in a combination of second-passage French oak barriques and large format oak casks and then spends 3 additional months in the bottle prior to release. The alcohol content is a food-friendly 13.5 percent.
The 2015 Tanca Farra opens with complex aromas of ripe red cherries and black currants with a spicy undertone. It is full-bodied with good acidity, soft tannins and depth of dark fruit flavors that elicit an enticing mouthfeel with a supple, caressing texture. Everything is in balance here with the warm-climate Cabernet Sauvignon moderating some of Cannonau’s exuberant personality and providing a more-velvety mouthfeel. The wine’s finish is a real treat, long, grippy and persistent with some sweet oak-derived spice notes.
This wine begs to be served with full-flavored dishes such as grilled lamb shanks, slow-cooked beef ragù, steaks prepared any which way and aged but not spicy cheeses.
©Richard Marcis
July 8, 2021
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