Wine of the Month October 2006

                    Savanna "Sogno Uno" (Italy); 2004

Firstly, let me say that this is a very good wine, imported from Italy.  Secondly, let me say that the grapes used for the blend are different from what most Americans are accustomed to.  Thirdly, let me say that the blend is a sound one.  Fourthly, let me say that the winemaker for this project, Roberto Cipresso has impeccable credentials within the Italian wine making community.  Lastly let me say that yes, the developer of this wine is the Savanna Samson of adult x-rated film fame.  The wine's name, Sogno Uno, is Italian for Dream One.

The label, as depicted above, is provocative, but certainly not ostentatious.  More importantly, the wine inside the bottle can stand up on its own, even without the attractive Ms. Samson's profile gracing the outside of the bottle.  The wine is a blend of 70% Cesanese, 20% Sangiovese, and 10% Montepulciano, all sourced from different Italian wine growing districts.  The wine does not carry a DOC label.  I found it interesting that Ms. Samson and Mr. Cipresso selected Cesanese as the backbone for this wine, since it is a grape almost unheard of in the United States.  Even in Italy, the grape is rarely found outside of the Lazio region along the middle of the western coast of Italy, near Rome.  This grape provides a medium body and light but pleasing aromatics.  Sangiovese, of course, is the primary grape of Tuscany to the north, and forms the foundation for Chianti and Brunello di Montalcino wines.  Montepulciano, another central Italian grape, generally provides smoky nuances to wines, and is grown widely in Abruzzo.  Readers should make sure they do not confuse the Montepulciano grape with the similarly named (but completely distinct) wine "Vino Nobile de Montepulciano"which is a Tuscan wine, made from the Prugnolo Gentile clone of Sangiovese grapes in the Tuscan town of Montepulciano.  Got it?  Montepulciano grapes grow in Abruzzo, and Sangiovese grapes grow in Montepulciano.  This wine contains the Montepulciano grapes, and has no relation to the town of Montepulciano, or the wine that takes the town's name.

The wine has a medium garnet color.  The bouquet took about 15 minutes to open up after pulling the cork.  The bouquet was rather delicate, but pleasant.  The predominant character in the bouquet was baked cherries/ warm cherry pie, but there were clearly some smokey notes, and some robust spice (think oregano) on the nose, probably from the small amount of Montepulciano grapes in the mix.  The cherry scents are not uncommon with Cesanese based wines.  On the palate, the wine was of medium body with soft tannin and vibrant acidity.  The sangiovese clearly has a taming effect on the other varietals, and gives the wine a more velvety texture.  The wine has a very Italian mouthfeel, and as such, the wine shows much better when paired with food than when consumed by itself.  Given the blend, this is not surprising since Montepulciano and Cesanese are used to produce dinner wines, not cocktail party wines.  When I first tried this wine on an empty stomach, I found the wine pleasant, but lacking complexity.  Once i sat down to eat, the wine complemented my dinner graciously.  The wine will pair nicely with traditional tomato based Italian foods, and I found it also paired quite well with my spicy home-made jambalaya.  The wine drank best out of a Pinot Noir glass, not a cabernet/Bordeaux glass.

Savanna Samson and Robert Cipresso are to be commended for introducing such a daring and unique blend to the United States, when they could have tried a much safer (albeit boring) sangiovese-merlot-cabernet blend.  I am informed that it was Ms. Samson who selected the final blend for her product.  Perhaps as an adult film star, Ms. Samson is no stranger to bold demonstrations of self expression, whether it be in her movies or now in her wine-making.  Of all the celebrity branded wines I have tasted so far, this one ranks near the top of the list, no doubt due to the formidable talents of Mr. Cipresso (who has produced Brunello for such famous wineries as Ciacci Piccolomini, Poggio Antico, and his own estate winery Fattoria La Fiorita).

Overall, I give this food friendly medium bodied wine just shy of four stars.  Retail price is $38.00.  The wine does need to be paired with the right food to show it's best stuff in full glory, just as I am sure Ms. Samson must be paired with the right actor to show all her capabilities in their full glory.  I look forward to future offereings from this wine making duo.  Now the bad news, only 400 cases were produced, and most ended up in New York.  I am not aware of any San Diego wine shops that carry the wine.  Ambitious readers will have to search the net for a retailer who will ship to your home.  If you would like to leave any comments about this wine, click here to go to the blog.




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