New columnist: Mark Bertrand

Mark Bertrand loves Italy. He loves the country, the culture, the crowds, the chaos, the hand gestures, the food and especially the wines. For him, a wine is more than the product in a bottle. For Mark, it is an experience, waiting to be opened. He goes in search of the story behind the wine and likes to take you on that journey of discovery.
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Frammenti

The film '300', James Bond with his '007' or Prince's song '1999'. They are all numbers that have a story, that have something magical, that are part of a spell. Well, I have a new magic number for you: 700, which is the number of the total annual production of a chardonnay from Puglia. A chardonnay that enchants you from the first sip, that takes you on a journey. A wine the word 'wow' doesn't even cover. Signore e signori, vi presento de "Frammenti" from the winery Frisinō.

Not long ago, we had a wine tasting. You know the drill: six different wines, a story each time about the wine we were drinking at the time and tasty snacks and olive oil on the table. Just an evening in Italy so to speak. The theme was Puglia and the wine selection was carefully curated. At one point, our host, Jack, started preparing the next wine and his beaming face gave it away - that wine is a special one! The whole ritual came into play: decanting, bringing the wine to the right temperature and letting it breathe for a while. I love that: preparing the wines for a while to excel. And how! For anyone who has ever or regularly drunk chardonnay, I can only say one thing: you've been waiting for this one. The Frammenti from winery Frisinō is the outside category. Go figure: only 700 bottles, situated on new barrique, hand-picked, personally inspected by the owner himself and a wax coating over the cork. Everything has been thought of to make drinking special.

The wine

The intensely beautiful golden, straw yellow colour in the glass already betrays that we are dealing with a wine with a lot of layering. Upon pouring, you can smell the floral notes combined with fresh notes of peach and apricots, which makes for a very pleasant aroma. Not to mention the taste. In everything, this Frammenti exceeds your expectations. Do you like that buttery note? Got it. Do you like a nice balance between sweet and sour? Has0ie. Love a nice long finish without a single moment of sourness? Has-ie. This chardonnay exudes particularity in everything. And judging by the admiring looks from my fellow tablemates, I was not the only one. We had the special pleasure of tasting one of only 700 bottles that evening and I begrudge everyone this experience. I grant everyone this moment of rapture, of enchantment!

The romantic in me longs for Italy at such times. To special places like Teatro del Silenzio in Lajatico, attending an opera at la Scala in Milano, lazing around at Eco del Mare or wandering around Alghero. And now, now that includes the Frammenti. Dreaming about Salento, about drinking a Frammenti overlooking the vineyards of Frisinō. Dreaming about helping pick the grapes in autumn. Just to take a moment, a small moment in your life, a cittadino to be. That's what I long for and keep dreaming about. Dreaming about 700.

Salute,

Mark

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