If you’re feeling shy about taking a wine-tasting note, much less sharing it, remember, it can be this simple: “It was fruity and red. I liked it.”
At the other extreme, a lot of the wine reports we see online and in print can be exaggerated and, frankly, as easily parodied as Robert M. Parker’s report on a rare bottle of Chateau Lafleur 1961 Pomerol: “… one of those magical bottles that just had to be tasted to be believed. Pure cherry liqueur with a flowery, concentrated essence of truffles, this wine was youthful, dense, yet complex, and surreal.”
This wine currently costs $13,000 for a bottle if you can find it; and Parker, the now-retired critic whose style has launched a thousand jokes, knew what he was drinking at a massive non-blind tasting at what he described as a “sumptuous buffet” at The Fountain restaurant in Philadelphia’s Four Seasons Hotel.
Speaking of Parker, his associate Lisa Perroti Brown wrote a very good overview in 2017 on tasting notes and why they matter: How Important Are Tasting Notes?
On the other hand, back at the start of this year, I wrote (in Tasting notes: Good, bad, or necessary?) about a pop-up debate among wine nerds and wine writers arguing whether tasting notes were even worth taking anymore.
Mery, the Chief Scribe of the Royal Archives during Egypt’s 4th Dynasty of the Old Kingdom more than 4,500 years ago, needed serious skills and specialized tools to inscribe hieroglyphics on papyrus with a reed. Modern wine lovers have many more options. (The image, now at the Louvre, is a raised relief carved on a limestone tomb door.)
All this talk about tasting notes as a tool for industry professionals or wine writers raises an obvious question, though: Why should this all matter to everyday wine lovers?
Allow me to take a strong stand in favor of the tasting note, and not just for wine makers, distributors, retailers, and wine writers but for everyday wine lovers like you and me.
Writing wine notes prompts us to tease out the specific color, aroma, flavor, finish, and overall impression of the wines we drink. By taking the time to analyze the wine’s components and how they work together (or don’t), we can enhance our enjoyment of the wine and fix it in memory as we build a body of wine experience that helps us enjoy the next wine even more thoughtfully.
Sharing wine notes – an easy thing to do in this age of wine forums, wine clubs, and social media – turns our love of wine into a social activity and helps us expand our wine knowledge and pick up actual buying advice.
This week I’ve set up a section of the Wine Advisor’s Substack Chat as a quick and easy place to share our wine experiences in a supportive environment that’s welcoming to both newcomers and old hands alike.You’re invited!
🍷 Wine Tasting Notes [WTN] Here’s a safe space to share info about wines we’ve tasted. Notes may be as simple or fancy as you like, as may the wines themselves. Give it a try!
Medium-dark garnet in color, Caruso & Minini “Frappello” gets its name from its blend of two indigenous Sicilian grapes – Frappato and Nerello Mascalese – in equal parts. Ripe cranberry and pomegranate aromas are surrounded by an intense mix of dried cherries and plums, with hints of brown spice imparted by a portion of the wine seeing brief aging in oak barrels. Fresh, acidic red-fruit flavors are shaped by soft tannins leading into a long finish. 13.5% alcohol. U.S. importer: Massanois Imports, NYC. (July 19, 2026)
FOOD MATCH: Serve it with steaks, burgers, or grilled poultry or hearty plant-based cuisine. The winery also suggests it as a partner with fish, but I’d limit that to grilled oily fish like bluefish or mackerel, or maybe a cioppino with fish and plenty of tomatoes and spice.
WHEN TO DRINK: While this wine should remain enjoyable for another year or two, it’s really designed for early enjoyment. Drink up.
VALUE:
It’s a fine value in the lower to middle teens. Wine-Searcher.com shows a $13 average U.S. retail price.
WEB LINK:
Here’s the producer’s fact sheet in English.
FIND THIS WINE ONLINE:
Check prices and find vendors for Caruso & Minini “Frappello” on Wine-Searcher.com.
Read about the Terre Siciliane IGP, the wine region that covers the entire island of Sicily, at this Wine-Searcher link.
Follow this Wine-Searcher link to read about the Sicilian Frappato grape, and this link for Nerello Mascalese.
Wine-Searcher.com is the place to go online if you want to find where to buy a particular wine that interests you. What’s more, Wine-Searcher.com offers so much more. It’s well worth a visit just to discover its many features, including its popular list of the world’s Top 10 Best Value Wines.
Want tips to still more good, inexpensive wines? Here are Wine-Searcher links to vendors and prices for a bunch more wines for $12 or less that I’ve told you about in recent years. In some cases, the prices may have risen since I reviewed them, but they should still be excellent bargains. Please tell us about your favorites!
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