Just Me' Di Lenardo 2021
The Just Me by Lenardo is a Merlot born from the vinification of partially dried grapes and aged in American oak barriques for at least 18 months. The result is a ruby color that reveals an intense bouquet of cherry, plum, and blueberry jam, with notes of chocolate, vanilla, and licorice. The sip is soft and juicy, well-balanced, and with a persistent spicy finish.
The Just Me from the Friulian winery Di Lenardo is an intense and structured red with an international profile. It is produced in the Grave del Friuli area using the Bordeaux grape variety Merlot, which has been present in the lands of our Triveneto for centuries. The winemaking process involves partial drying and a long aging period in oak barrels, which gives the wine remarkable richness and expressive softness, with aromas of ripe red fruit, sweet spices, and hints of vanilla. It is a wine with dense fruit and a persistent sip, particularly suitable for pairing with main courses of red meats.
The red Just Me comes from a Friulian winery with ancient origins, which in recent decades has risen to prominence thanks to a range of wines with great personality. Di Lenardo has been cultivating vineyards since the mid-1800s in the Grave del Friuli area. The vineyards cover about fifty hectares in the Friulian plain between Ontagnano and Palmanova, characterized by predominantly gravelly soils of alluvial origin. These are poor, very draining soils that have proven to be very suitable for Merlot. The mild and sunny climate, always tempered by the breezes from the nearby Adriatic Sea, allows the grapes to ripen perfectly, and the subsequent drying phase further concentrates the aromas. In perfect harmony with the philosophy of the winery, the wine clearly reflects an idea of richness and drinkability, which is a trademark of Di Lenardo.
The Just Me wine from Di Lenardo is the result of the desire to create a pure Merlot in Friulian land. It is a label designed to express the producer's idea of a great red, intense and concentrated, made with one of the most famous and appreciated international grape varieties in the world, which in the Saint-Emilion area produces some of the most prestigious wines of all time. At the end of the harvest, the best bunches are dried for a month, then fermented in steel tanks, with a maceration on the skins for about ten days. Before bottling, the wine ages for 18 months in barrels. In the glass, it is ruby red in color. On the nose, it expresses aromas of small dark berries, sour cherry, and ripe plum, soft spicy hints, notes of vanilla, chocolate, and roasting. The sip is broad, warm, and enveloping, rich with silky tannins, and has a harmonious and persistent finish.