Mosti Mondiale MM Renaissance Amorosso is good

[jsiddall]

I just bottled half a batch of MM Renaissance Amorosso (AKA Amarone) I started mid November. The other half is back in an 11.3 L carboy with an oak spiral for bulk aging and later comparison.

However, what is notable about this kit is how overall good it is at just 2 months. This easily surpasses all of the other premium kits I have, including a 15 month old Showcase Cabernet Red Mountain and a 12 month old Winery Series Super Tuscan.

I would not go so far as to call it great, and probably not yet distinguishable as an Amarone, but it is genuinely drinkable -- something I have not been able to say about any other kits so far. There are plenty of fruity flavors, though somewhat confected tasting at this point and probably out of character for an Amarone. There is obviously a bit of alcohol heat but also some woody, vanilla and cigar notes and a nice bit of tartness. Although the flavors are not well integrated yet nothing stands out as being "off" and KT is minimal.

This is the first MM kit I have tried and so far I would say it easily competes with offerings from the other premium kit manufacturers. However, there are some notable differences between this batch and the others. My oldest premium kits were made at a FoP and, while I don't think they did anything wrong, they definitely cranked them out in the shortest time allowed by the instructions. I took a bit more time with this MM kit including extended time in secondary, a relatively low ferment temperature, and a very thorough degassing.

The MM kit also came with yeast nutrient, something none of the other kits did. I wonder if stressed yeast is responsible for some of the off flavors in the other kits. I recently made a Passport Petit Verdot and noticed about 4 days in it started smelling a bit farty. I added some nutrient to that batch also and it seemed to take care of the odor.

For anyone else that has made this kit, did it stack up well to others you have made?

 

[roger80465]

I have done the Renaissance Impressions and the Renaissance amarone kits. When I compared the results to Showcase or En Premier amarone, I was terribly disappointed in the MM kits. While the wine was drinkable, I preferred the other products more.

What really matters in all this is not my taste but yours. Many people like MM kits, I just don't happen to be one of them. It seems there is no middle ground on these - people either love them or hate them.

I hope yours ends up exceeding your expectations.

 

[jsiddall]

I have done the Renaissance Impressions and the Renaissance amarone kits. When I compared the results to Showcase or En Premier amarone, I was terribly disappointed in the MM kits. While the wine was drinkable, I preferred the other products more.

What really matters in all this is not my taste but yours. Many people like MM kits, I just don't happen to be one of them. It seems there is no middle ground on these - people either love them or hate them.

I hope yours ends up exceeding your expectations.

Thanks for the info.

The prospect of other Amarones being even better than this has me thinking I should do one of those also! I would have done the En Primeur kit if I hadn't done the MM so I still have that one in the back of my mind.

Still, I did read some reviews of the MM kit and it sounds like they may have changed the formulation at some point. Some of the older reviews said the kit was thin and flavorless while some more recent reviews indicated it was anything but.

So was your experience with the MM kits recent (within the past year or two)? If so did you find it thin and weak or was the issue the flavor profile didn't match a traditional Amarone?

 

[geek]

I bought the MM Renaissance Impressions Amarone and still waiting but heard good reviews about it. I jumped on it due to the Holidays sales going on in Dec.

Mine may come in this week...

 

[roger80465]

I found both the Renaissance kits to lack flavor and mouthfeel. Even after 3 years, the wine is still harsh. Compare that to Showcase Amarone which I find quite enjoyable at 1 year and pure silk on the tongue at 3 years. I have heard that many of MM kits need extra time so that may be the case here.

I have sampled the Meglioli version that bulk aged for about 18 months and that was incredible, the closest thing to a commercial amarone that I have tasted.

Don't be discouraged with my comments. If you are happy with the results, that is all that matters. As my dad always said, 'opinions are like butts (paraphrased here ), everybody has one and they all stink'.

 

[jsiddall]

I bought the MM Renaissance Impressions Amarone and still waiting but heard good reviews about it. I jumped on it due to the Holidays sales going on in Dec.

Mine may come in this week...

Please post an update once you have sampled yours.

I found both the Renaissance kits to lack flavor and mouthfeel. Even after 3 years, the wine is still harsh. Compare that to Showcase Amarone which I find quite enjoyable at 1 year and pure silk on the tongue at 3 years. I have heard that many of MM kits need extra time so that may be the case here.

I have sampled the Meglioli version that bulk aged for about 18 months and that was incredible, the closest thing to a commercial amarone that I have tasted.

Don't be discouraged with my comments. If you are happy with the results, that is all that matters. As my dad always said, 'opinions are like butts (paraphrased here ), everybody has one and they all stink'.

No worries, I appreciate your opinion and was not discouraged by them. I do think they changed the formulation because you weren't the only one who had "thin, weak, harsh" type comments.

Thanks for the Meglioli tip. If they weren't so expensive I would already have tried one. However, frozen juice seems like it might be an even better choice now.

 

[geek]

I saw the same comments by people who made it long time ago but then recently it seems like reviews were better.

I really wanted to get the CC Showcase but since MM was offered to me SO cheap I didn't think twice.