Perfect Party Size: Maso Thaler Pinot Noir Magnums

Most of our attention here at CorksCru is focused on finding great, everyday wines. The kind of wine that will stoke excitement for dinner, be enjoyed with good company, and with empty bottles filling your recycling bin. So it's not often that we come to you with offers for "large format" bottles of wine.

Then there are times we come across wines that are just too good to be constrained to just 750 mL.

“Magnums are the perfect size for two people…if only one person is drinking," according to Luis Luro, of Monte Branco. But for the rest of us mere mortals, they are just not a practical size for everyday enjoyment.

But guess what, folks? The holidays are here! I’m sure many of you, like me, are filling up the social calendar with dinners and parties. Maybe you have a few special dinners planned where you know you’ll need more than one bottle.

So on offer today, a Party-Sized bottle, filled with a delicious, succulent pinot noir from one of the most interesting wine regions in Italy.

Maso Thaler Pinot Nero 2019 Magnums

Maso Thaler is the small family vineyard stewarded by the Motta brothers. It's a 4-hectare parcel perched on the edge of a mountainside in Alto-Adige. From this breathtaking property, at the edge of hospitable wine-growing conditions, they make some of the most elegant Pinot Noir we've come across.

While the 2019 vintage was a disaster quantity-wise, the quality in bottle turned out to be exceptional. Yields were down more than 50%, and summertime high temps and dryness gave super-concentrated grapes. The saving grace was a late-season rain that took away some sugar and potential alcohol and returned some acidity. The result is a wine that contains a measure of power and concentration, while retaining the grace that Maso Thaler is known for. For me, the wine is utterly charming and would pair with any hearty winter fare and rich holiday meals.