The first night of the World Series was on Wednesday and I knew we’d be watching from home. So, I invited my good friend over and she offered to feed us with a special family friendly casserole. I wasn’t quite sure what that meant so when she showed up with this amazing ceramic casserole filled to the brim with a kind of chili like concoction of meat and beans with lots of brown sugar and spices covered with a crusty dough smothered in melted cheese my mouth began to water. Of-course, now I had to figure out what to pair with this and I had no idea of the flavors. But, I had wanted to try the Londer Pinot Noir 2006 – Anderson Valley, CA that I had picked up from the terrific online site Winestilsoldout.com and so, opened that. On its own the wine was rich and concentrated with good ripe fruitiness and some of those nice mushroomy Pinot like characteristics. After trying the dish and not really paying attention for a while, I realized how this was a really delightful match. The wine became even more balanced with a softening of some of the fruit and then the finish. This is a good wine and definitely one that would pair well with many types of food. Cost approx: $30 -$40.00.
Another fun pairing was the Palazzone Grechetto 2007 – Umbria with home made linguini with clams. I used some of the wine in the sauce as well. Grechetto is a grape from the Umbria region of Italy and is light-bodied, acidic and fruity. I was surprised at the alcohol level of this wine, 14% as I didn’t feel the heat of the alcohol at all. This wine has an incredibly fruity nose and although delicate has really good body. Together with the linguini (that had lots of garlic) the wine became more elegant and satisfying with a wonderfully long finish. Loved this wine! This one was from Ultimatewineshop.com Cost approx: $18.00.
Cheers,
The Wining Woman
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After what seems like a long hiatus from my wine business life, I am finally resurfacing. This past week, I was fortunate to have been invited to an informal Italian Wine Tasting at the Alta Cucina Society in NYC featuring Italian wine expert, Luca Maroni and an array of new fruit forward Italian wines.
For me, this was an ideal tasting as there were simply a couple of tables with a total of 14 wines and not too many people. I didn’t have to dash around but could take my time with each wine.
While there wasn’t a bad wine in the lot there were a few that stood out for me. First, in the whites, there was the Cantina D’Allessandro Sicilia Grillo 2008. I immediately noticed intense grapefruit on the nose and palate. It felt fresh and crisp with a balanced acidity and had a nice gentle finish. This wine aged in stainless steel for 4 months followed by 2 in the bottle. The other white was the Feudo di San Gregorio, Campanaro 2008. This wine had the most body of all the whites filling my mouth with lots of tropical fruitiness and some interesting spice most likely due to its fermenting and aging in oak.
The other whites of the day were:
Farnese: Casale Vecchio Pecorino 2007- Made from the Pecorino grape, indigenous to the Chieti region. A nicely structured wine with apples and some woodiness. Light acidity yet refreshing.
Grechetto di Todi Fianco Todini 2008- A bit less fruity than the other whites with some nutty/woody characteristics
Cantina d’Allessandro Cataratto-Inzolia 2008- A nice Sicilian light refreshing wine.
One of the reds that I loved was the Cassius Aglianico di Irpinia 2006 – Nuschese Wines. Intensely fruity both on the nose and palate, this wine was simply delicious to me. The flavors stayed with me from start to finish and I could easily sip this one until I finished the bottle. (I didn’t!)
I also enjoyed the Madonna Nera Toscana 2008 – made from 80% Sangiovese, 10% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. This tasted light and fruity and easily enjoyable.
The other reds were:
Marcantino Primitivo di Manduria 2006 – Although fruity, for me there was a slight smokey and mushroomey dry finish.
Salentino Primitivo 2008 – Dark and pruney with an almost sweet finish
Cinque Autoctoni 2007 – Farnese – A blend of indigenous grapes from Abruzzo and Apulia. 33% Montepulciano, 25% Sangiovese, 5 % Malvasia Nera, 30% Primitivo and 7% Negroamaro. Very intense and bold wine.
OPI Colline Terramene 2006 – Farnese – A nice fruity and dark Montepulciano.
Serpico Irpinia Aglianico Feudo di San Gregorio 2005- Nicely concentrated with good fruit and balance.
Feudi di San Marzano Sessantanni Primitivo di Manduria 2006 – Made from Primitivo grapes from Apulia. Jammy and intense wine.
Cantina D’Allessandro Nero d’Avola Syrah 2007 – Made from 65% Nero d’avola and 35% Syrah. Dark and rich.. A bit too bold for me.
I have to thank my friend and colleague, Susannah Gold of Vigneto Communications who invited me and coaxed me back into the tasting world. I forgot what I was missing.
Cheers,
The Wining Woman
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