The Cellar: Italian Standouts
Friday, January 28, 2011
Italy is famous for its delicious food, as well as its fine wine. In fact, more wine is produced in Italy than any other country in the world. With such a long and rich wine making tradition, it is about time we taste some of the countries latest releases. Join us this week we explore three of Italy’s most famous types of wines; Chianti Classico, Pinot Grigio and Prosecco.
2007 Rocca Delle Macie Chianti Classico - $15
The backstory: Nothing says Italian wine like ‘Chianti Classico’. Chianti wines are from the Northern Region of Tuscany, one of the most important wine regions in all of Italy. Tuscany is also home to the indigenous and world famous Italian grape variety called Sangiovese. Most of the wines from Tuscany are made from this grape, sometimes blended with other indigenous grapes or more popular grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.
The late Italo Zingarelli, a former boxer and film producer, bought Rocca delle Macìe winery in Tuscany back in 1973. His son Sergio now runs the winery, which is dedicated to the principles of organic fertilization, careful pruning, the introduction of small oak barrels for aging and the harvesting of grapes by hand.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe wine: The 2007 Rocca Delle Macie Chianti Classico is a straight-forward Chianti. It is made primarily of Sangiovese, but cut with 5% Canaiolo and 5% Merlot to add some body, fruit and soften the tannins. On the nose it displays ripe fruits and a little bit of spice. On the palate it is smooth, full-bodied and with a hint of bitter fruits in the back-end. This is a great introduction to Chianti and would pair great with most hearty foods.
2009 – Kris Pinot Grigio - $13
The backstory: There is no arguing the fact that the roots of Pinot Grigio, or Pinot Gris as the wine is known some places, are in Burgundy in France. However many would argue that the grape has found its home of choice in Northeast Italy. The small, pinkish-gray-skinned grape flourishes in delicate sunshine of this sub-Alpine region boarding Austria to the north and east and Slovenia to the south. In this area Pinot Grigio has reached unparalleled quality and surprises the palate with unique floral and spicy notes rarely found in other areas.
The wine: Tropical fruit, melon, lemon and minerality are the main aromas and flavors in the 2009 Kris Pinot Grigio. While it is not as focused as the 2008 (try the comparison if you can find it), it is still a well-balanced wine, meaning that the fruitiness, faint hint of sweetness brought by the fruit, acidity and minerality are all in harmony. The wine falls a bit short, but has an interesting lingering citrus note.
Non-Vintage Borgo Magredo Extra Dry Prosecco - $15
The backstory: The Prosecco grape is primarily grown in the northeastern Italian region of Veneto, where it is the backbone of the delicious sparkling wine that carries its name.The Borgo Magredo winery is huge! It stretches over 250 hectares, with a production capacity of one million bottles per year. The winery is what I consider a ‘value winery’, which has two product lines with a total of sixteen wines capable of satisfying different tastes.
The wine: The Non-Vintage Borgo Magredo Extra Dry Prosecco is a good example of an everyday sparkling, and one I always have lying around. It is a straight-forward sipper showing apples and a hint of citrus. You detect a faint sweetness, but the refreshing sparkles and hints of acidity balances the wine out lovely. There is nothing not to like about this wine, besides the fact that it drinks so fast.
Enjoy!
Besides from writing about wine Steffen Rasch also consults, hosts lessons, tastings and other types of wine events privately, as well as for businesses. If you are interested in knowing more please contact [email protected], and follow him on Facebook, here.
Related Articles
- The Cellar: 3 Must-Haves for Under $20
- The Cellar: Great Spanish Wines for Under $20
- The Cellar: Top Wines of 2010
- The Cellar: Three Crowd-Pleasers for Under $20
- The Cellar: Undiscovered Classics for Under $20
