I love Italian wines and look for any opportunity to taste them. Oh heck, I love any opportunity to drink wine! But really, I did want to learn more about them. In hopes of taking a wine/culinary trip to the Piedmont area of Italy later this year, I signed up for this class with the Texas Wine School.
The class called Wines of Italy – Level 1 was held at a really cool venue called Nos Caves Vin. This is a private wine club that has large wine storage unit for the proper storage of wine. One section of the building is cooled to perfection and operates like your personal cellar. It also has nice lounging areas for members to come get a bottle from their storage unit and enjoy at the premise. The facility has a large conference room used for classroom settings.
The class was taught by James King, an English guy who has a long list of wine credentials and has good wit about him, but sometimes mumbles during his presentation. As far as the presentation of the information, I found it to be somewhat dry and unentertaining. It was mostly text on a PowerPoint presentation with a map or so thrown on a slide. I personally think wine and learning about wine should be fun.
The class was 2 hours and featured all areas of Italy which was probably a little too much to cover in that length of time. We were given a one sheet of take-away notes that listed the areas and a little info on the history, grapes grown in the area and climate.
The most fun was the wine tasting itself and James really had some good ones for us to try. So, here is what we tasted and some of my tasting notes and possible pairings:
2009 Ruffino Orvieto Classico, Umbria – $10
Notes: very clean on the palate, citrus with hints of green apple.
Pair this with: Seafood like oysters or a light white fish, meats like chicken, ham, veal or light pastas.
2009 Allegrini Soave Classico, Veneto – $10
Notes: Dry on the palate, but light and crisp with hints of lemon, and somewhat tropical. This wine will last 4-5 years.
Pair this with: seafood dishes like crab, raw oysters, shrimp and smoked seafood. White meats like chicken and pork. Sauces that are citrus or vinaigrettes.
2007 Les Cretes Chardonnay Cuvee Frissoniere, Val D Aosta – $40
Notes: Very well balanced, light to medium chardonnay, no oak, has hints of baked apple, caramel, and hints of floral.
Pair this with: seafood dishes like lobster, sea bass or shrimp. White meats like chicken, turkey or pork and vegetables like avacado, spinach and squash. Sauces like basil, butter, cream, garlic or saffron.
2005 Villa Cafaggio Chianti Classico Riserva, Tuscany – $34
Notes: Has more acidity of the Sangovese, aged in French Oak with a medium to medium plus red. It had a beautiful ruby color with a long soft, light finish and hints of blackberry, tea leaves and red cherry.
Pair this with: Dishes that are acidic like pasta in tomato sauce, lasanga, meatballs or simple dishes like roast beef. The Riserva is also good with grilled beef meats too.
2004 Villa Sandi Marca Trevigiana “Corpore” (Cabernet Franc/Merlot) Veneto – $40
Notes: Aged in French oak, dusty with very strong tannins, herbaceous with hints of blackberry and dark cherry. This wine has a very dry – long finish.
Pair this with: beef, duck, squab; sauces like meat, mushroom or red wine; veggies like mushrooms or wild rice and soft cheeses like cow or goat cheese.
2003 Poderi Colla Barolo Bussina, Piedmont – $ 71
Notes: Garnet color on the rim of the pour, cherry and earthy hints. Very fruit forward and very balanced. Lighter than expected. This was yummy and danced on the tongue, but I love Barolos! These can age 10-15 years.
Pair this with: Full lamb, beef dishes and stews; Sauces that are rich or earthy mushrooms
2003 Poggio Antico Brunello di Montalcinco, Tuscany – $101
Notes: Fuller bodied wine with more tannins, hints of darker fruits, truffles (which I adore) and has a slight pepper taste. Long finish.
Pair this with: This one is in search of big flavors, game, red meat, flavorful hard cheeses and mushrooms. (If you have a meal with similar flavors, try a Rossa di Montalcinco, which is much less expensive, but is made from the Sangiovese grapes, but not aged as long.)
1999 Cosimo Taurino “Patriglione” (Negroamaro) Salento IGT Rosso, Puglia – $65
Notes: This 12-year-old wine had hints of dried fruit, honey, and was jammy but elegant on the mouth. It was much like a port type of wine.
Pair this with: Desserts like cheesecake, strawberry shortcake etc.
