Alto Adige

This is from northeastern Italy.  Ordered off the list at Eduardo's in Chicago ($70).  Pop and pour, this is drinking well.  Light golden in color with a touch of yellow.  Clear and bright.  The nose has red apples and a nice minerality.  Medium bodied.  Slightly oily texture.  Good acidity.  On the palate, this has some apples but is mostly about minerality.  Tasty as well.  This is very food friendly and went well with a spring pesto salad.  Drink over the next few years.

One of the very best of the relatively unknown wines of Italy.  This is from the northeast corner and made from the Teroldego grape.  Deep garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is fantastic with black cherries, some cranberries, loads of minerality and wild thyme.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  Great lively acidity.  On the palate, this is young but delicious.  Black cherry fruit with minerality and a bit of "wild herbs".  Long finish.  Nice on its own, but really better with food.  It worked great with a nice plate of buttered pasta.  Drink over the next ten to twenty years

Served blind.  Light golden in color with a touch of copper color making me think Pinot Grigio.  The nose is nice with lots of minerality.  Also dust, apples and some initial sulfur notes (which blew off).  Slightly oily texture.  Medium bodied.  A fair mount of oak showing but it somehow works.  On the palate, limes and apples.  Good acidity.  This is an excellent winery with good values.  Drink over the next few years.  This will work on its own or with a pasta with a cream sauce.

This is a relatively inexpensive red from northeast Italy.  That said, it is not  simple wine and needs to be cellared.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose has black cherries with some smoke.  On the palate, this has a soft texture.  Black cherry fruit that turn slightly sour.  Firm tannins.  Nice finish.  This will need to be laid down for five to seven years if it is to reach its peak.  It can be drunk now but have some nice fatty foods to cut through the tannins.  If serving today, an eight hour decant is not too much.  Certainly, the score should improve with cellaring.  

Silvery gold in color, clear and bright.  The nose has chalk and slight peach note.  On the palate, this is oily which is good.  Plenty of minerals with some bitters.  Also a slight peach note.  Good acidity.  Long finish. This is a basic wine that provides great value.  It should be drunk in the first year or so to enjoy it's freshness.  It will go well with salads, seafood and lighter foods.  

An interesting and fairly priced wine from northeast Italy.  The Kerner grape is a cross between Schiava and Riesling.  Light pale gold in color.  The nose has some peaches and a bit of minerality.  On the palate, this is round and soft.  It sets the expectation for acidity but there really isn't a lot.  It drinks easy with the peach notes carrying thru.  This probably should be drunk now.  It will go well with salads and quiches.  

Made from the Teroldego grape, this is the basic wine from this wonderful producer.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, lots of minerality and a touch of salinity.  On the palate, there are firm tannins on this.  Lots of black cherries and some cherries.  An underlying minerality.  This is drinking nicely now, but surely will improve as it integrates over the next five years.  Nice acidity.  This begs for food right now.  Pasta in a cream sauce is a great choice.