Veneto

• Prosecco
• Soave

This is a lovely Amarone that delivers a lot for its price point.  It is a blend of 85% Corvina and 15% Rondinella.  Garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black cherries, plums, dried cherries, slight char and roasted herbs.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, lots of fresh and dried cherries with some underlying roasted herbs and spice.  Nice balance.

This is always a difficult wine especially for those who don't drink a lot of it.  Considered an "orange" wine, this predates the hipster Sommelier's infatuation of this style of wine.  At age 17, it has changed and aged by is still a fascinating wine.  Beware, at any given table, most people with be less than enthralled.  A blend of Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio and Riesling Italico (Welschriesling).  Amber in color, cloudy but still bright.  The nose has honey, caramel but also some citrus.  There is also a bit of oxidation.  Medium bodied.  Nice acidity.  On the palate, this is dry

This is an interesting blend in an Italian sparkling wine.  It is 75% Nerello Mascalese from Sicily and 25% Glera from the Veneto.  The packaging is quite fun and bright.  Light salmon pink in color with a nice mousse of small bubbles.  Clear and bright.  The nose is tight but with air shows nice raspberry fruit with a light rhubarb note.  The wine has 10 g/l of residual sugar but it comes off as dry.  11.5% abv.  On the palate, cherries with a sort of tree bark note underneath.  Very interesting and very food friendly.  It drinks well on its own and would work well with pork chops and many

I preferred this version to the regular version although both are good.  This seems to have more weight and complexity but your mileage may vary.  Blended from Glera and Pinot  Noir grapes in Friuli and the Veneto.  They both have the same attractive style packaging.  Pale salmon pink with silvery hues in color.  A large amount of medium sized bubbles.  On the nose, aromas of strawberries, oranges and minerality.  A lovely texture with only 11.5% abv.  Medium acidity.  On the palate, flavors of strawberries and oranges with underlying minerality.  Clean, long finish with apple notes.  This

This is a very nice Prosecco from northern Italy.  These have become trendy in recent years for drinking on their own and using in cocktails.  It comes in an attractive shaped curved bottle.  Pale, silvery gold in color, clear and bright.  There is a fair amount of medium sized bubbles giving the wine a nice frothiness.  Aromas of peach, and green apples.  Slightly sweet.  On the palate, this has green apples, and orange zest  with good acidity.  A bit of bitter almonds on the midpalate turn to a long green apple finish.  This drinks well on its own and will work well with cheese or eve lig

From one of the top producers in this part of the world,  His Valpolicellas are better and more serious than most Amarones (and more expensive, too).  This is a blend of 70% Corvina,  20% Rondinella, 5% Croatina and 5% Oseleta grapes.  Purple in color, opaque and flat.  This is a dense, concentrated wine.  The nose has cherries, cedar, leather, dark chocolate and a hint of VA (just enough to raise the aromatics without being off putting).  Full bodied.  Concentrated.  Firm tannins with a lush texture.  On the palate, this is teeth staining and delicious.  Cherries, black cherries, with some

From Magnum.  Pop and pour, it took about 45 minutes to open.  Deep garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has cherries, slight prunes, slight dark chocolate, raspberries and spice.  Full bodied.  Dry.  On the palate, cherries, raspberries, chocolate with an underlying earthiness.  Nice acidity.  Great mouthfeel.  This is still on the young side, but should be about at peak from a 750ML.  Drink over the next ten to twelve years.  This drinks well on its own but worked great with a variety of Italian foods.  

From the heart of Prosecco country in northeasy Italy, this is a serious Prosecco.  Made from 85% Glera with the remaining 15% other varietals.  Pale silvery/gold in color.  Lots of smaller bubbles.  The nose has minerals and Vernors soda (sort of carmelized ginger and seltzer).  It has a bigger presence.  Ginger and mineral notes, slightly candied.  Not tart, but well balanced.  Almost dry.  Long finish.  This drinks well on its own but will work better with food.  Fried chicken would be a nice choice.  A real crowd pleaser.  

This is from the northeast corner of Italy made from the Friulano grape (formerly known as Toaky Friulano).  Very pretty wine that is priced expensively.  Silvery/gold in color, clear and bright.  The nosee has minerals especially iron along with slight lime and pear notes.  Viscous.  Dry.  The minerality comes thru on the palate big time along with a bit of  salinity.  Some orange peel kicks in at the end.  Good finish.  This will drink well on its own and would work well with heartier sea food. Drink over the next five to seven years.  

Another "lesser" wine from Bussola.  And yes, while his Amarone's are amazing, they are also pricey.  This Valpolicella is much more affordable and even in a poor vintage like 2014, he made great wine.  This is a blend of Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella, Molinara and other grapes.  Fifty percent of the grapes for this wine are harvested in September and are dried for 3 months.