Italy

• Abruzzo
• Alto Adige
• Apulia
• Basilicata
• Calabria
• Campagna
• Emilia-Romagna
• Friuli-Venezia Giulia
• Liguria
• Lombardia
  • Franciacorta
• Marche
• Molise
• Piedmont (Piemonte)
• Sicily
  • Mt. Etna
• Trentino-Alto Adige
• Tuscany
  • Brunello di Montalcino
  • Chianti
• Umbria
• Valle d'Aosta
• Veneto
  • Prosecco
  • Soave
• Sardinia

Purchased at the winery.  Garnet in color, clear and bright.  The nose is nice with cherries, tea leaves, and coffee.  Full bodied.  Good acidity.  On the palate, bright cherry fruit.  Plenty of depth.  Layered.  Underlying tobacco/forest floor notes.  Long finish.  This is nice on its own but better with food.  A big plate of pasta is the obvious choice.  Drink over the next five to eight years.  

Fortunately for all of us Grillo is becoming a more popular wine. Best known in Italy, (there is some belief it originated here, but that is not conclusive) imports to the US are up and that makes for a great new wine to discover if you’re not familiar with wines from the Sicily region of Italy. This wine offers soft lemon-lime resin, lychee, light papaya, with back and supporting notes of stone fruit, melon and mineralogy.

Located in Southern Tuscany, Val Delle Rose is one of the largest wineries in the region. Their 2018 Aurelio, something of a flagship wine, offers superb quality fruit - muted pomegranate, rhubarb, black cherry, blackberry, along with a judicious use of oak that brings out cedar notes. There are vague back notes of dusty cocoa. This is a nicely balanced wine that combines all the necessary elements of oak, fruit, tannin and acidity, making for a wine that would be very complementary for any number of foods.

In Italy, the history of Carmignano winegrowing dates back to 1716 when Cosimo III de' Medici granted the area special legal protections. In the 1500’s the queen of France sent cuttings of Cabernet Sauvignon from Bordeaux to Carmignano. This wine is made from a blend of 80% Sangiovese and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon from certified organic vineyards, and fifth-generation winemaker Benedetta Contini Bonacossi crafts a wine that offers subdued fruit of stewed prunes, black cherry, boysenberry, and resin. There is solid acidity and tannic structure to make this workable with a variety of foods.

A native grape to the island of Sicily, this Grillo is light and delicate, with notes of butterscotch, honeysuckle, guava, white peach, lemon-lime, and a hint of grapefruit and summer wildflowers. Like all good Italian wines there is a proper acidity to work with food, which is always the goal. This is a soft wine with a smooth viscosity and its success is that it doesn’t steal the show but enables food to complement the wine, a balancing act that makes for a terrific dining experience. ORIGIN: Sicily, Italy. ALCOHOL: 12%

This red is from the island of Sicily,  Ruby/purple in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has cherries, black cherries and slight black olive notes.  Medium bodied.  Good acidity.  On the palate, more black cherry than cherry.  A bit of underlying char.  Moderate finish.  Fully mature at this point.  This will work better with food.  Pork chops or burgers off the grill would do well.  drink over the next few years.  

This is a blend of Glera and Pinot Noir grapes.  Salmon pink in color.  Frothy with a variety of sized bubbles.  The nose has strawberries and slight apple notes.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, there is nice acidity.  Slightly sweet.  Cherries and strawberries.  A lingering finish.  An enjoyable Prosecco with some depth as well.  Very nice on its own, this should work well with food.  It would go nicely with roasted turkey or duck.  Drink over the next couple of years.  

This an Organic, semi-sparkling Prosecco from Italy.  It is made from 85% Glera grapes, with 15% other allowed varieties.  The packaging is attractive.  Silvery/green/gold in color with a good amount of frothy bubbles.  The nose has minerality and some salinity along with green apples.  Refreshing.  On the palate, the green apples come thru along with a bit of sweetness.  Nice acidity to balance that.  Good finish.  This is nice on its own and should work well at the beginning or end of a meal.  It will work nice with fired calamari and also a not too sweet pound cake.  

This is non vintage but the Lot No. is L221095.  It is a delightful, low alcohol (5%) low alcohol wine from Italy.  This year's version seems a bit rounder and more fruity than prior versions.  Green/gold in color.  The nose has some peach with minerality and slight citrus.  Frothy.  Lightly sweet.  The palate again has some peach with a nice crispness to balance the sweet.  Easy to drink and tasty.  This will work well with fried appetizers or on its own.  Drink over the next couple of years.  

This is an interesting white from central Italy.  Golden in color, slightly deep, clear and bright.  The nose is nice with apricots and slight honey note.  Medium bodied.  Oily texture.  Dry on the palate with good acidity.  On the palate, guava with almonds and slight lime.  Some depth and complexity.  Long finish.  This is nice on its own but better with food.  It would go nicely with a plate of Proscutto di Parma.  Drink over the next few years.