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

Silvery/gold in color.  A moderate mousse with medium sized bubbles.  Clear and bright.  The nose is nice with a hint of green apples and slight peach notes.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, this has a soft, easy to drink texture.  Apples and peaches with good acidity.  Moderate finish.  This drinks well on its own, but should be better with food.  Very food friendly.  It would go well with pasta with a cream sauce.  Drink now.  

This is 95% Chardonnay and 5% Pinot Noir from Italy.  Franciacorta is a great region for sparkling wines.  Light golden in color with a nice mousse of smaller bubbles.  The nose is big with cream soda and a bit of hazelnuts.  Full bodied.  On the palate, it seems to have just the slightest bit of residual sugar left.  Some citrus and plenty of minerality.  A bit shorter on the almond finish.  This is nice on its own and very food friendly.  It went great with assorted hard and soft cheeses.  Drink over the next ten years.  

This is 100% Pecorino grapes from Abruzzo, Italy.  Golden in color clear and bright.  The nose has lemons, minerality/chalk and slight tropical fruits.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, some crisp green apple notes at the start with some tropical fruits on the finish.  Good acidity.  Long finish.  This seems to be near the end of its fruit, but still providing enjoyment.  Younger vintages are likely to have more fruit.  Nice on its own, this worked better with a bit of cheese.  It would be nice with seafood.  Drink now.  Excellent value.

Great showing for this Amarone at age 12.  This was served on board the Celebrity Millennium Cruise ship off the coast of Alaska.  It is 80% Corvina Veronese, and 20% Rondinella. Purple with ruby swirls, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is powerful with cherries, slight raisins and some alcohol showing.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate cherries with slight char notes.  Complex and deep.  Long finish.  This is nice on its own but would be better with a plate of pasta with truffles in a cream sauce.  Drink over the next ten years.  

 This is labelled Spumante on the back label but otherwise there is no indication of where it is from.  The wine is a blend of 90% Glera and 10% Pinot Nero.  11.5%abv.  Pale salmon pink in color with lots of larger bubbles.  The nose is nice with cherries and strawberries.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, this is dry with pleasant cherry fruit.  A bit of bitter cherries on the finish.  It drinks well on its own, and should be very food friendly as well.  It should go well with pork.  Drink now.  

The idea of a Super Tuscan wine has been around for decades, but they tend to be a higher price point. So in 1993 Carpineto launch they value version, Dogajolo. This wine offers good tannic structure and acidity. This leads to notes of blackberry, black cherry, light blueberry with soft strawberry, pomegranate and huckleberry. These fruits are muted though, not overt and jammy - the fruit is balanced with the oak, acids and tannins so the wine is ideal for food.

This is a white wine made from Catarratto Extra Lucido grapes in Sicily.  Silvery/gold in color with slight green swirls, clear and bright.  The nose has lots of salinity, some smoke, lemon rind and slight granny smith apple notes.  Full bodied.  Very well balanced.  Slightly viscous texture.  On the palate, limes, slight grapefruits, loads of minerality and slight underlying char.  Long finish.  This is very interesting as well as delicious.  This is nice on its own but better with food.  It would be classic with trout or other fish dishes.  Drink over the next five to eight years.  

This is made from the Nero Mascalese grape grown on old vines in Sicily on Mt.

This Prosecco is made from 85% Glera and 15% Chardonnay grapes.  Silvery gold in color with a nice mousse of medium sized bubbles.  The nose has a pleasant yeasty quality to it along with golden apples, and slight ginger notes.  Medium bodied.  Good acidity.  On the palate, there is a hint of sweetness as this comes across as off-dry.  Apples with a touch of honey and slight ginger.  Long finish.  This is nice on its own and worked with with fried appetizers.  Drink over the next few years.  

Aglianico can be a diverse grape, but the ones made in Vulture (the arch of the boot), tend to be excellent values.  Purple in color with a ruby rim, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with plums, black cherries, cocoa powder, and spice.  Full bodied.   Firm tannins.  Good acidity.  On the palate, this is young but drinking well.  Plenty of black cherries and plums with some underlying char.  Good finish.  Very nice on its own, this will go well with the right foods.  Think bigger meat or fowl dishes and it can handle some spice.  Drink over the next eight to twelve years.  Plenty