Vermentino

Autumn is here and for most of us, that means shifting from the lighter summer rosés, whites and BBQ Reds into something that matches with heartier food or sitting by the fire on a chilly fall evening. At every party though there is someone who says they only drink white wine. Sometimes he or she means sweet, but often dry wines work too. Just like red wines, however, there are white wines that work great for the autumn season too.

Vermentinos are not native to Italy; they were originally brought by the Spanish. At the beginning of summer, I discussed the Vermentinos of Sardinia. There is another region of Italy that excels in Vermentinos, the region of Liguria.

As the weather starts to warm up, I find myself looking to shed those heavy red wines and foods of winter. In particular, white wines that are both refreshing and interesting are on my mind. Italy has many great white wines, some of which have been discussed here before . Vermentino is made around the Mediterranean from Spain to Italy. It is even made in California. But for me, the top Vermentinos in the world come from Sardinia. Off the Western coast of Italy, in the Mediterranean, lays the island of Sardegna (what we call Sardinia). The island has an ancient history, being controlled by the Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, the Romans, Byzantines, Arabs and Catalans.