Drink Wine With Me

Archive for the ‘Italy’ Category

I recently visited Eataly in NYC, the closest you can get to all things Italian without hopping on an airplane.  A combination of Italian market and food hall, Eataly is located at 200 5th Avenue between 23rd and 24th Street.  The  creation of celebrity chefs Mario Batali, Lidia Matticchio Bastianich, and her son Joe Bastianich is a first for the US but their concept already exists in Italy as well as Japan.  There is so much to feast your eyes on and feast you will-literally!  There is 50,000 square feet to explore  for produce, meat, fish, pasta, or cheese to take home or you can dine in at one of the many seating areas all separated according to what type of Italian delites you are craving.  You can choose among Il Pesce (fish), Le Verdure (all vegetarian), La Pizza & Pasta, or Manzo which is the closest to a full on restaurant and reservations are recommended.  We chose to eat in the La Piazza section which is on a first come first serve basis.  You stand at countertop tables but have full waitress service for wines by the bottle or glass, as well as cheeses, meats, and small plates.  Our wine was a delicious bottle of Arnaldo Caprai Montefalco Rosso 2007 from Umbria.  This medium bodied red is a blend of 70% sangiovese, 15% sagrantino, and 15% merlot grapes.  Dark ruby in color with full plum and spice flavors which then give way to light vanilla notes.  Soft tannins are present and this wine has a pleasant, long finish.  To accompany our Montefalco Rosso we ordered 3 cheeses: grana padano (my favorite of the three), castelmagno, and bra tenero, prosciutto san daniele with figs, and mixed olives.  For after dinner treats there is a coffee bar and gelato counter.  The hazelnut gelato was the best I have ever had!  On your way out pop in next door to the separate wine shop where they have a decent selection of Italian wines at a wide variety of price points.  I may not be able to get to Italy as soon as I would like but now it has been brought to me!  I was so impressed by Eataly and I cannot wait to go back and try it all!!

I recently received a bottle of Cantina Zaccagnini Montepulciano d’ Abruzzo Riserva 2005.  My colleague Shannon was unable to join us at a wine tasting event so she decided to bring the wine tasting  to me at our last meeting.  This dry Italian red is a favorite of both her and her husband.  My drinking of Italian wines has been on the decline in the last few years as I am experimenting more with other regions, but Montepulciano d’ Abruzzo used to be my go to red when I was dining in Italian restaurants.   This wine is medium bodied and quite dry. It is made by the Zaccagnini winery in Abruzzo, Italy of sangiovese grapes.  The wine is fermented in stainless steel tanks and then oak aged for 6 months.   It was very dark red in color and almost purple toward the center of the glass.  The wine  had a nice aroma that was very earthy.  Most people when describing the aroma of wines will come up with all kinds of fruits and spice notes but this is one of the first wines that I got  grapes as the primary fruit on the nose.  On the palate I tasted dark cherries and currants, some spice, and undertones of vanilla with a slight woodsy finish.  There were also quite a bit of tannins present.  Cantina Zaccagnini Montepulciano d’ Abruzzo is a great red to pair with the obvious-pasta and pizza.  It is 13% alcohol and retails for under $18.

This summer I had the opportunity to attend two wine and cheese pairing classes at City Winery in NYC.  Located at 155 Varick Street, City Winery is the first fully functioning winery in Manhattan and was founded by Michael Dorf.  His vision was to create a  space in the city where you can go and enjoy amazing wines paired with great food and live music.  Along with the many concerts they have scheduled they also offer special event dinners with winemakers, a private dining room, as well as a barrel making program for individuals or corporations.   One of the coolest things I love about City Winery is that when you order one of their wines by the glass it comes straight from a barrel in the cellar through the tap and into your glass, skipping the bottle altogether.  You simply can’t get any fresher than that!

The wine classes that I attended were in partnership with Murray’s Cheese, Manhattan’s oldest and most renowned cheese shop.  My favorite was in honor of the World Cup and the teams competing were France vs Italy.  It featured 2 Italian wines and 3 cheeses against 2 French wines and 3  cheeses.  While I loved all the cheeses we tried no matter what country they were from, in the end France won out for me.  No  surprise there.  I absolutely loved the French red Chateau d’Or et de Geulules Costieres-de-Nimes Les Cimels 2007.  This wine was dark ruby in color, had aromas of cherry and blackberry, and had tons of spice and dark fruit flavor.  I do have to give Italy an honorable mention for the white wine we sampled- Fruilano Bastianich 2007.  This wine was pale gold in color with a sweet honey aroma, and was drier with lemon and pear flavors.  It paired beautifully with the Petit Billy goat cheese from France.  Other cheeses that were standouts were the Pyranees Brebis, a sheeps milk cheese from France and the Taleggio from Italy.  This Taleggio from Murray’s wasn’t as ripe and soft as the ones I have bought but the flavor was still excellent especially when paired with the French red wine.

I loved this concept of having 2 wine regions face off and having everyone pick their favorite.  It would make for a great do it yourself wine tasting party and the options would be endless:  Australia vs New Zealand,  Washington vs California, Chile vs Spain, I could go on and on.  Thanks to City Winery for offering these educational and fun classes.  I can’t wait to see what the next classes are on the schedule!

This past Fourth of July weekend I wanted to be a little more festive with my beverage choices but what do you pack for a boating trip in a heat wave?  My answer just happened to be chilling in my fridge at home.  A few weeks prior I found my favorite sparkling red wine Banfi Rosa Regale in a friend’s local wine shop.  I first tried this wine in Chelsea Market and it made a big impression on me then and it continues to do so now.  Rosa Regale 2009 is a Brachetto d’Acqui produced in Strevi, Italy from the Brachetto grape.  The color of this wine in the glass is a brilliant dark pink hue and it tastes just as good as it looks.  There are raspberry and strawberry flavors accompanied by those lovely sparkling bubbles on your tongue.  There is just enough acid to make the perfect blend of sweetness without being overly dry.  I love my red wine but in temperatures over 90 degrees I need something more refreshing,  making a sparkling red a wiser choice.  At 7% alcohol it is on the lighter side and as a plus it can be paired with almost anything from spicy food, poultry, and cheese, as well as desserts-especially those of the chocolate variety.  We enjoyed a few glasses on it’s own before dinner and then paired it with grilled chicken and asparagus.  I recommend this wine not only on hot summer nights but also when entertaining as a lower priced alternative to champagne.  Rosa Regale is reasonably priced at under $20 per bottle.