Broaden your views with some Great Italian Wines.. Part one: Piemonte Red Wines. Barolo.
Feb 01 '02
The Bottom Line I wish Epinions gave more topic space to great Italian wines instead of adding yet another lousy Cabernet.
Beware.
The issue here is: ”How to choose Italian wines." Well, should you rely upon the Epinions database as of today, I doubt you’d ever choose an Italian wine for your next meal. Check the list of Italian wines. It’s downright embarassing.
First of all: has anyone at the Epinions staff ever heard of Italian wine??
That’s why I’ve decided to take a quick glance at all the best Italian wines of my knowledge, probably unbeknownst by you, dear Reader, since they have have been so blatantly overlooked by this site, that deserve your standing attention. You might not know how to choose once you’ve read my little essays, but at least you know WHAT to choose the next time you’re facing an Italian restaurant wine list.
I currently live in PIEMONTE, the land of the Savoy, the region that is closest to France. Piemonte is home to some of the most celebrated wines in the entire world. I’ll start from there, and when I resume the will, I shall proceed on praising the other regions’ great wines I’ve been lucky enough to learn about in these past 15 years. (Mind you, there is no drinking age in Italy, and I’ve been sharing the enjoyment of a good bottle of wine at my table since I was about 15. Before that, my favorite drink was Kool-Aid. Boy, have I grown since.)
RED WINES. BAROLO
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Come on, you must have heard of this wine at least once in your lifetime.The Barolo wine is named after the town that first began producing this important, complex and full-bodied wine. It is obtained with 100% Nebbiolo grapes, an uncommon vineyard beyond the Piemonte area. Nebbiolo features three varieties - Michet, Lampia and Rosé. All three are used in the making of Barolo.
Alcohol content is generally 13%.
Barolo wine must be aged for at least three years and 2 months, of which two years must be spent in oak or chestnut wooden barrels. The ”Riserva” must be aged at least for 5 years before released.
However, Barolo stands very graciously the test of time. The older it is, the better it is, at it ripens slowly and it often is set aside for over 20 years prior to sampling. A long maturation will enhance the experience of opening such an extraordinary wine, as its bold magenta and orange-tinged shade of red will be more vivid, the wafts of vanilla, violet and wilted roses of its perfume rose more persisent, and its broad, thick flavor, quite dry and reminiscent of white truffles, licorice, hazelnut, chestnut and mushroom, far more intense and pronounced.
This is definitely not an everyday wine. Although some fine wine tasters believe Barolo to be a suitable complement to any fare, most Italians uncork such bottles when the food itself can stand such an important and arrogant presence, that could anesthetize the palate to the subtler flavors of delicate courses. It is usually accompanied with game, roasted or braised red meat, piquant and aged cheeses. It is a wine that absolutely needs to breath at least an hour prior to consumption. So if you have a decanter stashed away in your attic, now’s the time to bring it out... And use your stemmed glasses for such occasions!
Aside from the town of Barolo, other great producers of this fabulous albeit elaborate wine are to be found in the areas surrounding the town of Alba, in the southern portion of this region: Serralunga d’Alba, Monforte d’Alba, Diano d’Alba, Grinzane Cavour. The largest wineries that feature Barolo are the Marchesi di Barolo , the Cordero di Montezemolo , Vietti, and the TerrediBarolo. However, the VERY BEST, therefore hard to find, are those bottled by the following wineries:
Aldo Conterno, Barolo Granbussia and Barolo Bricco Brussia Vigna Cicala
Prunotto, Barolo Brussia di Monforte and Barolo Connubi
Conterno – Fantino, Barolo Vigna del Gris and Barolo Sorì Ginestra
Gaja, Barolo Sperss.
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Which have been the most outstanding years for Barolo?
Common knowledge has it that the last great year for this wine has been 1995. Of course, being 1997 a great vintage for all wines in Piemonte, if you’re willing to wait a year or two, it should be an exceptional year as well. Further behind in ageing, Barolo has been beyond expectations in 1990, 1988 and 1987.
Where to buy Barolo and how much should I expect to pay?
I ‘m sure many top-notch wine stores sell this wine regularly. I have purchased myself some remarkable bottles while in New York, at D’Agostino and at Dean & Deluca. There are some very good websites for purchasing Italian wines online if you have the patience to wait for shipping:
www.the-vino.com
is an Italian-based co-op that sells over 6.000 different wine products. They are very popular throughout Europe. Their website is entirely in English (but similar websites under the same company are in French and German) and is very easy to browse.
www.govino.com
is my favorite online wine shop. It truly sells the best wines in Italy and usually has very competitive prices. The only problem would be shipping for those of you based in the U.S., as it is quite expensive.
Www.esperya.com.
Deals with food and wine from all over Italy and is highly reputed for its selection and its punctuality in delivering. It features menus in five different languages. They also have a branch in N.Y.
Unless, of course, you plan to visit Italy soon... If that’s the case....You’ll just have to ask me to plan an itinerary for you....
***(smile)***
Expect to pay at least $20 for a decent bottle of Barolo. Conterno and Prunotto usually are in the $30-$40 range, the Conterno are about $50 and the Gaja wines are always incredibly expensive (about $90-110) but well worth it, believe me.
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Thank you for sharing your interest in Italian wines. My next entries will most probably be:
-Barbera.
-Barbaresco.
-Dolcetto.
-Grignolino.
-Gavi.
-Moscato and Brachetto.
In the meantime, check out this great site edited by the most celebrated wine taster in Italy:
www.veronelli.com
(Brush up on your Italian....)
If you’re interested, expect to read more... If not, thank you for taking your time and reading on today!
Feel free to leave me a message or e-mail me at danielabarone@tin.it, I’d be more than delighted to give you all the details on Italian wine I can come up with...
Have a wonderful weekend,
Daniela
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