Unique Grapes of Italy's Alpine Valle d'Aosta region

I previously wrote about my travels to the stunning Valle d'Aosta when I wrote about the agriturismo, La Viggni de Crest, that I stayed last October.  They also produce their own grapes that they sell off to a local cooperative. The cooperative, Cave des Onze Communes, gathers the grapes they purchase from 11 different municipalities to produce a variety of wines. They produce about 33,500 bottles from 19 different DOC wines under the only DOC of the Aosta Valley, Valle d'Aosta DOC. 

Cave des Onze Communes in the Valle Centrale
Cave des Onze Communes is located in Aymavilles, just outside the city center of Aosta in the central valley, Valle Centrale, where most of the winemaking of the region takes place. This region is not only the smallest in size, but also produces the least amount of wine throughout all of Italy, but it sure offers plenty of unique varietals. 

For Christmas I typically will open some of my better bottles, but with hopes of 2015 bringing about my first child and knowing that if that is the case, my wines will have to sit and not be drunk during this time frame.  I figured I would let my older bottles that I brought back from Italy rest since I know they will continue to age well. (Yes lots of thought went into that.  We are talking wine here so it's important!) So I decided to open a bottle I brought back from my visit to the Aosta Valley, which was the 2011 Cave des Onze Communes L'Ancien Cepage. It's a red blend with grapes typical of this region including petit rouge, fumin and mayolet. 

The unique grapes of the Valle d'Aosta
Since this isn't a region that is on the top of everyone's list for visiting, unless you are the outdoors type or a big skier, I wanted to talk about some of the unknown grapes of the Aosta Valley. The natural beauty of the steep sloped vineyards and alps hanging over the valley is a memorable experience. What I found interesting were the large variety of grapes that were unfamiliar to me to such as the ones that are blended in this particular wine. 

About 75% of the wine produced from the Valle d'Aosta wine region are red wines with the red grape, Petit Rouge leading the way. This grape can be found in the wines of the subzones of the central valley including Enfer d'Arvier, Nus, Torrette and Chambave. Vino Italiano, by Joe Bastianich and David Lynch, compare the Fumin grape to a Cotes-du-Rhone Syrah.  Mayolet is probably the least common of these three native grapes and is usually used as a blending grape. Over the years of winemaking in the Aosta Valley, this grape has slowly been replaced with other grapes due to the difficulty it takes to grow it.

I hope one day you have the opportunity to try some of these native grapes. Having the opportunity to taste wines that are indigenous of a region is a true way to experience the terroir of that area.

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Sources: North American Sommelier Association, Vino Italiano by Joe Bastianich and David Lynch.

Buon Natale a Tutti ~ Merry Christmas to all

My favorite place on earth ~ Firenze, Italy

Merry Christmas to all and Happy Holidays!  

Buon Natale a tutti!

I wanted to thank everyone whom has supported and joined me on my journey so far.  It's almost been two years since I started this blog to share with you my knowledge of Italian wine, occasional Italian food and wine pairings and my travels throughout Italy.  

I'm looking forward to 2015 where in January I'll be traveling to Verona for the release of the 2011 Amarone compliments of the Consorzio della Valpolicella (Thank you!).  I'll have plenty to share with you from winery visits, meeting winemakers, wine dinners and the big event of the 2011 Amarone release. I also have my North American Sommelier Association (NASA) Italian Wine Specialist Certification exam to pass at the beginning of the year.  There are lots more exciting wines and grapes to explore. 

I have also started over the last few months an Italian bloggers group exploring the food, wine and travel of Italy as we cover each region by region.  It's the first Saturday of every month and we have a great group of bloggers that all have different focuses.  I hope you have been enjoying those as well.

I'm very thankful for where my journey has taken me thus far and I hope you remain to stay engaged with me and please continue to share my site with your networks.  Thank you to all!

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Verdicchio of the Marche region with Cantine Fontezoppa

We're finally covering the wines of the Marche wine region located in central Italy. The Marche region borders the Adriatic Sea with Tuscany and Umbria to the west, Abruzzo to the south and Emilia-Romagna to the north. The climate is Mediterranean with hot summers and cool winters. The Marche region is mainly hilly and mountaineous with rivers and gulleys flow through the plains. Because of this climate and the majority of vineyards located on hills with a great sunlight exposure they are ideal conditions for growing great wines.

Cantine Fontezoppa is named after an ancient spring that flowed where the winery stands today. The winery's vineyards lie in both the Serrapatrona and Civitanova areas in the Marche wine region.

Verdicchio grape cluster

Verdicchio
The particular wine today is made of the verdicchio grape, which is primarily found in the Marche region. The name verdicchio comes from the word verde, meaning green, which relates to the color of these grapes that have a tinge of green in them. 

Verdicchio di Matelica DOC vs. DOCG
The wine today is a DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) wine designation, but within the Marche wine region there is a DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata Garantita) from Verdicchio di Matelica. The biggest difference between these two designations is that the DOCG is a Riserva. This DOCG came about in 2009. For the DOC wines they require at least 85% of the verdicchio grape and are allowed to also blend trebbiano and malvasia grapes.

The wine I'm featuring today is the 2013 Fontezoppa Verdicchio di Matelica DOC made from 100% verdicchio. Aged in stainless steel it's straw yellow in color this wine has aromas of white peaches, almonds with strong minerality of wet stone. On the palate again is the presence of lots of minerality and peach. It's a smooth medium bodied with with persistent acidity. It retails at about $12.

Get out there and try a different white wine and experience the Marche wine region for yourself.

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Sources: Cantine Fontezoppa

The wines flowing from Mt. Etna in Sicily with Cantine Valenti

An exciting wine region in Italy is the largest island, Sicily. There is something special about some of the wines produced from this part of Italy, especially those located in and around Mt. Etna. Today I'm sharing with you a 2011 Etna red wine from Cantine Valenti called Norma.

I recently tasted this wine at one of my local wine shops, Pairings Wine and Food, where Nick Mucci from Mucci Imports shared this and many other unique wines I'll be sharing with you in upcoming articles, mostly from the Emilia Romagna region.

About Cantine Valenti
Cantine Valenti began operations in 2004 by Giovanni Valenti and his son Alessandro. It's incredible that amongst the remnants of the lava flows are vineyards, amongst other elements including flora and fruit. The Valenti vineyards are produced on this volcanic soil at about 2300 feet/700 meters high towards the top of the volcano. Most of the Valenti vines here consist of 40-50 year old vines with a recent acquisition by the Valenti family of 100 year vines where they plan to produce some riserva wines. For those of you that are conscious of wineries that are producing wines organically, well Cantine Valenti is one of them. In addition, the wines, produced in low yields, are harvested by hand due to the steep slopes and difficulty in harvesting.

2011 Cantina Valenti Norma
“Norma” comes from the Etna DOC which is located in the hills around Catania where the Valenti comes from as well as the area around Mt. Etna itself. Due to the unique soils full of sand, many of the vines here are ungrafted and survived the phylloxera disease. In this area the grape nerello comes in two forms that are both used in Norma, nerello cappuccio and nerello mascalese.

The primary grape in the 2011 Norma from Cantine Valenti is nerello mascalese with about 2% nerello cappuccio. This wine was aged about 7 months in oak with a few more months in the bottle. It's a dry, medium bodied wine with floral aromas and ripe red fruits on the palate with minerality and firm tannins.

It's not every day that you get to sample wines produced off of volcanic soil never mind an active volcano that is the tallest in Europe. So let that vino flow like lava!

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Sources: Mucci Imports

Moscato d'Asti with Fresh Fruit Almond Cake and Zabaglione

Welcome to our 7^th Wine Pairing Weekend event. We have covered so many wonderful dishes over the year including last month's Creative Thanksgiving where I featured a Piemontese dish from Piedmont Italy: Brachetto d'Acqui with a walnut tart. 

I love the holidays and we're coming into Christmas, which is a perfect time of year to enjoy time with loved ones and of course delicious food and wine. This month we are featuring holiday sparkling wines and my sweet tooth took over again for this dish. I just so happened to feature another wine from the Piedmont region this month, Moscato d'Asti, with an almond cake topped with fresh fruit and zabaglione sauce, an Italian sauce for desserts, but is also made as a custard or sometimes a drink. Make sure you do some situps after this dish!

I'm not a huge lover of sparkling wines and those that I do enjoy are the sparkling wines that have a lighter, frothier effervesence. If it has a sweeter to it as well like Moscato d'Asti then it's a win-win for myself. I chose the 2013 Giorgio Carnevale Moscato d'Asti DOCG for this pairing.

I searched online for what I felt would be a delicious pairing to this wine and I chose a recipe from Food & Wine. I put a slight twist on the way that they prepared the dish where they brushed the cake with a whiskey syrup and apricot glaze, but instead I chose to top it with their recipe for zabaglione and fresh fruits.

Preparing the Almond Cake

• Use a round cake pan lined with a buttered parchment paper, although as long as you butter the pan so that it won't stick that should be sufficient
• In a food processor combine ¾ cup of sugar, 4 ounces of almond paste, 1 stick of unsalted butter, 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract and blend.
• Add 3 large eggs, a dash of salt and ¼ cup of milk to the processor.
• Further add a cup of flour and ½ teaspoon of baking powder.
• Once the batter is blended and smooth pour into the lined cake pan
• Bake the cake for about 35-40 minutes at 350 degrees
• Once cake is finished peel from paper and remove from pan.

Preparing the Zabaglione

• Whisk 8 egg whites in a small stainless bowl with adding ¼ cup of sugar and ¾ cup of the Moscato that you may be pairing with this recipe
• Place the bowl over a pan filled with about an inch of simmering water.
• Once removing from heat add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and place stainless bowl in a larger bowl full of ice water to chill the bowl full of zabaglione ingredients whisking until frothy.

Final Preparations

• Place fresh berries on top of almond cake and pour the zabaglione sauce over the top
• Cut a slice, pour a glass of Moscato d'Asti and smile!

2013 Giorgio Carnevale Moscato d'Asti DOCG 
On the nose this wine was very florally and aromatic with peaches taking over. On the palate it was light and delicate with notes of peaches, mango and small, frothy bubbles. The Moscato d'Asti was a nice pairing with the almond cake as the sweetness and fruit elements in each complemented one another with the bubbles adding some liveliness to the mouth.

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Sparkling Wine and Appetizer Pairings 
Here are the ideas available from our group for you. Try something new this year! 
Bacon and Greens Dip with Bubbly by Cooking Chat 
 Piedmont Sparkling Nebbiolo & Pungent Anchovy Green Sauce by foodwineclick 
Segura Viudas Aria Cava with Oysters and Spanish Tapas by Confessions of a Culinary Diva 
Butterflied Spicy Prawns and Treveri Sparkling Wine by Wild 4 Washington Wine 
A Seasonal Nibbles Duet + Pear Valley Vineyard's Frizzante Muscat by Culinary Adventures with Camilla 
Appetizers served with a Sparkling Wine by A Day in the Life on the Farm 
Cranberry Brie Biscuit Bites and Sparkling Muscat by Curious Cuisiniere  
Domaine Meriwether Sparkling Wine and Make Ahead Spanakopita by Tasting Pour  
Wine and Dine: Anna de Cordoniu Brut NV and Herbed Parmesan Crisps by Grape Experiences  
Italian Sparkling Wine: Bubbly & Bacon #winePW by Girls Gotta Drink 
The Holidays Sparkle on #WinePW by Rockin Red Blog 
 Butternut and Bubbly by It's Okay to Eat the Cupcake 
 Smoked Salmon and Potato Chip Appetizer with Louis Roederer Champagne by ENOFYLZ 

Don't forget to our Twitter chat today, December 13th at 10 a.m. Central Time. We'll be talking about our tips and tricks for the best holiday wine pairings. We'd love to have you join us! Be sure to mark your calendars for January's Wine Pairing Weekend, hosted by Christy at Confessions of a Culinary Diva. 

We'll be sharing "New Wine Resolutions - Wine or Region you want to explore in 2015. Join in the #WinePW 8 conversation on Saturday January 10!

Differences between Barolo and Barbaresco of Piedmont

Welcome to the 2^nd #ItalianFWT (Italian Food, Wine, Travel) bloggers group where we feature our own thoughts and experiences on all the regions throughout Italy as we cover one region at a time. This month we feature the region of Piedmont located in northeastern Italy. 

Piedmont borders France to the west, the Aosta Valley or Valle d'Aosta to the north, Liguria to the south and Lombardy to the east. The primary red grape of this region, nebbiolo, is one of my favorites and some of the wines produced from this grape in Piedmont are some of the most highly regarded wines in all of Italy. They hold their own in comparison to some of the most famous and well-regarded wines of the world so it makes sense that I share this wonderful grape with you for our first time covering Piedmont in this group.

Their are many wineries throughout Piedmont and some other regions like the Valtellina area of Lombardy that produce wines made from nebbiolo, but two of the most notable wines of Piedmont and Italy are the famous Barolo and Barbaresco wines. I've visited a number of wineries from both areas and wrote a previous article on my top 5 producers in Piedmont. Today I want to discuss the difference between these two amazing wines, Barolo and Barbaresco.

Similarities

• Both Barolo and Barbaresco are located in northern Italy in the region of Piedmont. Barolo is the name of an actual town/comune located near to Alba in the Langhe, or Langa, wine zone. Barbaresco is also named after the town/comune in the Langhe wine zone.
• Both wines are produced 100% with nebbiolo grapes. Part of what creates the difference in these wines are the defined territories in which each producer is situated, hence why “crus” where established to decipher the differences in these wines.
• Both demonstrate profiles on the nose and palate of truffles, tar, roses and licorice
• Generally both wines are powerful, structured wines with lengthy finishes

Differences

• Barolo is produced in 11 communes including Barolo, Castiglio Falletto, La Morra, Monforte, Serralunga d'Alba, Novello, Diano d'Alba, Grinzane Cavour, Cherasco and Roddi. Barbaresco is produced mostly in Barbaresco, Nieve Treiso and parts of Alba territories.
• Barolo is known as the “king wine of Italy” and Barbaresco as the “queen”.
• The soils of Barolo are more limestone based where Barbaresco has sandier soils
• The tannins in Barbaresco are typically softer than those over Barolo. Barbaresco is typically a more approachable and elegant wine where Barolo is meatier, tannic with rich depth.
• There is a 1 year difference in the aging requirements of Barolo and Barbaresco. Barolo must be aged at least 3 years where Barbaresco must be aged for 2 years. For a riserva style there is a requirement of 5 years for Barolo before release and 4 years for Barbaresco.

As you can see there are many similarities and differences between these two and the fun part is experimenting with different styles of Barolo and Barbaresco based on where they are produced. It's a perfect way to experience the differences in terroirs and the results of such. What are some of your favorites of each and have you compared and contrasted the differences in terroirs yourselves?

Thanks for joining again our 2nd Italian Food, Wine & Travel event on Piedmont, but it doesn't stop here.  Follow along with some other great blogs featuring all elements of life in Piedmont and what it has to offer.  

Here are our featured articles this month:
Cooking Chat – Porcini Mushroom Risotto with a Nebbiolo
Food Wine Click – A Walk from Neive to Barbaresco and Back
Flavourful Tuscany – Moscato and their appellations
Girls Gotta Drink - The Ultimate Guide to Piedmont Food and Wine Pairing 
Curious Appetite - A quick cheese guide to Piedmont

Make sure to join our bloggers conversations on Twitter throughout the day at #ItalianFWT .  We also post on #ItalianFWT throughout the month so feel free to join us all the time and share your Italian experiences!  

Make sure to check back on January 3rd for our 3rd Italian Food, Wine & Travel event.  Next month's feature will be Emilia Romagna!   

Sources

Consorzio di Tutela Barolo, Barbaresco Alba Langhe e Dogliani

North American Sommelier Association

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2nd Italian food, wine and travel bloggers event on Piedmont

Welcome back to our now 2^nd Italian Food, Wine & Travel bloggers group! This month we feature one of my favorite regions in Italy, Piedmont or Piemonte! Last month we featured the Veneto region and had lots of amazing blogs to share. 
 
This group consists of bloggers that have a deep appreciation and passion for Italy whether it comes from their travels to Italy or their appreciation of the fine wines and amazing cuisine. Piedmont, translating to “foot of the mountain” is indeed at the foot of some of the tallest mountains in all of Europe. It's a hop skip and a jump from the French and Italian Riviera as well the Valle d'Aosta with it's stunning Alpine landscapes. This region is also highly regarded for it's rich cuisine that pair perfectly with some of the best known wines in all of Italy.

We have a group of bloggers ready to share with you their insights into the region of Piedmont.  This Saturday December 6th will be our second event.  You can join us all day Saturday live on twitter at #ItalianFWT and make sure to check back at Vino Travels Saturday for a list of wonderful blogs to enjoy throughout your weekend.

Here are our featured articles this month on Piedmont:
Vino Travels – The difference between Barolo and Barbaresco
Cooking Chat – Porcini Mushroom Risotto with a Nebbiolo
Food Wine Click – A Walk from Neive to Barbaresco and Back
Flavourful Tuscany – Moscato and their appellations
Girls Gotta Drink - The Ultimate Guide to Piedmont Food and Wine Pairing 

There is time to join before Saturday.  Please reach out to me at vinotravels at hotmail dot com.  Otherwise we would love to have you join us for next month's event and region to be announced Saturday!

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City Wine Tours of Boston's Italian North End

Whether you are a local Bostonian and/or New Englander or visiting from another state or country there is an opportunity to visit some of the local Boston neighborhoods including local restaurants and sampling worldwide wines. City Wine Tours is a company that provides guided tours that explore multiple neighborhoods in Boston including the South End, the North End, Back Bay and the latest edition to their tour list providing a sparkling wine tour of Harvard Square in Cambridge. City Wine Tours provides an opportunity to tour each neighborhood, visit a few local restaurants and wine shops paired with great wine and a sampling of food to pair with the wines at each stop. The tours offered are a fun way of exploring new wines, restaurants and learning about wine in a warm atmosphere.

Of course being an Italian wine blogger and lover of all things Italian I chose to attend the North End Tour, which was led by wine ambassador, Joanne Frette. Joanne is originally from Scotland and has been living in Boston for the past couple years. She is a WSET Advanced Certificate holder, which is one of the world's top wine certifications from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust. 

Joanne Frette

We began our North End tour at the Aragosta restaurant located at the Fairmont Battery Wharf Hotel tucked away off of Atlantic Ave where we were greeted by Joanne along with a group of about 13 wine and food lovers for the day. We started our tour at an intimate part of the bar where we were introduced to one another and the wines of the day. Joanne educated folks on how to read Italian wine labels and the process of viewing the color, aromas and tastes of each wine. We sampled wines from the Veneto region including Prima Perla Prosecco DOC and the 2013 Cantina Santa Maria la Palma Vermentino di Sardegna. It was served alongside a nice platter of fresh sliced meats, cheeses, fruit and figs.

We then walked up to the main street of the North End, Hanover Street, where we paused briefly in front of the Old North Church for a brief historical background. We made our way over to Gennaro's at 5 North Square where we sat in their dining room upstairs and sampled wines specifically labeled for Gennaro's including the Gennaro 1st edition 2013 Pinot Grigio and 2012 Valpolicella Classico from the Veneto region of Italy. Both of these dishes were paired with a variety of cheeses and meats.

Our last stop was right around the corner at the Wine Bottega on Hanover Street where we headed downstairs to their wine cellar and gathered around the table. Katie from the Wine Bottega introduced the 2013 Cellario Favorita and Dolcetto from the Piedmont wine region. The Wine Bottega sells wines that are organic without additional additives. I've attended wine tastings there in the past and if you can catch an opportunity to meet a winemaker or a representative from the wineries themselves in Italy I recommend it whether it's there or at any establishment. It's the best way to get a true understanding regarding the winery and the land in which the wine comes from. 

Each tour offered with City Wine Tours lasts about 2 hours with the opportunity to sample six wines in total between the restaurant and wine shop visits costing $66 a person. The walking is very minimal as you leisurely stroll between establishments. The tours are led by knowledgeable wine ambassadors that are all certified or have direct experience within the wine industry.

It's a nice way to get to meet folks from around the country or world while getting a taste of the local flavors of Boston's neighborhoods and the world of wine.

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Bollini Pinot Grigio from Trentino

Earlier this week I discussed an indigenous red grape, lagrein, from the northern part of the region, Alto Adige. Today I'm sharing with you a wine from the southern part of the region known as Trentino, centered around the city of Trento. This region is well known for producing sparkling wines under the Trento DOC designation in the classic method, but today I'm sharing a pinot grigio, Bollini, produced by the Empson brand of wines.

Trentino wine region

Trentino wine region
The Trentino wine region is very similar to it's northern sibling, Alto Adige, but the Trentino's landscape is slightly lower in elevation and not so quite dominated by the mountains as the Alto Adige. Both have very similar climates and the extreme temperatures in climate changes from day to night is what helps develop the strong aromatics and crispness of the wines here. Although, shockingly enough, with this region being so far north and enveloped in a mountainous area, Trento gets very warm and can break over 100 degrees fahrenheit in the height of the summer.

About Bollini in Trentino
The Bollini wines were created by the Empson family in 1979. The particular wines produced under the Bollini label are their own wines with grapes sourced from their wineries in both the Friuli and Trentino regions of northeastern Italy. The Bollini wines since 2010 had well-known Italian enologist, Franco Bernabei, join forces with Neil Empson in winemaking.

The overall largest DOC from Trentino is the Trentino DOC that is further separated into notable subzones. The pinot grigio I'm sharing today is from this Trentino DOC zone. The 2013 Bollini Pinot Grigio Trentino DOC was straw yellow in color. On the nose the wine was fresh with elements of white flowers, white peaches and a little citrus. On the palate it was light in body and was dry, crisp with good acidity a little saltiness. The bottle average retails for about $13.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving in the US and all others enjoyed the wonderful food and wine suggestions shared out there.

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Lagrein from Cantina Tramin in Alto Adige

We have discussed the Alto Adige before highlighting particular wines of the region and today we are going to cover the Cantina Tramin winery. For those of you not familiar with the Alto Adige it's part of the region in Northeastern Italy known as the Trentino – Alto Adige region. The southern part of the region is Trentino and the northern part is the Alto Adige, also known as the Sudtirol or South Tyrol. Doesn't sound very Italian you say? That's because this region has strong Germanic influences and is seen in many of the wines coming out of this region from grapes like Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Muller Thurgau, etc. The Alto Adige also used to part of Austria.

Tramin Winery

I have yet to visit this region, but am strongly considering a trip up to Bolzano when I travel over the beginning of February. The Alto Adige is centered around the city of Bolzano and this region has higher vineyards with colder climates compared to Trentino in the southern part of the region, therefore, the wines coming out of this region are typically more aromatic with higher acidity.

Wine Cellar at Tramin 

The Cantina Tramin is a biodynamic and organic cooperative located in the Alto Adige wine region. They are located in the town of Termeno and is one of the oldest cooperatives of the region established in 1889. This region where they are located is sheltered by mountains with influences from the lakes with extreme variations in temperatures. 

The Tramin cooperative, consisting of about 300 growers, harvest from 37 acres (15 hectacres) of vineyards that are treated organically and in the future hope to expand that to all of their vineyards, which consist of about 570 acres (230 hectacres). The grapes are harvested from subzones including Termeno, Ora, Egna and Montagna. This particular wine that I'm sharing with today, 2012 Lagrein from Cantina Tramin, comes from the Alto Adige DOC and its subzones of Ora, Egna and Tramin.

Winemaker Willi Sturz

Lagrein grapes by Nathan

Even though this region is known for producing some fantastic white wines, according to NASA in my recent certification program, 2/3 of the region is dedicated to red grapes. Today I'm sharing one of those grapes, Lagrein. 

The 2012 Cantina Tramin Lagrein DOC was a wine ruby in color with a purple tinge around the rim. On the nose were intense aromas of plum, violet and blueberries with some spice. It was dry, but had nice structure producing a full bodied wine with good tannin and nice plum on the palate. It was aged partially for 7 months in cement tanks and oak barrels. This bottle retails for about $18.

This winery only exports about 25% of their wines so when you have an opportunity to try some in your home area and get a taste of the Alto Adige from where you live it's an opportunity not to be missed. They have also won a number of Tre Bicchieri awards.

*Most pictures are compliments of Cantina Tramin

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