Italian wine...I love it, but it can be complicated

Italian wine.  The place itself conjures up images that range from dusty rural folk pouring out cups of wine from large vessels which have been in the family for centuries.  I think of the Godfather when Michael Corleone is in Italy hunting with his Sicilian family. 

I also think of the sophistication that Italians have with food and wine.  The simplicity of their food is what makes their cuisine so popular world wide.  A few seasonal ingredients creating a dish with care...it reminds us of what is important.  Food and wine bring people together, whether it is a large gathering of family and friends, or a husband and wife on a Sunday evening.

Their wine, and I'm only referring to their red wine, has up to two dozen varietals of grapes, of which I've only tasted a few.  I truly must spend more time and energy on exploring Italian wine. So, an opportunity came up this past weekend.

Saturnday, my wife felt a need for pasta, so she (being the thoughtful and amazing cook that she is) make bucatini all' amatraciana, essentially a spicy tomato-pancetta sauced pasta.  She first had it at 'Babbo' in NYC and we both tried it in Las Vegas's 'Otto'.  Not that I'm a sales rep for Mario Batali, but I have been to a few of his restaurants and have never left displeased.  In fact, each time it is a revelation! 

My wife's version of bucatini all'amatriciana.
Served with an arugula and parmesan salad &
a 2009 Monte Zovo Sa'Solin Ripasso Valpolicella.

Nevertheless, we needed a wine, so we sought out a reasonably priced Valpolicella.  Well we found a very nice one at a reasonable price (on sale for $15.95, two dollars less than usual).  2009 Monte Zovo Sa' Solin Ripasso Volpolicella.  Here is my review of the wine:

http://www.nataliemaclean.com/wine-reviews/monte-zovo-sa-solin-ripasso-valpolicella-2009/101984

I should take a moment to discuss what is Ripasso?  What is Valpolicella?  So here is my brief summary of what I've found.

Valpolicella refers to a viticultural (grape growing) zone in the province of Verona, Italy.  It is in the northern part of Italy, near the top of the "boot" if you will allow the analogy.  Valpolicella is traditionally made with a blend of three types of grapes: Corvina Veronese, Rondinella and Molinara. 

Ripasso refers to the style in which this particular wine is made.  Leftover grape skins and seeds from the production of Amarone (a sweeter style of wine) are "repassed", or essentially added to the Valpolicella blend and adds a complexity and depth to the flavour.

I've had Valpolicella before and found them to be very good, a softter cherry fruit flavour.  Good with, shockingly, Italian food.  The Ripasso is dryer and a little more acidic, so in my opinion, holds up to stronger flavoured foods. 

There is so much more I need to learn about Italian wine, its regions, its graps, its styles.  I will, however, have a lot of fun exploring.  Isn't that what living is about? Exploring and enjoying the experience?  I think so.

Until the next glass, cheers!

Trius...you'll like us. 2013 Riesling

A couple of nights ago my wife and I had a simple dinner.  Potato and leek soup with "fancy" grilled cheese sandwiches (we use old cheddar and sliced pear). 

My better half picked up a bottle of white to go with it.  Here is my review of the 2013 Trius Riesling.

http://www.nataliemaclean.com/wine-reviews/trius-niagara-peninsula-riesling-2013/216665

For whatever reason, my screenshot is not working today...so the link will get you there just fine.

Though I don't say it in the review, I don't loooooovvvvveeee this wine.  It's just "okay" in my books.  I don't want to abuse those from Trius as I'm certain that they work very hard to make their wine as best as they can.  I don't think that I can hold a winery responsible for my like or dislike of a wine.  If I love their wine, I will give them credit...if I do not, I will blame Mother Nature, I'm sure she can take it.

White wine has always been a challenge for me to enjoy.  Like most, I began with a Chardonnay.  The soft butter, oak and vanilla flavours are excellent for non-wine drinkers to start with.  There are un-oaked varieties you can get as well, but that's up to individual tastes.  There's the acidic and dry Riesling and the sweet Gewurztraminer.  Sauvignon Blanc is one that I truly can enjoy as it is not too dry, too sweet, to oaky, or too acidic.  It's not that I don't appreciate the other whites (and at the right time, place or food being served, I will enjoy it) it is simply that I prefer a Sauvignon Blanc.  Even blends are fine, one of my favourites is the Vielle Ferme white from the Rhone Valley.  We practically purchase it by the case for our summer salads nicoise.

One of my summer supper staples, salade nicoise!

 

"Pinot Grigio, but what about IT?", some of you may ask.  I'm sorry to say that I think of it as the 7Up of wine.  I've tried it on many many occasions and frankly I have little to say about it.  It is a fine introductory wine for teenage girls, not that I advocate for that, you should adhere to the local laws for your city, province, country.  All kidding aside, I simply think of it as a boring wine. I have yet to come accross one that I truly like.  This has nothing to do with snobbery, I know many people (men and women alike) who truly love the subtleties of Pinot Grigio.  I suspect that my palatte is not yet refine enough to enjoy them.  If you do have any suggestions, I am more than happy to try it again.

There are other white wines I am keen to try more of, notably some French ones I've only tried a few times: Chenin Blanc, Muscadet & Viognier. Future posts will hopefull see me explore these.

Perhaps living in Canada leads me to desire more robust wine (7 months of winter will do that to a person), hence my love of reds.  Nevertheless, I am looking forward to May and June to explore whites with early spring vegetables on my deck.

Until next time, cheers! 

My first wine review

I posted my first review today!  There it is below on the Natalie Maclean website.  It was tweeted out to my...22 followers.  Okay, I'm just starting, give me a break.

A few days ago, my wife and I had a bottle of  Bodega del Abad Dom Bueno Crianza, 2006 as it was on sale and rated 89 or 90 at was about 15$...and I wanted to try something I could not pronounce. (Though I am going to take an uneducated guess that it means something like from Abad, the good wine store...I will admit, I am probably wrong) from the Bierzo region in Spain's northwest.  Here is my review.

Jason rated this wine as 90/100 with the following review: Lots of great flavours going on in this dry red wine. It seems to have a cigar ash scent with violet undertones. What could be perceived as bitterness ends up being a very slight, but pleasant, spicy flavour. The spiciness is just barely overwhelmed by the warm leather flavours making for a wonderful overall drinking experience. A nice accompaniment to a peppery steak or blue-cheese burger on a warm summer evening.

We had steak this past weekend and I wanted a change from our usually suspects of California Cabernet Sauvignon.  Don't get me wrong, it is still one of my favourite regions and grape.  You will likely see a few mentioned here as we start up barbecue season here in Canada.

As I mentioned in the review, it is a dry wine...not really for the faint of heart. I've always found that Spanish, and to a greater extent South American wines have this....spiciness...I can't quite put my finger on it.  It has a lot of flavour and competes well, almost too well, with grilled meat.  I don' t enjoy a wine that either fades away in your mouth as you eat your meal, but I also don't want it to be the main attraction either.

I always seem to think of wine as a complement, a member of the team who aids with getting your mouth watering, helping with digestions, and finally allowing for a finale that leaves you satisfied.

Till the next bottle, cheers!

In the beginning...I knew nothing about wine

"Humility is a trait which is often under-appreciated and overlooked."  I have no idea where I first heard or read that, but I want to keep it in mind as I write about my experiences with wine.  This is the first of what I hope are many more essays about this topic.  I will do my utmost to not be a snob, but I will not shirk from giving my honest opinion on food or wine.  I understand, however, that not everyone has the same tastes and we are all at different stages of our food enjoyment journey.

So...I will begin at the beginning.

I probably first drank wine at church.



Here is the Anglican church in which I was confirmed in 1986.

Being raised Anglican, many of my friends and were very curious about what this "wine" tasted like. Our parents and grandparents were allowed to sip this every Sunday as they consumed the "body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen".  It was also consumed occasionally at birthdays or holiday celebrations.  Finally, at the age of thirteen, I was finally granted this opportunity.  I was, of course, disappointed. Perhaps it was the stale styrofoam-like bread, perhaps it was my mother looking over my shoulder...or perhaps even my underdeveloped taste-buds preferred purple Kool-Aid or root beer. The taste was sharp, acidic and not remotely like the grape juice I'd envisioned.

Fast forward a decade later.  After many years of drinking cheap beer by the case or guzzling rye or rum with the equivalent of four litres of sugary soda pop, I was finally re-introduced to wine.

I was fresh out of university and working as a recruitment officer for my alma mater. (It was an east-coast university.  The opportunity for low pay and free travel was intoxicating, no pun intended...at least not at this point.) One of the more experienced recruiters (let's call him Bob...I don't think that was his name, but he struck me as a back-slapping Bob-like character in my memory), suggested we save our daily food allowances and head to the downtown Ottawa market for a nice dinner together. There were at least 8-10 of us.


Ottawa's Byward Market.  Lots to do! Great place for kids and adults alike.

I do not remember the food, though I think it was a Middle-Eastern themed restaurant, but I DO remember the wine.  It was a Chilean Merlot.  Well, that was it for me.  The next few recruitment trips saw me leaving behind cheap, foamy, watery cans of beer for red wine.  I began to seek it out, try a new country a new grape every week. 

As I left the university recruitment office for teaching positions, my profession took me to New England and eventually to Ontario (with larger and more interesting wine choices). I was happy to explore.

Like many, I started with different kinds of red wines: Merlot, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon...then explored whites with Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay and Riesling.  Over time, I started to be more cognizant of food and wine pairings, and even how the same grapes tasted different depending upon the country in which it was grown....this fascinated me.

I started to think a lot more about wine.

I went on read a few books here and there.  Viewed some of the popular films (both Hollywood and documentary) about wine.  My wife (an avid wine lover too) and I now enjoy trying new bottles all the time. Whether you agree with a publically owned liquor corporation or not, the LCBO offers more choice than I have time to drink.

Things began to go from private to public (not pubic in the true sense...just sharing with friends) due to Facebook.

I will back up.  My wife and I enjoy cooking a lot as well, and so I began to post photos of our meals a few years ago as a bit of a lark....well that began in 2012, and a few hundred photos later, I still do.

I even toss in the wine pairing to suggest as well.




This lead to following local wineries and wine blogs...and recently I was asked to participate and give my perspectives on wine (as a wine 'lover', not a wine expert)....so I thought to myself, how about my own wine blog?

So here it is.

I'm starting on a bit of an adventure here.  I hope you enjoy coming along for it.  If not, that's okay.  I still get a chance to simply write.  That is a reward unto itself.

Until then....cheers.