Category Archives: de oenographia

A DOC/G resource and fascinating historic document on Prosecco @ItalianWineGuy @Bele_Casel

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italian wines 1960sAlfonso’s English-language posts on the evolving state of Italian DOCGs remain the top resource for the most up-to-date list of officially sanctioned and guaranteed appellations in Italy.

I highly recommend it to you (and his excellent blog in general).

This morning I came across a DOC/G resource that I’d never seen before and wanted to share it here.

It’s called QuattroCalici.it (Four Chalices). Although it’s cumbersome and a bit clunky, it is a fantastic Italian-language resource for the DOC/G system and includes dates of creation and amendments as well as links to overviews for each disciplinare (appellation regulation). I’m not sure if it’s as up-to-date as Alfonso’s list but I’ve found it to be really useful.

Here’s the link.

It appeared in a Google search this morning as I was looking for historic information on the Prosecco DOC/G.

I was working on a post for winemaker Luca Ferraro’s blog, where I have posted my transcription of an excerpt from a wonderful and fascinating document entitled “A Description of Venetian Wines Given by Professor Italio [sic] Cosmo at a Cafe Royal Italian Tasting, 1959.”

This delicious nugget has been gleaned from T.A. Layton’s Wines of Italy (1961).

Here’s the link.

Buona lettura!

Neb[b]iolo and Politics in 1950s Italy

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luigi einaudi vignetta large

Above: This caricature of the second president of the Italian republic Luigi Einaudi, farm owner and producer of Dolcetto and Nebbiolo, was published in 1950 in Italy. The monarchist publisher was convicted of libel. Click on the image for a larger version and note that Nebbiolo is spelled with one b.

The often workaday nature of my professional life is balanced by my insatiable curiosity and the unmitigated access to all kinds of information via the internets.

Yesterday, as I was roaming around the web and trolling for nuggets about the Einaudi winery in Dogliani (for one of the many restaurant sites that I curate), I came across this wonderful caricature of Italy’s second president (and winemaker), Luigi Einaudi, a figure whom I admire immensely for his opposition to historic fascism.

The Einaudi family has played impressive roles in Italian contemporary history, society, and culture, including Luigi’s son Giulio’s legacy as a publisher (the bookshelves of our home are line with works of literature and critical essays published by Einaudi, including collections of Pasolini’s writings), his son Ludovico’s legacy as a musician, and son Mario’s strident anti-fascism.

In 1950, when Luigi Einaudi became the second president of the Italian Republic, the monarchist review Candido parodied him in the caricature above.

Einaudi is the figure in the center, guarded by corazzieri (a presidential guard of Neb[b]iolo) at the Quirinale, Italy’s presidential palazzo.

The episode reveals how fine wine, and Nebbiolo in particular, was viewed as an elitist indulgence at the time. It also gives us an indication of how wine visionaries like Einaudi (he was among the first to modernize his winery and he was a pioneer in his vision of building the wine export industry in Italy) were seen as misguided.

The satirical message of the vignette is this is how our new president expects to rebuild our country… with wine.

Einaudi sued the publisher for libel and won.

An Einaudi Dolcetto was Eric and Levi’s top pick this week in their The New York Times tasting panel. I’m a big fan myself… for the wine’s traditional and classic style… and for the family’s legacy as anti-fascists and intellectual celebrities…

the best shrimp and grits I’ve ever had

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Today at Charivari in Houston, lunch with the inimitable Bear Dalton (who told me they’re his favorite shrimp and grits “in town”).

The grits weren’t overly buttered and their mouthfeel was even and substantive without seeming heavy.

Just enough spice on the shrimp and fried okra in the middle took it over the top.

Thanks again, Bear!

Alice Feiring’s hallway

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Not only does Alice Feiring have the most famous plumbing in New York (perhaps the entire United States) but she’s also one our nation’s greatest wine writers and has just launched a new monthly newsletter…

Angelo Gaja’s vintage notes 1958-2011

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Above: Each one of the Gaja wineries is also home to an art collection. I snapped the above image in the foyer of the Piedmont cellar the last time I tasted there.

The following post recently came to my attention: Angelo Gaja’s vintage notes 1958-2011, anecdotes, insights, and reflections (many in hindsight).

I can’t conceal that I found it to be a fascinating document and I wanted to share it here.

my contributions to La Cucina Italiana’s wine issue @LCI_Magazine

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There are two publications that you will find in nearly every culinarily-aware Italian home.

One is late-nineteenth-century masterwork La scienza in cucina e l’arte di mangiare bene (The Science of Cooking and the Art of Eating Well) by Pellegrino Artusi.

The other is La Cucina Italiana, the historic “National Geographic” of Italian gastronomy, founded in and continuously published since 1929, renowned today for its high editorial standards and superb photography, and widely viewed as a leading authority on Italian cuisine today.

When you visit an Italian home, there’s a high probability that you’ll find a dog-eared and well worn edition of Artusi (because the recipes are as relevant today as they were when he published the landmark tome) and a complete vertical of La Cucina Italiana, lined up the same way that we collect and display National Geographic here in the States.

You can imagine how thrilled I was when wine and spirits editor Ian Wolff contacted me earlier this year and asked me to write an “Italian 101” for this year’s “wine issue.”

And of course, I’m thrilled that my byline appears next to those of Robert Camuto (who profiles Elisabetta Foradori), Anthony Giglio (who checks in with top Italian wine professionals in the U.S.), and Ian (who delivers a great firsthand reportage of harvest in Carso).

You’ll also find glosses from some of my favorite people in the business, like the inimitable Steve Wildy who works with Vetri in Philadelphia.

The issue literally overflows with on-the-ground information and resources (including maps, links, and myriad tasting notes).

It’s a great issue and I highly recommend it to you.

Chapeau bas, Ian, for a job superbly done and an issue of the magazine that is sure to be a reference in the homes of myriad Italian wine lovers!

What wine didn’t Romney drink in Boca Raton?

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Click here to read my thoughts on what wine Romney didn’t drink in Boca Raton over at the Houston Press.

Crisis in Hermitage,12.5% Napa Cab, and 5 reds to chill (@EatingOurWords)

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From the department of “the vinous is political”…

One of my favorite wine bloggers, Jim of Jim’s Loire, let me use the awesome photo above today for my post over at the Houston Press.

His blog is my go-to when it comes to info on Loire Valley wines but today he’s trying to raise awareness of a crisis that’s emerging in the Rhône: “Hermitage threatened by pylon lunacy.”

I’ve reposted the link here in the hope that other bloggers will repost it as well. As he wrote me in an email this morning, “What an insane idea it is to build an 18 metre transmitter on Hermitage!”

In other news…

I loved this post by my favorite Napa blogger Vinogirl, who reports tasting notes for a 1979 Louis Martini Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon and a great backgrounder on Martini the winemaker. Really cool stuff, Vinogirl!

12.5% alcohol! If only they’d make wines like that again in Napa!

In other other news…

Here’s my post on Top 5 Red Wines to Serve Chilled in Summer for the Houston Press.

Revisiting my research on Vinsanto (Greek) vs. Vin Santo (Italian)

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I’m taking a break from blogging for the next couple of days and so I thought I’d revisit my research on the etymologies of the enonyms Vinsanto (Greek) and Vin Santo (Italian) and their philological relationship (for anyone who missed it the first time around or for anyone who’s only recently started following here).

Here’s a link to the thread.

Happy reading, everyone! I hope you drink something great for the holiday and have a safe and fun Fourth of July!