Category Archives: de vino

Robert Parker looks beyond Tuscany & Italy stands at a precipice

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robert parker vintage charts

“For the first time, Piedmont and Tuscany won’t be the only regions to appear in the Italy column of the Wine Advocate vintage chart,” writes Italian enojournalist Luciano Ferraro this week on the Corriere della Sera wine blog (one of the highest-profile media platforms in Italian wine writing today).

“Beginning this year, Trentino-Alto Adige whites, Friuli wines, Veneto’s Amarone, Campania’s Taurasi, and Sicily’s Etna have been inserted,” reports Luciano.

News of this new vision for Robert Parker, Jr. comes in the form of an interview with the new Wine Advocate Italian editor, Monica Larner.

“The moment to tell the story of Italy’s other wonders has arrived,” says Monica. “Robert Parker agreed.”

You don’t need to be a subscriber to view the chart (here).

Italian wine and its relation with mainstream media still has a long way to go. But — there’s no doubt — this is a literally wonderful step in the right direction.

Chapeau bas, Monica!

Sadly, this good news comes along with some terribly unfortunate developments in Italy’s political scene.

umberto d

As loudly as I applaud former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi’s conviction on tax evasion by Italy’s highest court, I fear that the power imbalance caused by his tenuous political situation bodes badly for the country.

The “epic fail” of his People of Freedom party has considerably weakened the already fragile governing coalition.

On his Facebook, my good friend and client Paolo Cantele posted this quote from an editorial by Luca Ricolfi that appeared this week in the national daily La Stampa:

“If we are at this point today, it’s not because the judicial system has not allowed politicians to govern. It’s because of an entire class of politicians’ inability to govern… They have allowed judicial events to occupy an abnormally large space in our history.”

This dismal view of the current situation is echoed in a New York Times editorial that appeared two days ago, “It’s not just Silvio Berlusconi”:

“With such obvious weaknesses on both sides of the spectrum, the real winner of February’s elections was ‘none of the above.’ The patched-together government that finally emerged in April is an ungainly coalition with few achievements to its credit so far.”

I spent nearly a decade of my adult life living, studying, and working in Italy. And I continue to travel regularly there. So many of my closest friends live and work there. I have devoted my intellectual life to the study of Italian language, culture, and history, and more recently, to Italian enogastronomy.

My friends and their country are in my heart and in my prayers.

repubblica italiana

Negroamaro, my recent research on the grape name’s origin

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negroamaro grape bunch harvest

Here’s a link to a short dissertation I wrote for the CanteleUSA site today.

You might be surprised by what I found in my research and its philological implications.

Thanks for reading! :)

More @arpepe1860 from @ItalianWineGuy @WinechefPDX & @Jbastianich opens restaurant Italy

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valtellina

Above: “@DoBianchi [the wines of Ar.Pe.Pe. are] beauties!” wrote Michael Garofala yesterday on the Twitter. “We’re very lucky in Pdx [Portland, Oregon] to have them. Valtellina’s also not such a bad place to visit.”

Yesterday’s post on Ar.pe.pe. generated a lot of positive response.

Michael Garofola aka @WineChefPDX, who works in Portland, posted this beautiful photo of the Valtellina (above).

And Alfonso aka @ItalianWineGuy reminded me of this excellent post on his vist to the Valtellina from 2007, including tasting notes for Ar.pe.pe. (highly recommended).

bastianich mozza aragone

Above: The news of Joe’s new restaurant in Italy nudged me to grab this bottle of his Mozza 2008 Aragone from my samples bin. A blend of Sangiovese with smaller amounts of Syrah, Alicante, and Carignan, the wine was fresh and the ripe red fruit was bright, balanced by wholesome earthiness. According to WineSearcher.com, it sells for under $35 in the U.S. market. Another gem of a wine from the great enologist Maurizio Castelli, it paired nicely with some chicken tacos.

Things are insanely busy these days at the home office, but I did manage to catch up on my Feedly reading yesterday.

I’m surprised that virtually no one in the U.S. has written about Joe Bastianich’s soon-to-be-launched new restaurant in Friuli, “Orsone” (the big bear), the name of farmhouse and vineyard where he sources fruit for one of his vineyard-designated wines in the Colli Orientali del Friuli.

I read about it on one of my favorite Italian-language food blogs, Dissapore (where you can also see a photo of the venue’s façade).

One of the things that fascinates me about Joe’s career is his reverse immigration. There are many Italian-American restaurateurs in the U.S. who own vineyards in Italy (as he does) but I don’t know of any who are megagalactic (to borrow an Italianism) television celebrities and restaurant-owners on the other side of the Atlantic.

It will be interesting to see what he does with it… And like any high-profile “restaurant man” (the title of his memoir, published while in his early 40s), I’m sure that Orsone will be the subject of intense scrutiny…

So much more to tell but I’ve got hungry mouths to feed. Thanks for reading. Stay tuned…

1999 Sassella Rocce Rosse by Ar.Pe.Pe. FANTASTICO!

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1999 sassella rocce rosse ar pe pe

On Saturday night, Tracie P and I had the great fortune to taste some older vintages of Ar.Pe.Pe., including this 1999 Sassella Rocce Rosse, thanks to a generous distributor rep who dropped off the wines for us after a trade tasting.

Ar.Pe.Pe. has generated a lot of buzz in the U.S. over the last year and a half after making a landing and a big splash in New York, where it’s been a favorite among buyers and bloggers.

But Ar.Pe.Pe. has been around for a long time. It’s one of the oldest continuously operating wineries in the Valtellina.

When the “real wine” pioneer Mario Soldati wrote about the estate in the early 1970s, he notes that Pellizzati family had been bottling there since 1860 and that Arturo Pellizzati (son of the winemaker at the time, Guido) represented the fourth generation of family’s winemaking legacy.

The current winery is named after Arturo and an amalgam of his children’s surnames: Ar[turo] Pe[llizzati] Pe[rego].

Arturo also appears in Sheldon Wasserman’s landmark Italy’s Noble Red Wines (1985), receiving good, if not outstanding, marks from the author (who openly states his preference for Langa and Novarese expressions of Nebbiolo).

Today, the wines are still made in large chestnut casks, the same way Arturo made them.

grumello buon consiglio

Where the great wines of Langa tend toward earthiness, the best Valtellina — in my experience — are defined by nuanced spice.

It was such a thrill to get to taste older vintages of some of Ar.Pe.Pe.’s top wines.

And while we also loved the 2001 Grumello Buon Consiglio, it was the 1999 Sassella Rocce Rosse that contained the “unbearable lightness” that I look for in the greatest wines of the world.

Delicate in its aroma and nuanced in its flavor, the fourteen-year-old wine had that ineffable balance of power and elegance, with notes of faded cinnamon that played against wild berry.

Its fruit was bright and its acidity very much alive: this wine, I imagine, has many more wonderful years ahead of it in its evolution.

What a wine!

The wines aren’t here in Texas yet but they’re on the way (and will likely be here by the fall).

It’s another example of how trade forces and a new national awareness among Texas wine professionals are opening up our market.

I can’t go into details of how the wines will get here (because it’s not my place to reveal such information) but I can say that young Italian winemakers continue to search for alternatives to the monolithic channels of the past.

The Texas wine culture is only going to be better for it and I can’t wait to get my hands on some more of this superb “mountain Nebbiolo.”

An awesome Gavi and other grooviness @VinoVinoWine #ATX

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best gavi cortese biodynamic

So much groovy wine is finding its way to Austin, Texas these days. And it seems that nearly every day, I get turned on to a label I’ve never come across before, like this stunning Gavi by Giordano Lombardo, which blew me away with its focus, its mineral and citrus flavors, and its gentle 12% alcohol. I really really love this wine.

It was poured for me last night by my Austin client Vino Vino, our go-to wine bar in town.

bisson glera

Last night, we also tasted the Bisson crown-cap reclassified Prosecco that the winery labels as Glera (thanks again to owner and friend Jeff, for celebrating the birth of our daughter with me!).

With so much banana-candy Prosecco in Texas these days, it’s wonderful to see a commercial Prosecco like this one that actually tastes like Prosecco. High acidity, the classic note of green bitterness, and citrus and white fruit aromas and flavors. (I imagine that Bisson reclassified because it wanted to use the crown cap — a much more intelligent closure in my view — which is not allowed by the Prosecco DOC).

Bisson’s been in the Texas market for some time now and we’re big fans of its Ligurian Ciliegiolo. But I had never had the chance to taste this one.

st magdalener schiava

A local sales rep tasted us on another wine that I’ve followed for some time but — I believe — is new to the Texas market, the St. Magdalener Classico Huck am Bach, bottled by the Cantina Bolzano cooperative.

The wine showed beautifully and I love how the Lagrein gives the more gentle Schiava some oom-pah-pah. Great wine and a great time to love Italian wine in Texas.

Buon weekend, yall!

Greek grape porn: ripe Assyrtiko @Boutari #Santorini

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Just had to share this image that Christina Boutari sent me yesterday to post over at the Boutari blog.

Look at the rich color of the ripe Assyrtiko, a grape variety that has captivated U.S. wine professionals over the last few years.

Harvest is expected to begin early this year in Greece, writes Christina. “It was a warm year overall,” she told me in an email.

Boutari will begin picking Saturday, she said.

Santorini, where Assyrtiko is cultivated, is such an amazing place, entirely unique in the panorama of Mediterranean viticulture.

Here’s a thread of posts on Santorini and my visit there and here are my notes on the origins of the toponym Santorini and enonym Vinsanto.

assyrtiko grape bunch

due angioletti and a favorite under-$20 Bordeaux Blanc

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lila jane one week one day

That’s Lila Jane, one week and one day old, one of our little angels.

She and Tracie P are both doing well and other than some soreness, nursing has been relatively easy. We expect her to regain her birthweight by Monday, when she will be two weeks old, without any problem.

She’s starting to open her eyes and have a look around.

Isn’t she beautiful? :)

rock star

Georgia P had a fun visit with Aunt B and Niece B yesterday.

She loves to dig through my percussion bin in the office/studio. Her current favorite instrument is the wood blocks but the tambourine remains a trusty standby (even if just to stand on).

chateau ducasse

Last night, we paired a bottle of Château Ducasse 2012 Bordeaux Blanc with chicken tacos last night.

The fruit in the 2012 was a bit brighter than last year (perhaps because of a greater percentage of Sauvignon Blanc in the blend with Sémillon?).

But, man, this wine is always a winner at our house: fresh, clean, focused, with low alcohol and balanced acidity, under-$20 in our market. Great wine and the label looks cool to boot.

All in all, I gotta say, life could be worse…

Serious buttload of wine @Texsom preview @EatingOurWords @HoustonPress

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courtney perry

Image by Courtney Perry.

This morning, the Houston Press posted my preview of Texsom, the annual Texas Sommelier Conference, held in Dallas, now in its ninth year.

Reviewing my notes and composing the post, I remembered the first time I learned about Texsom: five years ago, before I’d ever been to Texas, Alfonso suggested that I attend so that I could connect with him and Tracie P.

It was held in Austin that year (the only year, I believe). And I didn’t attend, although I did come that month to Texas to take Tracie P on a dinner and dancing honkytonking date (we went to Polvo’s for dinner and the Continental Club to see Redd Voelkaert and Hey Bale… and I never looked back).

It’s been remarkable to follow Texsom’s evolution.

In 2008, when I first came here, it was still a homegrown, locally focused event that gave young wine professionals the chance to attend seminars and tastings with top sommeliers.

Today, it’s a major, nationally-recognized event that attracts the best and the brightest from across the U.S.

It’s the “little sommelier conference that could” and I wrote about it today for the Houston Press.

Nero d’Avola icon, best NYC pizza in ATX, & shoutout from @ItalianWineGuy 4 @SottoLA

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best nero d'avola

Time is ever so precious these days as we juggle life at home with a newborn and a toddler.

Wine isn’t much of a focus at home right now and when it is, it’s poured from a bottle that’s been sitting in our literally overflowing sample bin.

On Saturday night, we opened this superb bottle of Feudo Montoni 2008 Nero d’Avola Vrucara (vineyard designation) that my friend and LA-based importer Ramin had sent me (this wine has been a great lot for us at Sotto in Los Angeles where I curate the wine program with my colleague Rory).

The wine was rich and unctuous in its mouthfeel and its acidity danced atop its woodsy, earthy flavors and ripe red fruit aromas.

Montoni’s wines are among the greatest expressions of Nero d’Avola, a grape variety much misunderstood in this country in my view.

With so much inexpensive, easy-drinking Nero d’Avola coming from Vittoria and from the northern coast of the island (a wonderful trend that I applaud), we forget that historically, inland-raised mountain Nero d’Avola, like this iconic wine from Cammarata, represents the variety’s aristocratic heritage.

We loved it and drank it over the course of two nights. At the second tasting, the fruit had really begun to emerge, more forcefully but without dominating the savory flavors of the wine, and the acidity was still popping.

Btw, you can read about Vrucara’s pedigree and Montoni’s vinification process in a Google books preview of Bill Nesto MW and Frances Di Savino’s excellent monograph The World of Sicilian Wine (UC Press 2013).

And I wrote about the ubiquitous however erroneous Bacci attribution here.

What did we pair it with?

best new york pizza austin

To my knowledge, there’s only one restaurant in greater Austin that makes real New York-style pizza.

It’s called Reale’s Café and it’s about thirty minutes north of where we live.

On Saturday, I took Georgia P up that way to visit a splash pad and so I stopped on our way back to pick up a pie.

The pairing was as decadent as it was delicious. And while Georgia P is a little young for NYC-style pizza (she had wholewheat pasta elbows tossed with chopped spinach, butter, and Parmigiano Reggiano), mommy and daddy treated themselves to an affordable indulgence on Saturday night with a great bottle of wine.

In other news…

sotto

Our wine list at Sotto got a shout-out yesterday from the Italian Wine Guy aka On the Wine Trail in Italy aka Alfonso Cevola in a post entitled “Italian Restaurants in America with Great Italian Wine Lists.”

We didn’t make his “top three” list but what a thrill be mentioned together with wine professionals who have inspired and informed me and my career! Friends Shelley Lindgren, Bobby Stuckey, and Roberto Paris, are each pioneers in their own right and taste-makers in our world of Italian wine.

Tracie P and I don’t see or hear much from Alfonso these days. Between winning international awards, traveling the “wine trail,” and his myriad speaking engagements, he doesn’t seem to make it to Austin as much as he used to.

That makes us sad but we know it can’t be easy to balance all the great stuff he’s got going on. We’re really happy for him and his much deserved success.

And I was thrilled that Sotto made his “short list” of Italian wine list in the U.S.

Thanks, Alfonso! And many wishes for your continued success!

One poopy, one peepee, and please pass the Bollinger

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lila jane

“That’s some really good Champagne,” said my father-in-law Rev. B aka pawpaw as we sat down for a dinner of crock-pot pork loin, potatoes, and salad prepared for us by Mrs. B aka nanna last night, our first at home from the hospital with Lila Jane (above).

“Man, that’s a stinky toot!” were the next words out of his mouth.

seton hospital maternity

The hospital discharged us just after noon yesterday and as you can imagine, we were eager to get home.

Seton Healthcare Family, where Georgia P was born in 2011, took great care of us and the nurses were fantastic.

But there’s nothing like the prodding and poking of newborn care to make you long for the comforts of home.

texas bbq comfort food

Georgia P is doing great as she adjusts to her new family life.

But when watching mommy nurse Lila P became a little too much to bear, pawpaw and I took her out to Stiles Switch BBQ (around the corner from our house) for her favorite meal of chopped beef and macaroni and cheese (Texas style).

The folks behind the counter treated her to a little Blue Bell ice cream for dessert. And by the time we took her home for her bath, she was smiling and laughing again.

bollinger champagne

After we bathed and put Georgia P to bed, we paired our homecoming dinner (thanks again, nanna!) with a bottle of Bollinger Special Cuvée that I’d been saving especially for the occasion of celebrating the Parzen family expansion.

Although we generally reserve Bollinger for special occasions, we nearly always serve it with a meal.

It showed beautifully with the salty/sweet soy sauce/honey jus of Mrs. B’s slow-cooked pork loin.

Brooklyn Guy, who often reminds us of Champagne’s wonderful food-friendliness, would surely approve.

pawpaw and lila

Caring for a newborn is always a challenge. And having a busy toddler in the house adds to the mayhem.

But we’ve been so lucky to have Mrs. B and Rev. B (above) here to help us. Beyond Tracie P and me, they’re the only family members that Georgia P feels at home with. They stayed at home with Georgia P while we were at the hospital.

We’re truly blessed to have such loving grandparents in our lives.

Thanks again to everyone for all the thoughts and wishes. Childbirth is such an intense and emotional experience. To know that you’re all rooting for us means so much and it really makes a difference! :)

Today we’re also thinking of and sending lots of Texas love to friends Gabriella and Ryan Opaz who just had their baby a few hours ago in Porto, Portugal.

With the memories of our childbirth fresh in our minds, we are with you, Gabriella and Ryan! Mazel tov!