A guy walks into a bottega in Oakland and says: “Is the owner from Piedmont?”

“He’s not from Piedmont, he’s from Italy,” answers a server.

“He’s not from Piedmont? But all the dishes are piemontesi!” the guy protests.

“Aaaaahhhh! pee-EH-mohn-TEH-zeh! Yes, now I get it,” says the server. “Yes, he is from Piemonte.”

No, it’s not some schtick from Abbott and Costello.

That’s actually what happened when I stumbled upon the wonderful Belotti Ristorante e Bottega on College Ave. in Rockridge. He thought I was referring to the group’s “Piedmont Ave. Bottega.” Owner Michele Belotti is from Piedmont, Italy.

The vitello tonnato, my favorite Piedmontese dish, was excellent.

A guy walks into a wine bar in San Francisco and says: “Do you have anything white and oxidative?”

My first glass of wine at the superb Birba was a Montbourgeau, followed by a delicious Terre de Bréze Saumur Blanc from Château de Chaintres (I believe this Rosenthal property releases this wine under a sub-label, Exmuros).

I was blown away by the level of wine culture at this place. My server nailed both wines he chose for me and the apps/shared plates were a cicheti-lover’s dream.

Early evening found me at Che Fico Alimentari, the downstairs join at the recently reopened Che Fico.

My former Slow Wine colleague Deborah Parker Wong joined me for burrata and perfectly sliced prosciutto. It was great to catch up with her and hear about all the success she’s had with the first print edition published since we launched the first U.S.-focused Slow Wine guide. The project couldn’t be in better or more talented hands.

The housemade rigatoni alla gricia were a showstopper. Of the Roman pasta tetralogy — carbonara, cacio e pepe, amatriciana, and gricia — I believe the latter doesn’t always get the attention it deserves. This dish really hit on all cylinders.

And we learned that Che Fico, despite its robust take-out program, does not sell its housemade pastas as take-away. The chef feels that they don’t travel well, our server gently told us (Deborah wanted to take a plate home to her husband but her pleas went rebuffed).

The wine list was small but classic, balanced with fun. We just had to go for the Borgo del Tiglio Chardonnay, one of my top Friulians. I was always pleased to see that they had Mitja Sirk’s white. Friulanophiles will know what I’m talking about.

Man, it was great to be back in San Francisco and the East Bay.

California’s indoor mask mandate is scheduled to end today, February 16.

People here are still mostly wearing masks, in my anecdotal experience. At nearly every place I visited, even the Emeryville dive bar, Wolfhound, where I stopped in for a beer at the end of my night, I was asked to show my vaccine status. At Birba, nearly all the seating was outside, and there were ubiquitous, gentle reminders to wear your mask while visiting the counter inside.

San Francisco, mon amour…

Please consider giving to this GoFundMe to help a wine industry colleague in need. Ready the story here.

Above: grower and winemaker Fabio Sireci of Feudo Montoni in Sicily. Read this post on the estate by one of my favorite English-language wine writers, Michael Godel.

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!

As our Thursday night virtual winemaker dinner series at Roma restaurant in Houston continues, I couldn’t be more thrilled to host grower and winemaker Fabio Sireci and cookbook author Melissa Muller of Feudo Montoni this week on our Zoom call.

Not many folks in the U.S. know these extraordinary wines from inland, mountainous Sicily.

While Vittoria and Etna wines have become increasingly popular in the U.S., Fabio, now joined by Melissa, has simply continued to quietly make and release wines that Italian wine insiders have followed for nearly two decades now.

On Thursday evening, we’ll be sending guests home with the Vrucara, his top wine, a single-vineyard 100 percent Nero d’Avola that — in my view — sets the benchmark for the grape variety.

I use to feature it on my list at Sotto in Los Angeles and it was always amazing to watch people’s light up when they first tasted the wine.

The wine alone is worth the cost of admission. $119 sends you home with dinner for two and a bottle of the Vrucara. Trust me, you won’t regret it.

Send me an email at jeremy at romahouston dot com to reserve. The menu isn’t online yet but it will be posted shortly here.

Fabio and Melissa are organic farmers. And that’s a cool thing, no doubt. But it’s the biodiversity of their farm — the polyculture or diversity of crops as opposed to monoculture — that really makes these wines sing and speak of place, as we say in the biz.

The story of how they met could have been plucked from a Coppola epic. But you’ll have to join the call to hear them tell it.

I hope you can be there. Thanks for the support and thanks for loving Italian wine!

Chance Kenda, age 34, a driver for Houston-based wine importer Dionysus, “was shot in the abdomen” yesterday afternoon “following a road rage incident,” according to the City of Houston blog.

He is in stable condition and is expected to recover, said Dionysus owner Doug Skopp.

“He’s been working for Dionysus for nearly four years,” added Doug, “a dedicated professional, very good at what he does. We’re looking forward to his recovery, which could take months.”

Doug has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help with Chance’s medical costs.

Please consider giving or sharing.

The shooting occurred just a day after a 9-year-old Houston girl was shot in a road rage incident.

Above: Dal Zovo, a legacy wine shop in Verona (image via the Dal Zovo website).

In America, there are a number of channels and platforms where aspiring sommeliers and wine shop professionals can access educational resources. But our country lacks educational programs expressly created for and focused solely on wine shop professionals.

In 2017, members of the Italian association of wine shops, Vinarius, launched the national Association of Italian Wine Shop Professionals, known as AEPI (Associazione Enotecari Professionisti Italiani), an organization that fosters education and professional standards for people who own wine shops and work in wine retail.

Last week, the group announced that it has partnered with the Italian agriculture ministry and some of Italy’s leading appellation consortia to create a competition and series of awards for wine shop professionals: the Miglior Enotecario d’Italia awards, including a “best Italian wine shop professional” category.

The goal is “to bolster personal and collective growth,” said AEPI president Francesco Bonfio in a statement issued last week (disclosure: Francesco is a good friend of mine).

The competition is open to professionals, including owners and employees, who work in wine shops, wine bars, restaurants, and all public-facing services that offer retail wine sales (in Italy, where wine professionals scratch their heads at the thought of our anachronistic and repressive “three-tier system,” retail sales have always been allowed at “on premise” venues).

The competition also includes an award for “best Italian wine shop professional abroad.” The category is open to Italians working beyond the country’s borders, said Francesco in a WhatsApp message yesterday.

The following consortia are underwriters of the competition and others are expected to join: Vini Alto Adige, Colli Orientali del Friuli, Tutela Vini Colli Euganei, Vini Cirò, Tutela Vini Valpolicella, Vini del Trentino, IGT Toscana, DOC delle Venezie, Enoteca Regionale del Barolo, Vino Chianti Classico, Brunello di Montalcino, and the Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne. Semi-finalists will be invited to those appellations for hands-on educational programs created especially for those who work in retail wine sales.

Visit the Miglior Enotecario d’Italia website here. The portal is now open for applications through the end of February.

Blame it on the Nebbiolo.

Over the course of my 13+ years in Texas, Dale Robertson, the longtime Houston Chronicle wine writer and legendary Houston sports writer, became a good friend and well, um, drinking buddy.

And now I’m proud to share the news that he and I have a new podcast: Sporty Wine Guy.

As Dale recounts in the first episode, he first became interested in fine wine while covering the Tour de France.

Later, a visit to Houston by a top Italian winemaker, a Barolo producer, turned him on to the quality and breadth of Italian wine.

It was around that time, in 2007, that he started writing a regular wine column for the Houston Chronicle.

Not only is he one of the nicest people I know in wine writing. He’s also one of the most interesting storytellers in our field. Over the course of his time at the Chronicle, he’s met and tasted with some of the most famous winemakers in the world, from Napa to Barolo to Bordeaux and beyond.

He and I had been mulling over the idea of a podcast for some time when 2020 derailed our plans.

Now that we’re feeling comfortable about gathering again, it seemed the perfect time to launch this project. And I’ve had a lot of fun recording and producing the shows.

Thanks for listening: check it out here. Stay tuned for more!

Above, right: Gianni Maccari, winemaker and grower at Ridolfi in Montalcino, with his vineyard management team.

“From 1st January to 31st May [2017]” wrote my friend Laura Gray, a grower and winemaker in Montalcino, “we had just 126 ml of rainfall (for comparison in 2015 we received 292 mm… The summer was punishingly hot and dry, the only positive being that these conditions also mean zero issues or intervention for mildew. Deciduous trees lost their leaves months ahead of time; oaks were orange-tipped, cereal crops harvested early and the land was parched.”

For observers of the Italian wine trade, it’s hard to forget about the immense challenges of the 2017 vegetative cycle, especially in Tuscany where a devastating late-spring frost was followed by — to use Laura’s word — a “punishingly hot and dry” summer.

As the 2017 Brunello begins to make its way through the U.S. market, I’ve already tasted a couple of wines that have really impressed me with their finesse and freshness — not what many where expecting.

One of those wines was the 2017 Brunello di Montalcino made by Gianni Maccari at Ridolfi. Gianni, in my view, is one of the most exciting winemakers on the ground there right now. And the wines I’ve tasted, back to the 2015 vintage, have been nothing short of stunning, the 2017 included.

Gianni’s wines are imported to the U.S. by my client Ethica Wines. Today, on their blog, I published my translation of his notes on the 2017 vintage and the techniques he used to mitigate the severe weather conditions.

Check it out here.

Gianni’s notes remind me of what another Montalcino great, Piero Talenti, purportedly once said: There are no “bad” vintages. There are just vintages when we make less wine.

This just in: I just got word from my friend Raffaella Guidi Federzoni, a Montalcino insider, that the special New York edition of Benvenuto Brunello is going to take place February 23-24 (although with limited participants). I can’t find an official registration link or any info on the event. But it is supposedly happening.

Photo via the Ridolfi Facebook.

So many wines, so little time!

On Wednesday, February 9, the Simply Italian Great Wines tour comes to Houston.

I’ll be leading three seminars that day: Abruzzo, Franciacorta (with Riccardo Ricci-Curbastro, who will be joining via Zoom), and Moscato d’Asti. It’s going to be a super fun day with a ton of great wines.

Register for the event here.

And that evening, FederDOC, the Italian appellation association and one of the events sponsors, will be hosting a dinner at Roma restaurant where I oversee the wine program. They generously gave me 10 spots to share with trade members. Please hit me up if you’d like to join. I’ll be pouring at the restaurant all night.

And wait, there’s more!

Our Thursday evening virtual wine dinner series at Roma continues: tomorrow night we’re hosting — via Zoom — Martina Molino, legacy grower at Mauro Molino in La Morra in Barolo (we’re tasting her 2017 Barolo Gallinotto); next week, my bromance Paolo Cantele is joining (tasting his 2015 Amativo, which is smoking right now btw).

Please visit our website for updates.

And behind door number three…

The Italy-America Chamber of Commerce is putting the final touches on the Taste of Italy Trade Fair and Festival, March 14 in Houston.

We’ve just confirmed a top Houston pit master for our “Texas BBQ and Italian Wine” seminar and a leading Houston sommelier for one of our wine seminars. Please stay tuned for details and feel free to hit me up if you want me to get you on our mailing list.

Thanks for all the support and thanks for loving Italian wine as much as I do! I hope to see you this month and beyond.

Above: Tracie and I celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary on Saturday at the extraordinary Le Jardinier in Houston.

It had been two years since Tracie and I treated ourselves to a splurge dinner. The last time was on our 10th wedding anniversary in January 2020 — the calm before the storm.

On Saturday night, the superb food and wine team at the extraordinary Le Jardinier at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts led us through their Michelin-style dining experience with panache and elegance.

Above: amberjack crudo topped with caviar paired wonderfully with Chateau Montelena Chardonnay.

We were seated along the window that looks out over the Cullen Sculpture Garden. We arrived about an hour before sunset and the view was nothing short of spectacular (check out the works in the installation here).

But beyond the food, which we enjoyed immensely, the thing that impressed me the most about the experience was the “gentle knowledge” of the staff.

On too many fine dining occasions, you sit through overly long-winded descriptions and explanations of the food and wine you are about to consume. Sometimes it feels like the paratext — the text about the text — is more important than the text itself!

Above: the green circle chicken paired brilliantly with Ogier Condrieu — yes, it was SPLURGE dinner! And we loved every minute of it.

I loved our rapport with our server. He imparted just enough information to help us shape our decisions on what to order. But when we wanted to dive a little bit deeper, we discovered that his knowledge of the food was as profound as his wonderful table-side manner was delightful.

He never crammed his spiel down our throats. He waited for us to be ready to digest it, as it were. It was nothing short of fantastic. And we loved every minute.

Above: my friend and colleague Andres Blanco, one of Houston’s top sommeliers, blew us away with his presentation and service. Thank you, Andres! That was amazing.

Similarly, the wine service was focused, informed, and guest-friendly. Sommelier Andres Blanco, whom I know from the Houston wine scene and my work on the Houston Sommelier Competition, engaged without ever lecturing, interacted without ever losing sight of our interests.

He was at our table as soon as we sat down to take our sparkling order. And as we enjoyed the Champagne he recommended, he “walked” us through our dinner and wine preferences without ever nudging. He only ever offered as much knowledge as we wanted to drink. And just like our food server, he had the chops when we wanted to learn more.

It couldn’t have been a more perfect evening and worth every penny. What a great restaurant! I can’t recommend it enough. Thank you, Andres. You were amazing!

Above: Tracie and I met through our blogs in 2007. By 2008 I moved to Texas to be with her and we were married in 2010.

Poo poo poo… as the old folks used to say where I grew up.

As Tracie and I celebrate our 12th wedding anniversary today (our actual date), there are simply too many blessings to count.

Our girls Lila Jane and Georgia, now eight and 10, are both thriving in school and in music.

Tracie’s been enjoying her first year as a realtor. My work has recovered and is going well.

And when I look at her, I just keep falling in love — over and over again.

Happy anniversary, piccina. Who would have thunk that a couple of crazy kids, broke and working in the wine industry, would manage to build the family that we have. I love you, I love you, I love you more than ever. Happy anniversary sexy, brilliant, wonderful lady! These have been the best — the very best — years of my life and they only keep getting better.

Above: My friend Paolo Pasini who makes wine in Valtènesi e Lugana.

It felt like there was electricity in the air at this week’s Slow Wine tour stop in Austin.

After a two-year hiatus (for the reasons we all too well), the tour finally came back to Texas.

Above: Valentina Di Camillo who makes wine at I Fauri in Chieti. I never knew that she was a concert pianist! We actually talked about pianos and not wine. She’s great.

Folks from both sides of the Atlantic were eager to connect, reconnect, and most importantly, do business.

And the Italians were all geeked to go out for BBQ, Tex Mex, and some old-fashioned honkytonking.

Above: Kevin Natoli who sells wine in the U.S. for G.D. Vajra.

It was cool to chat with Carlo Veronese, the director of the Oltrepò Pavese consortium.

Not only did he have a great flight of wines with him. He also had a sheet that listed their availability in Texas. We can use more Oltrepò in the U.S.!

Above: Oltrepò is a category that only has room to grow in America.

It was also wonderful to see some of the old Austin wine crew.

Tracie and I lived in the capital for six years and she worked in the wine industry before Georgia was born. Lila Jane was born in Austin, too.

Above, from left: our friends Sadao Nelson from Local Source Beverage and Craig Collins from Vintus.

As much as we’ve all found new ways to do realtime business on video calls, there’s nothing like the real thing.

Thanks to Slow Wine for coming to Texas. With all the challenges we are facing these days, I know what a Herculean task that was. Thank you for making it happen. Safe travels to all.