So here I am, posting our club minutes a full 2 weeks after the meeting; but rest assured it's been a very full two weeks! We spent Memorial Day Saturday celebrating a few things -- the unofficial start of summer; the start of summer hours for those who have them; an actual day of good weather; and the wines of Italy. I had a lot of fun getting ready for this meeting because there's so much to learn about Italian wines. Italy is the largest wine-producing country and it offers something for every wine-loving palate. We sampled 7 wines that Saturday, so sit back and follow along as we sample the wares of Northern Italy wine regions.
THE FAVORITES (We had a hard time choosing first, second, and third, so heck, I'm just listing 'em):
--Ca' De' Medici Emilia Lambrusco Bianco non-vintage -- This was a sweet, fizzy white with lots of fruit on the nose; in fact, I picked up applesauce. Arthur did not pick up the sweetness on the palate, which everyone else did...very interesting! The wine was quite smooth and soft, quite pleasant. A very nice start.
--Ca' De' Medici Reggiano Lambrusco - Rosso Dolce non-vintage -- The companion red Lambrusco, with hints of black cherry soda on the nose. The taste was pure 70s, like a cheap wine, but not! Psyche suggested it would make a great sangria. This was so cool and pleasant that the more we drank, the more we liked it. Kudos to Donna for bringing the red and white Lambruscos.
-- Falasco Valpolicelli Ripasso, 2004 -- This was a deep, dark, dry, way-in-back-of-the-basement red, with old fruit on the nose, very rich. It was actually buttery and smooth, and complemented our parmesan cheese and Mom's fettuccini dish quite nicely. This wine tasted much more expensive than it was.
THE RUNNER-UPS:
--Morando Babaresco 2004 -- A dry, leathery red with a pleasant nose, this wine was a little rough and seemed young, like it needed to be put away for a few years. We did leave it open for a few hours and revisited it later in the evening and it benefitted from that. It was dry, but drinkable.
--Banfi Chianti Classico 2005 -- I was pleasantly surprised by this chianti, as there was no mustiness at all, just dark berries on the nose and palate. It had nice tannins, which were heavier for some of us than others. We likened it to grape juice without the sugar.
WE WEREN'T CRAZY ABOUT:
--Frascati La Villetta Estate Bottled, 2006 -- A straw-colored white that was tart, minerally, and slightly dry. This was very light, which the club tends not to like, so it wasn't one of our favorites.
--Albeisa Barolo 2005 -- Oh, I was so let down by this wine. I was dying to try a Barolo, but we got nothing off this red, which was supposed to be big, robust, and high in tannins. I did get the tannins -- my tongue dried up immediately -- but I was the only one. I didn't even pick up a particularly grapey smell or taste, which really confused me. I may try others to compare, 'cause this made no sense at all!
I urge you all to try more Italian wines including those from my new favorite region, the Veneto. Really spectacular reds, well worth exploring. And I do look forward to trying more from the Southern regions, which we didn't get to focus on much.
I have a couple of recommendations for the group, which I mentioned at the meeting. If you can locate these, give 'em a try:
--Selbach-Oster, Kabinett Riesling, 2007, Mosel, Germany, $23
--Crios, Rose of Malbec, 2007, Mendoza, Argentina, $14
--Coppola Rosso, 2006, $9.99
And finally, if you haven't already, please, please, please check out this website. A young wine buyer from New Jersey posts podcasts of himself tasting wines five days a week, and the videos are really informative and pretty funny. The podcasts are downloadable, so you can view one a day if you like. http://tv.winelibrary.com/
I'm going to make some changes to our calendar to rearrange the summer meetings a bit, so I'll send that info in an email to you guys directly. As always, happy sipping!
