Tonight I will be on #winestudio from 9:00 - 10:00 pm discussing Val D'Oca, an incredible cooperative winery from the Veneto that I have the privilege of working with to promote their Prosecco brands. Val D'Oca makes wines in five Prosecco denominations from Prosecco DOC to Cartizze and everything in-between. The winery has 600 member-growers... Continue Reading →
Italian Indigenous Varieties: Cornarea Nero from Piedmont
I was speaking about this grape variety today so I thought I would repost this article from some years ago. This week's indigenous grape variety entry will be a short one because I could find very little information on this variety on the internet or in other sources. The variety, Cornarea Nero, hails from Piedmont... Continue Reading →
Wine Wednesday: Ciliegiolo from Fattoria Fibbiano
Today's Wine Wednesday is about a Ciliegiolo from a winery called Fattoria Fibbiano. The winery is located in a small village called Terricciola in Tuscany. It is located in the hills between Pisa and Volterra. The winery is part of a farm of 90 hectares that also has an agriturismo or bed and breakfast. The... Continue Reading →
Sunday Sips: Paterna Winery-Tuscany
A confluence of events such as National Chianti Day on Friday and an #ItalianFWT group focus on sustainability brought to mind my experiences in Arezzo years ago. Here’s a book I worked on, called Buon Giorno Arezzo,where I wrote a chapter about wines from Arezzo Wines from Arezzo are not that well known in the United States nor... Continue Reading →
Tasca d’Amerita, A Longstanding Focus on Sustainability
This month, #ItalianFWT explores sustainability at Italian wineries. Katarina of Grapevine Adventures is our host for the Italian Food Wine Travel bloggers with Her invitation post is here. Read her piece on Climate also on the Montemaggio blog here for a more wide-ranging discussion about these issues. Thinking about sustainability in Italy, one of the wineries... Continue Reading →
Thirsty Thursday: Cantina della Volta’s Lambrusco di Sorbara
Lambrusco is on my mind and what better way to talk about it then mentioning Christian Belllei's view of Lambrusco di Sorbara. Created in 2010 thanks to a little help from his friends, Bellei restored his family's original winery site in Bomporto near Modena. The family winery was originally founded in 1920. His father Giuseppe... Continue Reading →
Wine Wednesday: Centesimino from La Sabbiona
Today's wine of the week is a Centesimino IGT from a winery called La Sabbiona located in Emilia Romagna. This winery is located near a jewel of a city called Faenza which is very famous for its pottery called Faience. Faenza has ceramic museums, a beautiful cathedral and wonderful piazzas with loggia. Here's Faenza which... Continue Reading →
Wine Wednesday: Valcalepio Bianco from Cantina Bergamasca
This week's wine of the week is the Valcalepio Bianco from Cantina Bergamasca from Bergamo. I visited the winery a few years ago during the summer as they were part of the wines I served during a presentation on Lombardy for the Society of Wine Educators. Bergamo is a wonderful jewel of a city, with... Continue Reading →
Wine Wednesday: Abruzzo’s Tenuta Ulisse Cococciola IGP
Many years ago, 11 to be precise, I found this winery as I made my way around the Abruzzo pavillon at Vinitaly, Tenuta Ulisse. I was reminded of the winery today as I spoke about the grape Cococciola, an indigenous variety from Abruzzo. Cococciola bianco isn’t exactly the kind of grape variety that you see... Continue Reading →
#DrinkItalianDay On Ferragosto, August 15
Tomorrow is Ferragosto, a massive holiday in Italy. It is a holiday which commemorates the Assumption of the Virgin Mary for those who believe and for others it simply signifies the middle of August, a day when everything is closed and everyone is on vacation. During quarantine in mid-August, I am reminded me of those days... Continue Reading →