I arrived in Cortina last night for the 9th edition of vinovipcortina.it, an Italian wine event that takes place every two years in this gorgeous location in the Dolomites. The event is a three day extravagance with wine tastings at mountain "rifugi" at 2500 meters above sea level with Jancis Robinson, MW as keynote speaker.... Continue Reading →
Prosecco and Asian Cuisines – A Nice Pairing
I celebrated Chinese New Year Friday night at Cafe Evergreen in New York City with Lisa Carley and a number of her friends. We each brought different bottles of wine to pair with the foods. I brought Prosecco because I recently gave a presentation in which I underlined how the wine can pair with all... Continue Reading →
Loss – Personal, Public, Professional
This has been quite the weekend of bad news I must say but I know that we all have to look to the future with optimism. Someone I know well lost someone dear to them, that horrible accident on Giglio, then the news of Giuseppe Quintarelli's death. Like almost everyone else, I was thrilled by... Continue Reading →
Italian Indigenous Varieties: Boschera Bianco From Veneto
This grape hails from the Colli Trevigiani, around Treviso. It is used as a blending grape in a number of wines and is most widely known in its passito version called "Torchiato di Fregona," a wine that I have never had the pleasure of tasting. This white grape in a passito is surely a fabulous... Continue Reading →
On The Road Again: Verona, Vulcania 2011, Soave
I'm on the road again, having left my Milan friends, clients and engagements. I'm now in the Veneto on my way to meet a producer and I attended the third edition of Vulcania Soave. The event lasts for two days with discussions about the impact that volcanic soil has on the grapes that grow in... Continue Reading →
Italian Indigenous Grapes: Bianco d’Alessano and some other “B” grapes
I have been writing a dictionary of sorts on Alta Cucina's website of Italian indigenous grape varieties. It is very slow going because there are more than 3000. In fact, no one know exactly how many there are. On the site, I try to write about the most important ones either because they are part... Continue Reading →
Is Soave Back In Style?
I was invited to a tasting of Soave the other day by Colangelo PR. Wearing my wine journalist and blogger hat, I sat down with some friendly faces and tried a variety of different expressions of the Garganega grape. The Soave region, located in the Veneto is one of 20 DOCs. There are three different... Continue Reading →