See below for what happened.........

A Tour of Italy to Taste its Great Wines

“In Vino Veritas”

"In wine there is truth."   Pliny the Elder, Historia Naturalis, 75 A. D.

We have gathered wines from the old and famous regions of Italy for your enjoyment.

They have been carefully selected to represent many of the finer, more expensive wines and to show the great variety of wines that are made there.

We will begin with the much liked Prosecco Sparkling Wine, and then our Tasting will tour Italy from South to North, touching 5 districts, tasting some wines that are seldom found, and finishing with a great Amarone.

Aperitif

Prosecco Rustico, (Prosecco), by Nino Franco, Veneto

Tasting

2003 Falanghina, (Falanghina), by Terradora di Paolo, Campania

2004 Vermentino Costamolino, (Vermentino), by Argiolas, Sardenia

2000 Chianti Classico Riserva, (Sangiovese), by Querceto, Tuscany

2001 Carlin, (Nebbiolo, Freisa), by Ghisolfi, Piedmont

2001 Barolo, (Nebbiolo), by Terre da Vino, Piedmont

2000 Amarone, (Corvina, Rondinella, Molinara), by Allegrini, Veneto

Italian Cheeses and Bread will accompany the wines. Coffee and Dessert will follow the tasting. Please bring your own glasses & pens. No smoking or strong fragrances. Attendees recognize they will consume alcohol and assume responsibility of having done so.

Members  $23.00            Guests   $27.00

This tasting was organized and conducted by Bob Bilenchi and Rosemary Lauder with Tom and Nancy Bundorf. Thirty members attended.

With decor in green, white and red, Italian wine sayings on the wall, and maps at the tables, Bob led the tasting tour through Italy, starting with a Prosecco sparkling wine from the Veneto region as the aperitif.

Then, from Campania, there was a Falanghina, a very old grape that goes back centuries BC. A white wine, seldom blended, it is has been described as fresh, floral, soft and elegant. It was very well liked.

From the island of Sardinia, the Vermentino was a crisp white wine with ripe fruit flavors and a fine dry finish.

The first red wine, a Chianti Classico Reserva made of Sangiovese with a bit of Canaiolo, was from Tuscany.  It was a fine wine, and a great value. Bob explained the convoluted history of the Chianti Classico wine and the blurred standards. But this wine met the original standards as well as those of today and was an excellent example of high quality.

The tour then went further north to the Piedmont where the “Carlin”, an unusual blend of 60% Nebbiolo and 40% Freisa (a rare and old Piedmont varietal), was tasted. This wine, by Ghisolfi, is made in small quantities, fewer than 350 cases.  It was a very superior wine with excellent aroma, full flavors, and a long aftertaste.  We were most fortunate that it was found

Also from the Piedmont, the 100% Nebbiolo Terre da Vino was a very good Barolo, and equally well liked by the group.  This large cooperative makes good wines of excellent value. Both Piedmont wines had good soft tannins and should cellar well. Bob explained how the Barolos have changed from earlier high tannic wines to overly oaked wines to the current and superior middle ground.

Finally, over to Veneto again, for a truly excellent Amarone by an outstanding maker.  Bob explained the process which combines 3 different grapes - Corvina along with Rondinella and Molinara - of which only the most sunstruck tops of the bunches are picked. These are then air dried for three months on straw mats, losing 30% of their volume before pressing.  The pressed grapes are then fermented very slowly in a cool process, aged in oak for 1 ½ or more years, and then put to rest in the bottle for a year or more. The result is an aromatic wine with heavy, intense flavor and a very long aftertaste.  One member said, “You can almost chew it.”

No votes were taken, or necessary - all the wines were unique and were much appreciated. Excepting the Prosecco and the Falanghina at 88, all the wines held ratings by the Wine Spectator or Wine Advocate at 90 or higher.

A variety of breads and three cheeses, Parmigiana Regiano, Asiago and Fontinella, were served with the wines.

The tasting closed with coffee, cookies and biscotti.