In Vinitaly Veritas
"Ci sono vini buoni, molto buoni o buonissimi, ma che col tempo puoi dimenticare, semplicemente perché ce ne sono tanti. Poi ci sono i vini indimenticabili, decisamente pochi, che popolano una ristretta lista personale che ciascuno di noi ha messo là perché colpito, forse, da una sfumatura organolettica inaspettata. E poi ci sono i vini emozionanti, difficilissimi da incontrare ma facilissimi da riconoscere. Sono quei vini che vanno al di là dell’armonia o complessità organolettica perché toccano quella profonda sfera emotiva personale, spesso difficile da far emergere. I vini emozionanti sono quei vini che disarmano ogni approccio tecnico, sparigliano tutte le convinzioni e i preconcetti, fanno quasi fermare il caos circostante in un’atmosfera sospesa!" 🍷 (Original text by Dr. Sante Laviola, Italian Research Scientist, Sommelier, and Official Wine Taster for the Slow Wine Guide)
Dr. Sante Laviola with Paolo Calì
"There are good wines, very good or great, but with time you can forget them simply because there are many. Then there are unforgettable wines, decidedly only a few, that populate a restricted personal list which we have put them on because they struck us; maybe because of an unexpected organoleptic nuance. Then there are emotional wines, very difficult to find, but easy to recognize. They are the wines which go beyond harmony and sensory complexity because they touch that profound personal emotional sphere which is often reluctant to reveal itself. The emotional wines are those wines that disarm every technical approach, they mix all convictions and preconceptions to a point that they almost stop the chaos that surrounds us in a suspended atmosphere!" 🍷 (English Translation)
Me with Elio Savoca, Anna Angelopoulou, Carlo Schizzertotto
Last month I had the chance to attend the 55th edition of Vinitaly. It is always an honor and a pleasure for me to visit as a delegate with the Italian Trade Agency in NYC. Prior to the pandemic, I regularly attended the highly anticipated international wine and spirits expo, but this was my first time being back since.
Many of you are familiar with the saying "In vino veritas," or, "In wine there is truth." But I always joke that "In Vinitaly veritas" because attending the four days of major events, technical sessions, prestigious tastings, theme areas, and adjacent shows is such an eye-opening experience for me. This year was no exception, and in honor of National Wine Day, I wanted to share a little bit of what I learned from this year's unforgettable experience.
Wine is often described as bottled poetry, and to understand it properly, it never hurts to have poetic translators by your side. At this year's show I got to spend a day with my dear friend Dr. Sante Laviola, who casually and effortlessly describes wine in the most beautiful way I have ever heard. The opening quote at the top of this post is an excerpt from a text message that he sent me after an afternoon wine tasting. His knowledge and love not only of wine, but of Italian heritage and soil seeps through every word he writes, and it is for this reason that I am thrilled to have collaborated with him on Italian Recipes for Dummies where he carefully paired each of my recipes with natural Italian wines. Stay tuned for more blog posts, writing, and events with Dr. Laviola's pairings and prose.
Another annual highlight of VinItaly is the relationships that are fostered. Forming new business alliances, making new friends, and connecting with so many industry leaders in such a short time is virtually impossible anywhere else. It also provides the perfect opportunity to reconnect with longtime friends and colleagues, taste their latest harvests and vintages, learn about new products, market trends, and more. The minute I knew I would be able to attend this year's expo, I immediately contacted my longtime friend Paolo Librandi, of Librandi wines, to taste his Megonio, the wine that the Associazione Italiana Sommelier named "Wine of the Year" for 2022.
Dr. Sante Laviola with Paolo Librandi
It makes me so proud that the Magliocco grape, indigenous to my ancestral homeland of Calabria holds the "Wine of the Year" title and that the Librandi family was able to, for the first time, put Calabria back on the wine map that the ancient Greeks first created when they named us the Oenotri, or the "wine cultivators."
Next, it was time to visit my friends at Bocale wines, with whom I had collaborated with at an event in Washington, DC in 2019. Hailing from Umbria, a region whose slogan at Vinitaly was "sips of happiness," their fantastic wines were just featured in CNN's Searching for Italy program with Stanley Tucci during the Umbria episode.
For those of you who have spent any time at all in Umbria, you will immediately recognize both its distinct soil and its Trebbiano Spoletino and Sagrantino. Pliny the Elder, in “Historia Naturalis”, describes the “Itriola”, a typical grape of the region, which according to several scholars is likely to be the Sagrantino grape. Other historical sources assume that the vines were imported from Minor Asia by the followers of Saint Francis of Assisi. From 1540 a communal decree officially established the registration of grape harvest in Montefalco.
Many of you are familiar with my affinity for Abruzzo. Through years of leading tours to the region I have been able to taste its' finest wines and note the differences in taste and technique. The term, "Montepulciano d'Abruzzo," for example, means different things depending on who makes it and how it is made. In Abruzzo, I had the pleasure of enjoying an exceptional version that I could happily drink every day for the rest of my life. After this year's expo I was able to spend time at the Martelli family's vineyard, where the owner, Domenico Martelli shared some of his secrets to success with me.
I was already aware of the Martelli family's commitment to producing honest and genuine extra-virgin olive oil, because they make my Amy Riolo Selections blend for me. This, however, was the first time I was able to taste their wine with them. Domenico explained that the strong differences between the climate during the days and nights in their vineyards, combined with good ventilation guarantee the vines an ideal microclimate for growing and producing grapes of extraordinary quality.
Winemaker Domenico Martelli
The Martelli family's Montepulciano d"Abruzzo DOC and Pecorino terre di Chieti Igt are award-winning examples of the maximum expression that these two indigenous grapes can provide. Another favorite of mine is the Cerasuolo D'Abruzzo DOC, a rosé with the heart of a red that is delicious to drink and a game changer for many of our American travelers to the region. Each of these wines is the perfect accompaniment to both the land and sea components of traditional Abruzzese cuisine, and has the ability to pair well with a wide variety of international dishes as well.
With Winemaker Elio Savoca of Gigliotto
18th century German poet, playwright novelist, scientist, and statesman Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was quoted as saying "Without seeing Sicily you can't understand Italy. Sicily is the key to everything." And that, is the quote I like to keep in mind when I taste Sicilian wine and spirits, as if they were the key to an intoxicating world of flavor steeped in history and shrouded in beauty, color, and tradition. I started my Sicilian taste tour with the 13 coveted organic wines from Gigliotto.
Their San Michele Frappato was a huge hit with our American delegation, as was their exceptional Nero d'avola An unexpected delight for me to taste was their Conte Ruggero, an IGT Sicilian red made from the Petit Verdot grape. I had never heard of using this grape in Sicily, so I had no expectations whatsoever when I first tasted it. To my surprise, though, it was really delightful. Its taste was fine and elegant, full of personality and dotted with mature red berry and fruit flavors. Owner and winemaker Elio Savoca shared the 900 year history of the winery with me and explained why he named this wine after one of Sicily's most important historical figures. Check out this beautiful video of their estate in this video...
Finally it was time to taste the sweet stuff. Despite my love of Amaro and Limoncello, I had to save the best for last because it is hard to kick off a day full of meetings with a digestivo, no matter how alluring they may be. So each day I would fight my urge to sip Amaranca "The Nobile Amaro of Etna." The explosions of aromas and flavors coming from this amaro was worth my trip to Verona alone. Even though I am now back in the states, I still happily sip Amaranca, the Sicilian bitter liqueur obtained from wild Sicilian oranges and medicinal herbs and roots grown on Etna's slopes nightly. Apparently, I am not the only one, because this liqueur holds two gold medals from the World Liqueur Awards in London.
Limonetna, Limoncello made from lemons grown on the slopes of Mount Etna, really sets the bar high for the lemony liqueur. Each sip is as bold and beautiful as its' gorgeous bottle, which happens to match my kitchen perfectly! It is the first liqueur to be made with the IGP lemons from Mt. Etna, and is the winner of the Bronze award at the International Wine Spirits Competition. This sunny classic from the Romeo family will always be in style, offering a sip of the Sicilian sun - and a key to unlocking the limitless potential of authentic Italian flavors.
The last Sicilian flavor I tasted during the Vinitaly festivities was the Marsala by Florio at the closing night's awards dinner at the Verona arena. Legend has it, the owner warned, that whoever drinks their Dolce Superiore 2017 "will fall in love." After one sip, I was a believer, and can attest that this Marsala will be a game changer for anyone who never fully appreciated it before. And as for falling in love, I will keep you posted, but in the meantime I like to think that "love is not an emotion, it is our very existence," as the great Rumi said. Perhaps the wine and luscious spirits we sample at Vinitaly just help to make us realize the truth sooner.
I am truly grateful to the organizers for another fantastic event, despite all of the obstacles that the current state of traveling presents. Contact me here if you are interested in importing these wines into the US. Until next time...alla prossima and alla salute! 🍷🍷🍷