Dreams of Bourdeaux were quickly shattered as a delayed flight into JFK International Airport (no surprise there) caused me to miss the third installment of Wine Essentials. The fourth class took us through the complicated wines of Italy. We received a lesson on the region's history, climate, and wine regulations, and finished by sampling a whopping twelve wines*. A combination of the lack of recognizable structure in Italy's labelling and my recent overindulgence in Napa made it extremely difficult to concentrate.
In 800 B.C. the Greeks settled in southern Italy and were so impressed with the mild climate that they began the art of wine production. Several hundreds of years later the Romans worked to improve the Greeks' techniques, and the love of wine spread through Italy to the north where the climate is cooler and better suited for richer wine production.
The laws that govern Italian wines are regionalistic; each area follows its own traditions. However, there is a national set of standards. In 1963 Italian lawmakers introduced three main categories of Italian wine; Vino da Tavola (VDT; typically jug wines that are lower quality and therefore not exported), Vino Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC; the origin is controlled, boundaries are established, specific grapes must be used, etc.), and Vino Denominazione di Origine Controllata et Garantita (DOCG; a step above the DOC designation, reserved for outstanding wines that are guaranteed to a specific level of quality). In 1992 the Goria Law identified new sub-zones within the existing DOC zones (this is where I started to zone out) creating a new category termed Indicazioni Geografiche Tipiche (IGT). The IGT label is intended for wines that were previously labelled VDT but were actually higher quality and thus deserving of a higher distinction (the "Super Tuscans" are an example).
Italian wines are labelled every which way. A given bottle of wine may be labelled after the origin, the grape, both the origin and grape, or possibly an invented name that has nothing to do with the origin or grape. If this is too much of a deterrent, there are several indicators of quality on a label that may help; "classico" refers to the notion that the wine hails from a traditional or classic area, and "riserva" has a legal connotation and denotes the wine has been processed more carefully and has had additional aging either in the bottle, cask, or both. If an Italian wine include classico or riserva on its label it will be more costly.
I struggled through the dissection of several of the wines and realized I have no idea what red smells like. I never knew it was possible to smell a color, but I went with it when someone described the smell of our first drink, the Campari, as "red". I also came to the understanding that I need to work on proper food pairings- I never would have suggested that one pair the Valpolicella Superiore (my favorite of the fourth session and one of the cheaper bottles) with a simple pizza, and don't dare put the Amarone della Valpolicella Classico with something so simple. This classico wine apparently deserves a complex pizza topped with onion marmalade, smoked mozzarella and sausage.
*Wines in the fourth class included:
1. Piemonte, Campari ($22.00);
2. Prosecco di Conegliano, Brut, Zardetto, NV ($11.00);
3. Orvietto Classico, 'Poggio Calvelli', La Carraia 2008 ($20.00);
4. Fiano di Avellino, Feudi di San Gregorio 2007 ($24.00);
5. Alto Adige Lagrein, 'Castel Turmhof', Tiefenbrunner 2006 ($22.00);
6. Valpolicella Superiore, Zenato 2006 ($14.00);
7. Amarone della Valpolicella Classico, Vaio Armaron, Serego Alighieri, Masi 2001 ($70.00);
8. Chiante Classico, 'Aziano', Ruffino 2006 ($17.00);
9. Brunello di Montalcino, Altesino 2003 ($50.00);
10. Brunello di Montalcino, Riserva, Altesino 1999 ($75.00);
11. Taurasi, 'Radici', Mastroberardino 2004 ($50.00); and
12. Barolo, Azienda Agricola Falletto (Bruno Giacosa) 1999 ($110.00).
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