The Prosecco Project: an Italian sparkling wine odyssey
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Awe, Amazement, Amore

7/29/2015

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"Wine is the most civilized thing in the world."  Ernest Hemingway

After days of intense heat and cloudless skies, finally there was a break in the weather.  And it came just in time because on this pleasantly cool Friday evening, we would be having our aperitivo at the Colonnara winery along with representatives from the Slow Food movement, wine journalists, and a number of sommeliers .  The event, sponsored  by Slow Food, was a special tasting of select vintages of methodo classico sparkling wines from Colonnara.  When I read the lineup of wines, there was not a moment's hesitation, no contemplation, just an instantaneous desire to be there.  And that is how my husband, Jim, and I found ourselves navigating the windy road to Cupramontana to spend an evening at the winery.  Being a fan of the Colonnara methodo classico wines, I was sure that this evening would not disappoint, and, of course, it was beyond expectations, inspirational, educational, and for me quite challenging to the three relevant senses.

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The room, all dressed up and awaiting the participants
As the 30 participants took their seats, I looked around and realized that I was suffering from a bout of  intimidation.  Here I was surrounded by a group of serious looking wine professionals ready to experience the wines. I had every intention of being just as serious, so I wiped the smile off of my face, got out the note pad to take down insights, and mentally walked myself through a little wine tasting 101 exercise - no physical activity required except bending the elbow.  And then, I waited expectantly for the first pour. 

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The sommeliers awaiting the first pour
There was no shot to signal the start, no popping of the cork with a sword, just that sudden quiet that periodically descends upon a crowd followed by the sound of the Colonnara Cuvee Tradition pouring into the glass.  This first wine was the only wine on the tasting line up produced by the charmat method.   It was kind of the amuse bouche to tempt the palate.  Cuvee Tradition is the first sparkling wine that Colonnara made back in 1970.  To call it a charmat (martinotti in Italian) does not do it justice, for it is a longer aged wine that takes on some of the characteristics of a methodo classico.  In the glass the color is straw yellow with an active and fine perlage.  When I inhale this wine I think of summer stone fruits and almonds, and I think about a spring day with the scent of acacia flowers.  In the mouth, the wine is delicate and fresh with a finish of almond.  I like to keep several bottles on hand to celebrate every occasion like dinner time, beautiful sunsets, or just because it's Tuesday. 

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The line up of things to come - 5 methodo classico wines
Next began the vertical tasting of Ubaldo Rosi Brut Methodo Classico Riserva vintages 2008, 2006, 2005, and 2002.  Ubaldo Rosi is Colonnara's award winning methodo classico made from the Verdicchio grape. It is aged on the lees for 60 months. Ubaldo Rosi has been named the third best sparkling wine in Italy and the best south of the Po river.  While it continues to garner accolades from the wine press, my friend Marty upon opening the bottle of 2008 that he took home to CA after his visit here summed up the experience clearly and succinctly, "It was excellent.  An incredible value."  Although I had tasted the 2008 vintage on several occasions, I was very curious to experience it in comparison to the same wine aged for longer periods of time.  So, here are my reflections upon these exceptional wines.

Ubaldo Rosi, 2008 is a wine for special occasions, such as today when we are celebrating the birth of our second grandson.  But, it is affordable and can be the star of any dinner.  I love the beautiful straw yellow color and the nose of caramelized sugar and almond with an underlying potential of bread crust.  The nose maintains a bit of freshness and perhaps a bit of the sweetness of fruit.  It has none of the woodiness of many champagnes.  In the glass the perlage is quite active and persistent, but in the mouth the wine is incredibly soft and smooth.  As I took a sip, I turned to Jim and asked, "So what do you taste?"  He replied, " something out of the ordinary.  I taste quality."  I remember once asking that question of our friend, Michele, a broker of wines from France and Italy,  when we were drinking a prosecco.  His reply, "sombrero".  I must admit that I was stunned by the answer and confused.  What did that mean?  Well, as I taste more wines and begin to see them as more than a party in a pretty glass with a stem, I am starting to understand this.  Think about those English classes where you learned about connotation.  With that context in mind, I thought about how I would sum up Ubaldo Rosi 2008 in one word.  My answer,  "Michelangelo" - artistry in a glass.  So, I wonder can any of the older wines top this experience?



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Winemaker, Agostino, setting the stage and introducing Ubaldo Rosi 2008
I am so enthralled with the 2008 that I am still sniffing and tasting as the Ubaldo Rosi 2006 is poured into the second glass.  I sit and watch it for a while as I continue to explore the nuance of the 2008.  What I notice is that the straw yellow color has taken on the slight greenish tint often associated with the verdicchio grape.  Finally, I pick up the glass and inhale.  There is more subtlety in the nose.  I try to discern what it is I am smelling and inhale again.  As I do this I hear someone say panettone, and I think, yes.  That is a good way to describe it.   On the palate, there is more complexity.  It is a somewhat more mature and refined wine than the 2008.  And while it has lost a little of the freshness of the 2008, that is not a bad thing because it makes up for it in depth of character.
The Ubaldo Rosi 2005 was a very interesting wine that probably created more comment at my table than any of the others.  In the glass it looked quite similar to the 2006 with a light straw yellow color with a slight green highlight.  As I sipped it, I heard comments that it had an unusual nose, not as open as the previous wines.   Quite a discussion ensued trying to discern that the unique element of the nose was, but, alas, there was never a resolution of this question.  For my part, I thought this vintage had more of the bread crust and almond scents, but the bouquet was much more subtle than the 2008.  On the palate it had a very well balanced acidity and smoothness.  By the end of the evening, it was clear that the 2005 had divided the participants.  Some thought this was the top of the Ubaldo Rosi selections; others rated it at or near the bottom.  For me, after tasting these three very similar wines, my senses were on overload, and it was getting very difficult to distinguish one from the other, particularly as the differences were becoming more subtle. 


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Discussing the 2005 Ubaldo Rosi with Emiliano, an executive of Colonnara
The final tasting of the Ubaldo Rosi vintages was the 2002.  This wine had taken on a more golden color than the prior vintages.  In the glass it looked more like a champagne. When I lifted the glass to breathe in the bouquet, I raised my eyebrows in surprise.  I sniffed again to make sure of what I was smelling.  And on my third inhale, I said cheese.  "But which cheese is it," asked the gentleman across the table?  At first I thought it might be a very, very subtle Gorgonzola scent.  But, he shook his head as he inhaled deeply.  And after a few minutes he looked up at me and said, "crusts of brie".  Now this was a person with a very refined nose, and I was impressed.  He identified the perfect descriptor.  While the nose was quite unusual, the palate was not.  It was more complex with a very lingering finish, but it still exhibited qualities of the verdicchio grape - almond, honey with an overlay of bread crust. 

While I asked others what was their favorite of the Ubaldo Rosi wines, I find it very difficult to pick one.  They were all similar and distinct at the same time.  I truly appreciated the freshness of the 2008 which emitted a more fruity nose than the other vintages.  But I also appreciated the increasingly greater complexity of the wines over time.  I would gladly call every one Michelangelo. 

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The Ubaldo Rosi vintages in the glass
Following the four Ubaldo Rosi vintages, it was time to taste a 1993 Luigi Ghislieri, a second methodo classico made by the Colonnara winery bottle aged for no less than 30 months.  This is the wine that I coveted as it was presented to the top of the class at the sommelier graduation (see my prior post of July 5, 2015).  Looking at the bottle, I am not certain that I have ever had a wine that is over twenty years old before.  So, now I am looking for a context to relate this wine to.  1993 was the year that my son turned 11, I was working on the 27th floor of an office building in Oakland, CA, we had 2 dogs, 4 cats, 28 rabbits, and boarded two horses who lived on our hillside.  And, I was just discovering Bon Jovi.  My drink of choice was some inexpensive California champagne.  As I think back to these events, I am more appreciative of how long this wine has been in the bottle.  And I wonder if I rub that bottle three times what magic will pour out.  Well, I was soon to learn that rubbing the bottle was not a prerequisite to unleashing the magic of this vintage.  In the glass, the color was as soft and straw yellow as the younger Ubaldo Rosi wines.  And, the perlage danced the tango as the fine bubbles rose in the glass.  The wine has maintained its very characteristic nose of almonds, fruits, and a freshness I was surprised to find  in a wine of this age.  On the palate it was soft, complex, and beautiful with some notes of licorice  on the finish.  I never expected a 20 year old wine to maintain so much of the character of a much younger wine while acquiring additional structure and balance.  This wine gave me a totally different view of older wines and a much greater appreciation for the effects of aging.  Oh, if we could all age with this much grace and elegance.  So, I asked myself, what one word would describe this wine.  Venice, I think, because after the first taste, I have the same feeling that I had on that first trip to Venice 15 years ago - awe, amazement, amore. 

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1993 Luigi Ghislieri, amazing!!
When the tasting concluded, I asked our friend, Giovanni, a delegate of FISAR, the Federation of Italian Hotel and Restaurant Sommeliers, what his favorite wines were.  Without hesitation, he told me the Ubaldo Rosi 2005 and the Luigi Ghislieri 1993.  I found his response interesting as the 2005 Ubaldo Rosi was the wine that sparked the most controversy.  So in spite of all of the attempts to provide structure and standardization to the rating of wines, there is no way to standardize taste.  The old saying, "that's why there is chocolate and vanilla" still applies. 

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And here are the wines - four vintages of Ubaldo Rosi and Luigi Ghislieri 1993 (in the magnum).
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Sommeliers and Sparkling Wine Under the Stars

7/5/2015

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"All four elements were happening in equal measure - the cuisine, the wine, the service, and the overall ambiance. It taught me that dining could happen at a spiritual level." Charlie Trotter

I stepped outside and the rain started.  Not an auspicious beginning to a night promising fine food and wine under the stars, but even this unexpected change in the weather did not dampen my spirit.  Tonight we were headed off to a Sommelier dinner sponsored by FISAR (Federazioni Italiana Sommelier Albergatori e Ristorantori) the Italian Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Sommeliers.  Our destination was Villa Marchese del Grillo, a four star Relais hotel and restaurant sitting on a hill surrounded by the Apennine mountains.  The villa was built in the 18th century by the Marchese Onofrio del Grillo, whose life was remembered in an Italian film of the same name in the 1980s.  My  husband Jim and I had been invited to this event by our friends Cristina and Massmiliano.  The methodo classico, Luigi Ghislieri, from Massmiliano's cantina, Colonnara, would be one of the featured wines of the evening. 

I was excited about attending this event and saw it as an opportunity to discover the answer to one of life's great questions:  "What wines do sommeliers drink when they go out for dinner?"  Okay, it is not up there with the meaning of life, the universe and everything, but I was curious to see what wines would be served and how they would be paired with the foods. 

As we exited the super strada, the rain stopped and ahead of us, on a hill sat the villa Marchese del Grillo crowned by the sun's rays.  Walking from the parking lot, I could see the front of the villa graced by an expansive veranda.  There, on the veranda, the tables were set with four wine glasses at each place setting leaving no doubt that this was a dinner for wine lovers. 
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The crowd begins to gather on the veranda, and the tables wait expectantly
Across the veranda  champagne flutes and buckets of sparkling wine were arranged on a separate table.  Seeing this, I was immediately getting thirsty, and I hoped it would not be too long before the event commenced.
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All those glasses, all that wine, and not a drop to drink. . . yet!!
And when the event did commence, it started not with a bang but a POP!!   How else should a sommelier event begin but with the popping of a cork with a stroke of a short sword.  Well, actually I had never seen this done before and it was rather a surprise, but it had the desired effect giving an official beginning to the event and the pouring of the sparkling wine. 

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Popping the cork with a short sword. Warning, do not try this at home!!!
Below is a recounting of the food and wine pairings from the event with tasting notes.

Up first, hors d'ourves  and a Peruzzi Brut methodo classico, dosage zero.  The Peruzzi family has been producing sparkling wine in Le Marche from the Verdicchio grape since 1988, and biological wines since 2002.   The Peruzzi Brut is a limited production organic wine with approximately 5,000 bottles made per year.  It is bottle aged for a minimum of 3 years.  This wine is made without the liqueur d'exposition (the added sugar after the disgorgement).  In the glass, the color is a pale yellow and the perlage is happy.  This was an interesting organic wine that did not have the typical nose and palate of a verdicchio.  For me, it was lacking the almond and honey sweetness and was more dry with a more spare palate.    I have decided that one day soon I will go to visit the winery to try this again as I had mixed feelings about the wine. 


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Pouring the Peruzzi, the first of the five wines to be served during the course of the dinner
The second offering was a Tortino of Asparagus paired with one of my favorite sparkling wines, Colonnara's Luigi Ghislieri methodo classico Brut.  What can I say that I have not already said about this wine.  YUM!!!  (Read the posts below on the Sboccatura and the Visit to the Colonnara winery for more info.)

The primi was a beautiful pasta with a sauce of goose accompanied by Vallerosa-Bonci's  San Michele, 2012, a Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, D.O.C. Superiore.  San Michele is a single vineyard wine from the San Michele area of the Jesi D.O.C.  which sits about 400 meters above sea level.  In the glass the wine had a deeper golden hue than many verdicchio wines.   I found this wine to be very interesting as it went through a transformation the longer it sat in the glass.  We think of red wines as needing to breathe, but this white wine from the verdicchio grape, only got better over time in the glass.  The nose started out very floral with the scent of acacia dominating other sweet aromas like peach and a little anise.  But after the wine sat for a while, the mineral notes came through more strongly and it smelled of the sea.  In the mouth the wine, was soft, but carried a depth atypical of many verdicchio wines.  It made me think of California wines but without the heavy oak flavor.

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The San Michele arrives. Notice the distinctive, tall bottle used for this Verdicchio Superiore.
Next, for the secondo, slices of veal with small dollops of pureed carrots and zucchini on the side  served with a Rosso Conero Riserva D.O.C.G., the Strologo Decebalo, 2008.  The Strologo winery is a small family run winery started by a farming family in the 1960s.  They make approximately 3,000 bottles of Decebalo per year.  This is a wine made from the Montepulciano grape that has been aged in new French barriques for 12 months followed by an additional 12 months in the bottle prior to release.  In the glass, the Decebalo was a deep red with purple hues.  The nose was intense and complex with cherry, vanilla, cinnamon, and a pale scent of liquorice.   In the mouth it is soft and warm and flavorful.  Normally, I am not a red wine drinker, but I did taste this one and thought it would be nice to drink red wine again. 

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Strologo Decebalo
And, finally, for the dessert lover in me, there was a fruit torta with orange and apricot cream served with the Moncaro's, Tordiruta, 2008.  Tordiruta is a passito made from 100% Verdicchio grapes, aged one year in barrique and one year in the bottle.  Tordiruta  is just what I expect from a passito.  It is amber in color with an intensely warm and mature bouquet  of candied fruits and spice.  In the mouth it is soft and mellow with just the right degree of sweetness.  Well, I had to have a second glass of this one. 

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Moncaro's award winning Passito, Tordiruta
Now that the dessert had been served, it was time to get down to the business of the evening.  I did not really know there was a business component; however, it made sense.  It was a sommelier dinner after all and it was time for the conferring of diplomas and the tastevin on the graduating class of 2015.  What is a tastevin?  You know, that shallow, faceted silver cup that sommeliers often wear around their necks and the graduates proudly display in the photo below.  The tastevin (French for taste wine) was not originally designed for sommeliers.  It was originally used by winemakers for tasting in candle-lit cellars because the tastevin could reflect whatever light was there making it easier to judge the color and clarity of a wine.  

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The graduates proudly display their tastevins.
As the photo so clearly demonstrates, the graduating class was a diverse group - young, old, men, women, all sharing one thing in common - a passion for wine.  Massmiliano, the President of the Colonnara winery, presented a magnum of Luigi Ghislieri 1993 to the top performer in the class.  Oh, the green goddess of envy raised her ugly head .  But, my curiosity about this 20 plus year old wine will have a chance to be sated next week at a Slow Foods tasting of a number of older vintage Colonnara methodo classico wines: Ubaldo Rossi and Luigi Ghislieri.  (More on this in an upcoming blog.)

Finally, the graduation ceremony, complete with a commencement speaker, concluded; photos were taken; and the class began to disperse.  (Of note, Jim says this was the best graduation ceremony he has ever attended.  I guess I would have to agree with him.  After all, it was the first I have ever attended where not only was wine served, but it was a focus of the event.) But before Jim and I depart, we have been invited to tour the Marchese del Grillo's renowned  wine cellar with Cristina and Massimiliano.  The beautiful vaulted cellar housed an amazing collection of wines some dating from the 19th century.  I tried to take some photos, but with the exception of the one below, they all look like they were taken by someone who had a little too much wine.  Hum, I can't imagine how that happened.

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A small corner of the wine cellar - there was a lot more space, but the camera did not cooperate
On the ride home, I looked back on the evening wishing that I had taken some photos of the beautiful food.  I guess it will just have to live on in memory until Jim and I return to the Marchese del Grillo.  Until then, I will remember this evening as one of the most memorable meals I have ever had in Italy- delicious, beautifully presented, and perfectly paired with wines. 

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Okay, I did get one photo of some of the older wines collecting dust in the cellar
For more information on the wineries whose wine was served at this dinner, you can visit their websites with the links below:

The Peruzzi Website:  http://www.spumantebio-peruzzi.it/

The Colonnara Website:  http://www.colonnara.it/en/

The Vallerosa Bonci Website:  http://www.vallerosa-bonci.com/

The Silvano Strologo website:  http://www.vinorossoconero.com/

The Moncaro website:  http://www.moncaro.com/en/

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    In Venice with my best friend, Luca

    About Me

    I am an American ex-pat who lived most of a decade in Le Marche, Italy.  A former Italian wine importer, I am an Italian wine enthusiast.  And sparkling wines are my passion.  Back in California, I continue my quest  to discover the wide variety of sparkling wines made in Italy and elsewhere.

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    Luca does Vinitaly - official canine representative, 2015
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    My book, Dog Days in Italy about my humans' 20 year love affair with Italy is available on Amazon.  www.amazon.com/Dog-Days-Italy-Became-Expat/dp/B09JYP2M27

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