The Naked Vine Italian Wine Primer

Ah, Italian wine. Love it. Love it. Love it. As the foodie that I am, I’m hard pressed to come up with wine that goes better with a meal than Italian wines. After all, one of the few things that Italians do better than making wine is cooking, and because they’ve been making wine as long as they have, winemakers in each region have been tailoring wines to cuisine for centuries.

As such, each region’s wine varieties tend to be fairly consistent as far as the basic flavor profile goes. I wouldn’t choose to drink a lot of them on their own for one reason or another, but line up some steamed mussels next to an Italian pinot grigio or a Sangiovese with marinara-sauced pasta and you’ve got yourself a little slice of heaven.

The trick, though, is figuring out which of these heavily vowel-labeled bottles is the right wine. Like France, Italy’s gotten a little bit better about putting the names of grape varietals and/or descriptive blurbs in English on the bottle for the “ordinary American consumer.” For the most part, however, the traditional convention still holds. The names on the bottle are generally the producer and the region. The grape is often nowhere to be found. As I’ve mentioned before, I spent most of my pre-Vine life thinking that “Chianti” was a grape varietal instead of a region in Tuscany.

Further confusing matters are exceptions to this rule. Some Italian wines do put the name of the grape on the label as a matter of course. The name of the grape is usually followed by the name of the locale, so you’ll see wines like Moscato d’Asti, Barbera d’Alba, etc. The first one, for instance, translates as “The Moscato (grape) from Asti (the town).” You’ll even run into “Montepulciano d’Abruzzo” vs. “Vin Noble di Montepulciano.” The first is a fruity, easy-drinking table wine made from the Montepulciano grape. The second is a somewhat complex Sangiovese-based wine from the town of Montepulciano.

But why? Why stick to an antiquated, confusing system of nomenclature, especially now that the world has grown much more wine savvy? Why not just label the bloomin’ bottles with whatever the heck is in there?

The answer?

Two thousand.

There are at least 2,000 indigenous grape varietals in Italy. Gaining an encyclopedic knowledge of all the grapes in the Boot that go into their bottles of yummy would be next to impossible. So, how do you know what you’re getting?

The Italian government simplified matters for us a little. They created a classification system somewhat similar to the ones in France. If you look at most bottles of Italian wine, you’ll see “DOC” or “DOCG” somewhere on the label. Without going into too much detail, the DOC/DOCG designation shows that a wine was made in a certain region using pre-determined methods containing certain grape varietals. This usually aligns with the geographic region, but a grape will sometimes be included in the designation if the varietal is a specialty of the area – like the aforementioned Moscato d’Asti, et al.

In my experience, Italian wine is an experience where you largely get what you pay for. This isn’t to say that there isn’t really good inexpensive wine from Italy. Think about it this way -- if you blindly choose $30 Bordeaux, there’s a chance that you’ll end up with a wine inferior to the $10 dollar one on the rack nearby. Italian? $15 Chianti will be perfectly drinkable, but also usually consistent with its brethren of the same price point. If you splurge on a $30 bottle, you can usually tell a difference in quality (although you may not feel that difference was worth the extra moolah).

There are hundreds of DOC/DOCG growing regions, but many of them are extremely small and you probably won’t run into them very often. Here are some of the more common regions and DOC/DOCG designations you’ll run into at the local wine stores for your reading and drinking pleasure…

Region: Campania
Common wines you’ll see: Taurasi, Fiano, Falerno
Major grapes: Aglianico, Piedirosso, Primitivo (red); Falanghia (white)
General info: Campania is the region around Naples. The best known wine from there is a robust red called Taurasi made from the Aglianico grape. Fiano is a seafood-loving white and Falerno is another big wine made from Primitivo (Zinfandel). Much of the rest of the wine from there has traditionally been known as fairly generic, although it’s improved greatly in recent years.

Region: Tuscany
Common wines you’ll see: Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino, Vin Noble di Montepulciano, Rosso di Montalcino, Rosso di Montepulciano, IGT Toscana
Major grape: Sangiovese (red – not many whites in Tuscany)
General info: Ah, Tuscany – home of some of the most famous reds wines in Italy. Most Tuscan reds are backboned by the Sangiovese grape. Brunello di Montalcino is also Sangiovese, but a specific clone of that particular grape. There’s also “Vin Santo” – a sweet dessert wine. You’ll also find “super Tuscan” wines that are bigger and heartier. These are almost always Sangiovese blended with a non-indigenous varietal like merlot or cabernet, often to please an American palate. If you see “IGT Toscana” on the label, it’s probably a Super Tuscan of some stripe. The wines tend to be very flexible, since Tuscan cuisine is some of the most varied (and delicious) food in the world. However, in my opinion, these wines are not the best to drink by themselves. They need food to show their full potential.

Region: Piedmont
Common wines you’ll see: Barbaresco, Barolo, Barbera d’Alba, Barbera d’Asti, Dolcetto d’Alba, Dolcetto d’Asti, Moscato d’Asti, Gavi
Major grapes: Nebbiolo, Barbera, Dolcetto, Moscato (red); Cortese (white)
General info: Piedmont is the mountainous region in the northwest corner of the country. The bulk of Italy’s hearty reds come from this region – especially Barolo and Barbaresco. They’re some of the most famous of the world’s wines. Barbera is a big, juicy red and Dolcetto is a lighter, acidic red – both of which make excellent everyday wines in their “generic” form. The versions from “named” places (like Barbera d’Alba for instance) have more complexity. Gavi is a crisp white made from the Cortese grape (not to be confused with Dan Cortese) which makes an interesting contrast. Piedmont wines are built to stand up to heavier meats and sauces. Even the whites handle cream sauces easily. There’s also Moscato d’Asti – a low alcohol, sweet sparkling wine which may be the best brunch wine in the world.

Regions: Sardinia & Sicily
Common wines & grapes you’ll see: Cannonau (red); Malvasia, Vernacchia, Verdicchio, Moscato (white)
General info: The islands of Italy usually end up putting the names of the grapes on the label, so you can generally run with those. Both islands, especially Sardinia, produce quantities of dry, crisp white wines made from Vernacchia, Malvasia, and Verdicchio that go perfectly with shellfish. Sicily produces a huge amount of dessert wine. The most common red is made from Cannonau, which is currently getting a great deal of publicity for its hypothesized life-extending properties. Cannonau is similar to Grenache and often makes for powerful wines, but on the islands, they’re made in a much lighter, more aromatic style.

Region: Veneto
Common wines you’ll see: Bardolino, Valpolicella, Soave, Prosecco
Major grapes: Corvina, Sangiovese (red); Prosecco, Garganega (white)
General Info: The region around Venice cranks out a huge amount of wine. The reds are usually blends backboned by the Corvina grape. These reds tend to be some of the lightest bodied in the country. Many are often served slightly chilled, much like Beaujolais. There’s actually a “Bardolino novello,” made in a similar style as Beaujolais Nouveau. The whites, like Soave are usually fruity and more or less dry. The Valdobbiadene district is the home of Prosecco, Italy’s most famous sparkling wine. It resembles Spanish cava in many ways. Interestingly, with all the light reds produced in Valpolicella, it’s also home to the most powerful red wine in Italy: Amarone. Amarone is made from raisinated grapes, which yields a concentrated, potent (upwards of 15% alcohol), tannic, tasty wine.

There are 14 other major wine growing regions in Italy and literally hundreds of DOC & DOCG designations. It’s worth it to explore. Ask for your Italian wine expert at your local store. There’s usually one major “Italophile” in every shop. They’ll usually steer you correctly. But for basics, this should take care of you for right now. Hope it helps!

Fly Piedmont -- The Up-and-Coming Region

Pop Quiz, hotshots.

Question: "Piedmont" refers to…

a) A regional airline, formerly hubbed at Washington's National Airport.

b) An geographical region of North Carolina which includes Greensboro, Winston-Salem, High Point, and Burlington.

c) An Italian region where some of the most expensive wine in the world is made.

d) All of the above.

The answer is, of course, "d" -- although "a" brings back memories. My family used to fly Piedmont all the time while I was growing up. Piedmont was absorbed by USAirways in the early 90's, so it's but a memory now. Answer "c" is very much a reality, and is our next stop.

The Piedmont is considered most of northwestern Italy. Nestled against the Alps, the Piedmont is just a hop (a pretty high hop!) away from southeastern France. Piedmont translates very accurately as "the foot of the mountain." While Tuscany is the "scenic beauty" section of Italy, Piedmont is one of the world's geographic centers for gustatory decadence. Piedmont is the crossroads of French provincial cooking and southern Italian pastas and sauces. The result? Hearty meat and poultry dishes, pastas, fresh herbs, eggs, butter, cream, and food coma.

From a viticultural (WineSpeak for "wine producing") perspective, the Piedmont's wines are quite a change from what you'll experience in Italian regions like Tuscany in the south or Veneto in the northeast. As I've said before, the best way to understand the style of European wines is to look at the food from that area. Decadent food requires decadent wine, and you'll find them in spades in this region.

The Piedmont's best known wines are made from the nebbiolo grape. Nebbiolo is the backbone of both Barolo and Barbaresco. These are the Piedmont towns which lend their names to the growing regions of each wine. Barolo and Barbaresco are some of the most expensive wines in the world -- matched in price only by some of the higher-end red Bordeaux. If you'd like to try one of these, be ready to shell out 60-80 bucks, minimum. The first time I tried a Barolo, I didn't appreciate it. They're very big, complex wines which are built to age for decades. They're also nearly impossible for a relatively novice wine drinker to get a sense of. Luckily, there are alternatives.

There are two other major grape varietals grown in the Piedmont: Barbera and Dolcetto. For centuries, these were used to make relatively inexpensive table wine. They were fermented quickly and bottled to drink young. Why? Because Nebbiolo is a finicky grape. It only grows in a few choice locations, largely on the ridges of hills and it ripens late. The rest of the hilly vineyards are planted with Barbera and Dolcetto, usually. The growers get the Barbera and Dolcetto off the vines early, get it into the barrels to ferment, and as soon as the Nebbiolo is ready, they empty the vats, bottle the cheap stuff, and barrel up the moneymaker.

As with most places around the world -- as winemaking techniques improved, Italian vintners have started producing higher end Barbera and Dolcetto instead of just using them for table wine. Piedmont Airlines' old slogan was "The Up-and-Coming Airline." The Piedmont region could also use that slogan with the increased quality. These wines are wonderful food wines and cost a fraction of Barolo & Barbaresco. Here are a couple of examples:

Michele Chiarlo 2004 Barbera d'Asti -- People see "Asti" and usually follow it in their minds with "Spumante." Asti, however, refers to the Italian town where both the sweet sparkling dessert wine and Barbera are made. The Barbera grape, as a rule, produces a medium-bodied, fruity wine. Barbera is an all around flexible, tasty wine. This one has currants and cherries on the nose. It actually is a little thin tasting at first as it's initially quite dry, but fattens up a bit rather quickly with some nice cherry flavors. The finish is acidic and not at all sweet. Instead, you'll get balanced tannins and some oak. Barbera is a wonderful wine for anything tomato-based, especially if you're going to have meat in there as well. Italian sausage on pasta with red sauce and a Barbera is excellent. The best pairing I've ever had with Barbera, though? Pepperoni pizza. Mindblowing. $12-14.

Mauro Molino 2005 Dolcetto d'Alba -- People see "Alba" and usually precede it in their minds (or at least many of my male and some of my female readers do) with "Jessica." Ms. Alba, however, is a Danish/Mexican blend, not Italian like the Dolcetto here. Dolcetto is a the lightest major red of the Piedmont. Translated from Italian, "Dolcetto" means "little sweet one," although the wine is basically dry. Light, fruity, and slightly oaky, this Dolcetto smells and drinks like an Italian version of Beaujolais cru. You'll find it a little oakier than a Beaujolais and a little more firm on the palate. It's got a nice acidity that makes it also very food friendly, especially with foods a bit lighter than the Barbera. We had this wine with an Italian tuna and butterbean salad. Scrumptious. $10-13.

Fontanafredde Langhe Eremo 2004 Barbera e Nebbiolo -- An interesting blend. Most wines from the Piedmont that I've seen are largely single-grape wines. I got the sense that nebbiolo, being the pricy grape, isn't blended very often. When I saw this one, I wanted to give it a go. You get a quick smack of fruit-forward from the Barbera, and then the wine settles into the tannins and length that Nebbiolo is known for. However, Nebbiolo is one of those grapes that really does need time in the bottle to come to full flavor. Blended with Barbera, you get a little bit of the complexity, but at a mere four years old, the "Nebbiolo-ness" doesn't really jump at you. It's a much better wine for simply drinking or having with a red sauced pasta. If you wanted to cellar this one for a few more years, it might get really interesting. For now -- you're better off with the Dolcetto or Barbera. Or you could save up and splurge on a real Nebbiolo-based wine bottles from the turn of the century. $13-15.