My friend Donna Bernard, chief diva at Flair in Abbotsford, B.C., is having a birthday. Number 50. Only, you'd never know it. She's so young looking and so full of, well, flair!
Her daughters have put together an Italian-themed dinner and dance party that will see just 100 (or so) of Donna's dearest friends joining together to celebrate.
My role? I promised to recommend an Italian wine or two for the event—ones that wouldn't gobble up the food budget.
I tasted three reds on Donna's behalf:
- Folonari Valpolicella DOC 2007 ($13.99/12.5% ABV),
- De Angelis Rosso Piceno Vendemmia DOC 2007 ($15.00/13% ABV), and
- Masi Modello Rosso Delle Venezie 2008($12.99/12% ABV), the winner of the taste test.
There was nothing wrong with the Folonari, I just think the Masi is a better value. I found a dusty minerality, ripe red fruits and berries, and a little sweet spice on the nose. On the palate were juicy red fruits, berries, and cherries, vanilla and spice, with soft tannins. A great little Italian food wine that will go well with meats and tomato sauces. This wine promises to please a crowd without breaking the bank.
Wine number two, the Rosso Delle Venezie, didn't even get to play. It had a very large dose of Brett, a fault, so back to the liquor store it goes.
I taste-tested just one white Italian wine for Donna, a Pinot Grigio: Tenuta Villanova Pinot Grigio Friuli DOC 2008 ($14.99/13.5% ABV).
This Pinot Grigio had salt-water taffy and flowers, with white and green fruits on the nose. On the palate were fresh fruits and steely notes, finishing with a burnt-caramel taste that was really quite yummy. It had more body and depth than most Pinot Grigios I’ve tasted. This is another great little Italian food wine that will go especially well with soft cheeses and creamy pastas. The bonus is this wine’s as kind to the palate as it is to the pocket book.
Salut!
Copyright © 2010 Kathleen Rake. All rights reserved.
