Well- I’m back! It was a short trip, but filled to the brim. I have a lot of photos and info to share but let’s start with a trip into southern Puglia. The land of primitivo. After a morning of judging wines for Radici’s Festival dei Vitigni Autoctoni we were off on what would become considered by many as the most epic bus ride ever to have occurred in Southern Italy. We visited the vineyards of Morella and Attanasio in anticipation of the vertical tasting of their wines we would have later that night.
the beginnings of the grape…
Alberelli: Bush vines- the traditional and arguably the best planting and training method for primitivo. These are Morella’s prized 60 year old vines which make their “Old Vines” label.
Lisa Gilbee- winemaker for Morella. And an Aussie! ”My children run through these vineyards and we walk through tasting grapes. I don’t want any chemicals,” on one of the reasons why her vineyards are biodynamically farmed.
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All I can say is- wow. Puglia is pretty fantastic and I’ve only seen what is in and around the hotel where I am staying in Monopoli (as I arrived last night in darkness.) The landscape here is quite different from any other region in Italy. It’s very rustic… in a Greek way, if that makes any sense. The property is covered in and surrounded by the most massive olive trees I have ever seen. We’re talking ancient. And the warm air smells of sweet flowers and green herbs. It’s delectable.
So, the reason I’m here: I Vini Radici, a festival here in Puglia that celebrates and judges the wines of the region. There are 3 days of focused tasting sessions organized by grape, some winery visits and some pretty fab dinners where wine will be flowing in abundance.
Day 1. It involved 2 poolside lounging sessions… and 67 wines. We’re getting down to business (and pleasure!) straight outta the gate. Today was all white and rosé wines, which the region is not the most known for. It’s star and claim to wine fame are red wines made from the primitivo and negroamaro grapes. So, I was excited to see what bombino, fiano minutolo, negroamaro (rosé) and primitivo (rosé) had to offer.
Oh and did I mention one of my best friends in the whole wide world is here on the judging panel with me? I know…life works in pretty magical ways sometimes. Also- please take note of the extremely large tree trunk blob to the left of Christina’s face. That’s one of the olive trees I was talking about. Crazy.
Well guys- gotta run. A dinner of fresh fish by the sea is awaiting me. Tomorrow we dig into the red wines and Christina and I are going to go explore a bit on our bikes. I smell another video in the works….
This time tomorrow I will be in Puglia….Monopoli to be exact. The beach you see above was actually in Campania, but I imagine that I will be seeing similar picturesque beach-y scenery in the near future. My travels will also take me to the wild and lush landscapes of Sardinia for a short visit. And yes, I realize how annoying this all is for those not traveling to Italy time and time again as I have been so lucky to this past year. I would kind of hate myself If I were indeed not myself.
So- stick with me. I’ve got some pretty fun posts coming your way. And a redesign of the old blog-eroo (be patient with us as we work out the kinks!) Ci vediamo a presto!
by whit on January 8, 2010
Cheap grocery store Italian wine. It usually frightens me to some degree and I avoid it. Trader Joes. It usually excites me (affordable organic goods and free food samples at all times) and I never avoid it. Although, the wine aisle of TJ’s is another story. Yes, I realize my behavior may seem a wee tad wine snobby, but I would rather get bottles that are nearly as affordable from my fav neighborhood shop selling interesting wines from quality producers. Today, as I was loading up on groceries, I decided to venture into the scary unknown. If I was going to take a studied look anywhere, of course, it would be the Italian section. I approached with an open mind and hope that possibly I have been mistaken all this time. There must be something exciting…
No. No, there wasn’t. The prices ranged from 2.99 (!!) up to $19.99. That price belonging to the omnipresent Santa Margherita pinot grigio. There was also a $16.99 Amarone and a 2005 Barolo from La Loggia for $14.99. Really? The white wine theme = pinot grigio. The red wine theme = chianti. Nothing surprising. I began to turn the bottles around to see who was importing this stuff and the same three California importers, unknown to me, dominated the shelves. D’Aquino (with 2 organic wines from Abruzzo among others), Americal Beverage Group and Santini.
Enough looking, I had to take one home to taste. Because I wasn’t really keen on any bottle in particular, I searched for the wine that had the most bottles missing from the shelf. What is everyone buying? The Marchese de Petri 2008 “Il Valore” sangiovese from Puglia. The price: $2.99. No wonder it was the most popular. But, I do have to say it “gives good label.”
“Smooth and fruity with a touch of red berries.” I guess that was true, just with a touch of cough syrup as well. OK- it wasn’t offensive. Just entirely forgettable. Which is fine, but why is anyone importing and shipping this all the way across land and ocean to get it here? And $2.99 a bottle is usually how much it costs just to bottle and label the thing. How much are the people making the wine even profiting? You can find these prices at wineries in Italy, but that is because you are getting the young wine directly from the source, no shipping involved. When I see numbers this low on imported wine, it just makes me suspect.
Marchese de Petri, the “winery”, also makes a Chianti riserva with the same “Il Valore” label. I couldn’t get much more info but all the wine is bottled in Pisa by one C. Campagna Gello. Hmmmm…..A mystery I don’t care to solve. I guess what I am ultimately feeling from this little trip down vino lane, is a bit of sadness. And confusion. The market is so overwhelmed with stuff like this, that some of the real stars of Italy don’t ever get a spot on the shelf. But, maybe my idea of a real and affordable star is a wine that could never be mass produced for the US market anyway. And for that, I’ll just have to get shipped back to Italy to get.
