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By Chuck Hill
CHUCK'S CURRENT EARLIER COLUMNS Italian Varietals – Something for Everyone Cabernet Sauvignon & Meritage Wines
Oyster-Friendly Wines
Meat Merlot
Summer Zinfandels
The Mystery of Viognier
Versatile Pinot Noir
Wines of the Week REVIEWS BY VARIETAL
Chuck's Wine Reviews
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Italian Varietals – Something for
Everyone Italian Americans have been making wine with varietals from the home country since the 19th century in California. While significant plantings of Nebbiolo, Sangiovese, Barbera and Dolcetto did not take place in the Northwest until the 1980s, great progress has been made in refining growing and winemaking techniques. Both novice and long-time wine tasters will enjoy comparing wines from Italy with wines produced in the U.S., so we offer selections to tempt the palate and stimulate intellectual exploration. Chef Ted labored to produce authentic Bolognese sauce for our pasta and it was spectacular. If you like this subtle-yet-complex meaty masterpiece, give it a try. (Recipes for this classic Italian meaty pasta sauce can be found online.) We also tasted white Italian varietals for a complete start-to-finish meal experience.
We have enjoyed many vintages of Hogue Cellars Pinot Grigio for it’s high quality-to-price ratio and affinity for food pairing. This vintage is light and crisp with aromas of pear and floral perfume and flavors of apple, pear and citrus. Lightly phenolic, it shows very well with food.
Black Box As with most Italian Pinot Grigio, the Black Box is bright and light, serving as either a sipping wine or an accompaniment to light cuisine or appetizers. Aromas of dusty citrus, pear and light baking spice lead to a zippy palate with similar flavors. It paired very well with our first course of lightly dressed shrimp salad. Good value.
Nobilo
It’s hard to find two wine growing regions further apart than Italy and
New Zealand (roughly 11,000 miles), and the character of NZ Pinot Grigio
is also quite different than the wine grown in Northern Italy. Look for
forward aromas of earth, citrus, melon and herbs. The palate is ripe
and full featuring mandarin orange and pear flavors and an assertive
textural kick on the finish. Needs food to show its best, and a good
chilling is helpful.
Almost a decade ago, I toured the WC estate vineyard with owner Rick Small, and then tasted some of his first Barbera wine from the barrel. Two distinct clones are planted in the vineyard and were vinified separately showing quite different character in aroma and flavor. The blend that is bottled today is quite delicious, bursting with red and black fruits in the nose, and offering a voluptuous palate that accompanies a wide range of hearty fare.
Woodward Canyon Winemaker Rick Small has an unmistakable twinkle in his eye when he talks about his Dolcetto and Barbera. Having selected the site, planted the vines and guided each vintage from grapes into wine, it is an experience not unlike child rearing. Dolcetto in Italian translates into “little sweet one,” and a wine lover could become almost giddy smelling the tangy cherry and berry aroma and sipping this unique wine with friends over a cheese board of Italian formaggi, garlicky crostini and some dry salami.
Wilridge Winery No one has yet dubbed Red Mountain “the Piedmonte of Washington,” but . . .Piero Antinori did go in on the Col Solare project, just up the hill from Klipsun. Hmmmmm. So Paul Beveridge crafted this tasty Nebbiolo to tempt our palates and accompany Italian cuisine. Aromas of red fruits and floral perfume with notes of toasty oak lead to a palate rich with earthy cherry flavors and a clean, food friendly finish.
DaVinci The halcyon days of delicious Chianti are returning in the new millennium. Complex aromas of tar, tobacco, lilac, black cherry, earth and herbs reveal an old friend to this veteran wine taster. The palate offers rich cherry, plum and barrel spice with mature notes of tobacco and earth. A wonderful food wine or, for serious wine lovers, a wine to linger over and savor, this was the hallmark of the day's tasting.
Walla Walla Vintners Gordy Venneri and Myles Anderson continue to make great wines, with each vintage more exciting than the last. Their 2007 Sangiovese captures some Italian magic while retaining the intensity and power of Washington wines that local consumers have come to expect. On the nose, look for sweet black cherry and toasty caramel with notes of cedar and plum. The palate offers black fruits and vanilla with a delicious lingering finish.
Sebastiani Vineyards August Sebastiani produced the first Barbera from Sonoma County in 1962. Over 40 years' experience with the varietal leads to the superb example you can buy today. The rich garnet color of the wine creates anticipation which is fulfilled with a rich aroma of blueberry and black cherry, and a palate of tangy berry flavor and notes of toasty oak. Delicious with rich pasta, pizza or steak!
Matt and Marlene Steiner are transplanted New Yorkers who needed a change and headed west to create a new beginning. They have been making wine in Walla Walla from purchased fruit and are planting an estate vineyard as time and expenses permit. The Boot is a 50/50 blend of Sangiovese and Barbera. The nose is rich with cherry and earthy aromas with the signature candy-like tang of Barbera. The palate is generous showing a touch of wood and a nice berry-vanilla finish.
Duck Pond Cellars Winemaker Greg Fries crafted this tasty Sangiovese from grapes grown at the Sacagawea Vineyard in the Columbia Valley. A medium to light style, look for aromas of cherry and strawberry with toasty oak notes. Flavors of tangy berry and earthy toast complement most rich Italian dishes.
Every good Italian meal should end with a sweet tipple of some sort, and the owners of Yellow Hawk Cellar - Tim Sampson and Barbara Hetrick – have provided just the wine for the job. Aromas of Gran Marnier, floral perfume and pear lead to a delicious palate with 4.5% residual sugar – perfect for accompanying light pastry, biscotti, cheese or cheesecake. # # #
One-year
Archive of previous
Wines of the Week reviews
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Hogue
Cellars 
Stella
Fino 
Yellow
Hawk Cellar