Italy Again

I stuck out my leg in the air at Anteprima tonight, and pulled up the leg of my jeans to point out Piedmont on the northwest of my motorcycle boots to C. We had just ordered a bottle of Domilano Arneis 2006 from Langhe, and we were disputing the location of Piedmont on the big boot. With all the beguiling piemontese reds out there, it is easy to forget that the Piedmont produces quality whites. The bracing acidity of the Arneis made a great start to the meal, and cut through the richness of the deep-fried Sicilian olives without losing its lychee nose and palate notes of blood orange, lime and ginger, and a wet minerality that tasted of river rocks.

A. picked the second wine, a Vinosia Greco di Tufo 2006 from Campania. I detected a slight fizz to the wine and its bright acidity carried us through the main course of tuscan style steak with arugula, displaying a similar palate to the Arneis, but composed of key limes rather than ordinary limes and galangal rather than ginger, as well as a certain vanilla creaminess.

Returning home, I chose to open the Azienda Agricola Monte Del Fra Corvina 2004 from Lake Garda I'd picked up earlier. Before I'd ever traveled in Italy, an Amarone was my first Italian red, and I thus have had a long affinity for wines made with the corvina grape, dried or not. With it's rich color and mouthfeel and medium body, this particular corvina is a balanced, fruit-forward charmer, with notes of sour cherry, black raspberry and bitter greens. The tannins suggest some wood treatment, but the evocative fruit carries this wine.