The Wines of Italy

Course Summary

                Italy is on a roll. It has recently surpassed France as both the world’s biggest producer of wine and the largest exporter of wine to the USA. Its high-end Barolo’s, Brunello’s and Amarone’s and its traditional Chiantis, Soaves, and Bollas, are now being joined by a whole new family of wines coming out of Southern Italy, Sicily and Sardinia – including Aglianico’s, Nero d’Avola’s, Falanghina’s, to name but three of many. Italy is small, less than ¾ the size of California, yet it manages to have, next to Spain, the largest number of acres planted with vineyards. We will travel at length over the mountainous terrain of Italy to locate and savor its distinctive and enjoyable wines.
                Participants will taste eight to ten regional wines each night. These wines, plus colorful maps, information sheets, and an interactive, educational environment, will afford participants a full taste of each region’s wines, its history and “terroir,” its classic food and wine pairings, the standards according to which its wines are normally assessed, and where it stands among the other great wine regions of the world.
                Dates: four Tuesdays: January 20, 27; February 3, 10.
                Fee: $315; $285 for WWS graduates and those in groups of two or more persons.
                Registration: call the WWS at 914-478-5197.

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Overview

Each evening we will explore and taste the wines from one or more of Italy’s  major wine producing regions. Participants will taste eight regional wines each night. These wines, plus colorful maps, information sheets, and an interactive, educational environment, will afford participants a full taste of each country’s wines, its history and “terroir,” its classic food and wine pairings, the standards according to which its wines are normally assessed, and where it stands among the other great wine regions of the world.

Introduction

Italy is on a roll. It has recently surpassed France as both the world’s biggest producer of wine and the largest exporter of wine to the USA. Its high-end Barolo’s, Brunello’s and Amarone’s and its traditional Chiantis, Soaves, and Bollas, are now being joined by a whole new family of wines coming out of Southern Italy, Sicily and Sardinia. 

Italy is small, less than ¾ the size of California, yet it manages to have, next to Spain, the largest number of acres planted with vineyards. We will travel at length over the mountainous terrain of Italy to locate and savor its distinctive and enjoyable wines.

Wine Class 1: Piedmont

We start in Piedmont, a region that many regard, as Italy’s premier site for red wines.  Located in Italy’s northwest corner, it boasts nine prestigious DOCG wines (Italy’s top wine classification) – more than any other Italian wine region.

Piedmont is home to six major grape varieties known world-wide. We will taste and enjoy the distinctive qualities of these six varieties: the red Nebbiolo, Barbera and Dolcetto, and the white Moscato, Cortese, and Arneis. While two wines, Barolo and Barbaresco, both made from the Nebbiolo grape, steal the red wine show internationally, the people of the Piedmont are, themselves, partial to the Barbera and Dolcetto grapes for everyday drinking and more. We will taste them all and “visit” the local terroir, famous for its wines and its food.  

Wine Classes II: Tre-Venezie 

The name, Tre-Venezie, the “three Venices”, derives from the medieval period when Venice was a powerful commercial and military center governing over the three regions of Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto, and Friuli-Venezia Giulia.

 Many of us got our start in wine with the well-known threesome of the Veneto area, Soave, Bardolino, and Valpolicella. A lot has changed as world competition has forced up the quality of  these lower-priced wines, and has led to the addition of the tremendously successful Prosecco and Pinot Grigio wines, and the production of Italy’s best Chardonnays, Sauvignon Blancs, and Pinot Biancos. We will taste all of these in addition to the famous, lush, red Amarone wine.

Wine Classes III: Tuscany 

Tuscany is still “the center of the Italian wine universe” in most people’s view, though wine lovers from Piedmont, with its 9 DOCG wine appellations, may think otherwise. In the eyes of the world, Tuscany comes first for its historical reputation and the fame of its Chianti Classico, Brunello di Montalcino and, more recently, its Super-Tuscans. These are the most important wines made from Italy’s most widely planted varietal, the red Sangiovese grape. 

Spend an evening getting to know Tuscany’s bold and exciting wines – many bearing the most melodious names in the wine world - such as Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Vernaccia di San Gemignano!

Wine Class IV: Southern Italy, Sicily and Sardinia

Like the rest of Italy, but more so, Southern Italy’s winemaking has been undergoing a revolution in the quality of its winemaking practices and its wines. Southern Italy’s revolution, however, got started in the 1990’s, about 20 years after the rest of the country. Due to this revolution, the world has discovered two things about this region: first, it can produce quality wines; and second, the region offers many native varieties that have character, are distinctively Italian, and offer a welcome change to the all-too-familiar international varieties.

So hang on as we explore this “new” land and its distinctive wines: Aglianicos, Falanghinas, and Greco di Tufos from Campania, Negroamaros and Primitivos from Puglia, Nero d’Avolas from Sicily, and Vermentinos and Cannonaus from Sardinia. Unknown in the US ten years ago, little known today, these wines will fill your wine shop’s shelves in the future.