An Evening of Tuscan Delights

But as it happens, our first two wines aren’t from Tuscany at all. The entrance wine will be a brut sparkling Prosecco from the Veneto in northeast Italy. This dry but fruity wine should make a fine aperitif. The next wine is a 100% Verdicchio from Marche. Its crisp acidity and fresh, appley flavor should go splendidly with food. All the other wines are from Tuscany. The first is a 2004 Chianti, a blend of 60% Sangiovese with several other Italian grapes. Next is a 2002 Chianti Classico, 95% Sangiovese and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. The practice of adding a little Cab as “seasoning” to Sangiovese goes back at least to the 1960s when Count Bonacossi began
doing it at his Carmignano winery near Florence. After the Chiantis, we move on to a 2003 Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, made from 90% Prugnolo (a local synonym for Sangiovese) and 10% other Tuscan red grapes. This will be followed by two wines from Montalcino: a 2004 Rosso and a 2001 Brunello, both 100% Sangiovese. The final wine of the evening will be a 2002 Vin Santo, made from Trebbiano and Malvasia grapes. This rich dessert wine, with its dried apricot, vanilla and almond flavors, should prove a marvelous finale.

The purveyor of all these wines, and this month’s speaker, is Chris Zimmerman, also known as “Luca Santoro,” regional manager of Vias Imports, Ltd. Vias specializes in imports from small, high-quality wineries, especially those in Italy. Chris is a fervent devotee of Italian wine. He has worked for over 20 years in developing markets for wines that few Americans had ever heard of. His willingness to share his expertise, enhanced by over 30 trips to Italy, will surely make our
evening informative as well as convivial.

Notes on Sangiovese
Many of the finest Tuscan wines are made largely from the Sangiovese grape. These include the Chiantis, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano (not to be confused with wines made from the Montepulciano grape, which grows predominantly in the east-central part of Italy). But not all Sangiovese makes great wine. Like all ancient grapes, this ‘Blood of Jove’ has many clones. Some poor ones produce dull, rustic wines with little flavor. But the finest Sangiovese wines exhibit the characteristic flavors of bitter cherry, violets and tea, along with high acidity and prominent tannins. Sangiovese loves oak, and will often age gracefully. As with most wines, the key to finding a good Sangiovese is
choosing a quality producer.

November’s Featured Restaurant
The food samples at the November program will be provided by La Vita é Bella, 2411 2nd Ave., in Seattle’s Belltown. This authentic Sicilian trattoria and pizzeria is owned by partners and life-long friends Giuseppe Forte and Corino Bonjnada, both from Palermo. With an emphasis on traditional Sicilian seafood preparations, La Vita é Bella offers a wide variety of salads, antipasti, bruschette, pasta, pizza and crepes, not to mention freshly made cannoli. Of particular interest to Wine Society members is the availability of 30 or so wines by the glass, as well as a broad selection of Italian bottled wines. Another plus is that La Vita é Bella is open from early morning until late evening. In addition to the Belltown café, Giuseppe and Corino have two other spots: Ristorante Mondello, 2435 33rd Ave W, #3, in Seattle’s Magnolia district, and Di Vino, a wine and tapas bar at 5310 Ballard Ave. NW. Their devotion to quality ingredients and authentic preparations is the same at all three restaurants.

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