Bottega del Vini

Ah Verona, Italy…the ancestral home of Romeo and Juliet. This gorgeous city in northwest Italy is home to arguably the greatest wine bar in the world, Bottega del Vini. This unassuming taverna has one of the best Italian wine cellars on the planet that stretches under the streets of the ancient city. The owner has a special repoire with many of the local producers who bottle wines especially for him in many sizes. Perhaps the best part about it is that there are always 30-40 different wines available by the glass and the list changes regularly. It gets so crowded at times that folks spill out onto the street, wine glasses in hand. So if you find yourself in Verona, simply ask any of the locals where it is. They all know it.

Wine and Herbs

Herbs add so much flavour to food. Here are some great wine/herb matches. For Chardonnay, use chervil, fennel, sage or tarragon! Riesling needs dill, hyssop or parsley while Sauvignon Blanc best meshes with basil, oregano, sage and tarragon. Pinot Gris adores coriander but Pinot Grigio deserves thyme. Chenin Blanc loves dill and Gewurztraminer digs mint, winter savory or coriander. For reds, Cabernet Sauvignon values basil, bay leaf, rosemary and thyme while Cab Franc cuddles up to parsley. For Pinot Noir, check out lavender, thyme and rosemary or meld Gamay with parsley and basil. Merlot, how about fennel and basil? Syrah or Shiraz, you’re all about winter savory, lavender and rosemary.

Eau de Vie

Eau de vie is a French term for a clear, colorless fruit brandy, other than grape, that is produced by means of fermentation and distillation. The finished product is often quickly bottled to preserve the freshness and aroma of the parent fruit. Examples are Poire (pear), Mirabelle (yellow plum), Pomme (apple), Framboise (raspberry), Kirsch (cherry) and Fraise (strawberry). Some producers age them a bit, especially in oak, like Calvados. Variations from other countries include Akvavit, Slovovitz, and Schnapps. Generally, they’re not sweet and the fruit flavor is typically very light. Ideal as a digestif after a meal, you’d best sip sparingly as they’re usually 40+% alcohol and pack quite a punch. Cheers!

Amarone

One of my all time favourite, Italian wines is Amarone. Born in the Veneto region of Italy, this big, rich red is made from Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara grapes that are dried out like raisins, concentrating the sugars and flavours. Then fermented to a bone-dry state, the wine is ripe, raisiny, high in alcohol, rarely released until five years after the vintage and extremely age-worthy. Check it out with game, especially venison, or try it with pot roast, beef stroganoff, full-flavoured risottos and aged salamis. It loves mature cheeses! With Parmigiano Reggiano and a drop or two of Balsamic vinegar, it’s a religious experience. You can even poach pears in it or include it in chocolate cake. Yummy!

Tawny Port for the Holidays

I love Tawny port for the holidays. Named Tawny, because long periods in barrel render it a tawny hue, several styles exist. A Tawny of Indicated Age comes in 10, 20, 30 and 40+ year designations. The number on the bottle reflects the average age of the wine within. Date of Harvest or Colheita Tawny is from a single year and will show that year on the label. In both styles, the year of bottling must appear somewhere on the package. Tawnies are extremely elegant with lots of toffee, raisin, nutty, figgy, date-like flavours. Older versions are like sipping liquid, Kraft caramels and are to die for. Great on their own or with desserts, nuts and stinky cheese, they’re absolutely scrumptious.

Bringing Wine to Dinner

With the holidays, come dinner invitations and one usually likes to bring along a bottle of wine. However, more often than not, the wine you bring doesn’t get opened as the host already has another few in mind to match the meal. This proves frustrating as you may have pulled something special or rare from your cellar or purchased a specific bottle for the event that you really want to taste. What to do? To ensure your wine is opened at the dinner, the “Good Doctor” suggests this. Call ahead and ask the host what the menu is because you want to bring a unique bottle to match a dish. This subtle gesture is viewed as considerate almost always ensuring that the wine you bring will be consumed.

Unusual Icewine

There was a time here in Canada when Icewine was only produced from Riesling, Vidal and occasionally Gewurztraminer. Today, however, Icewine is made from many grape varieties. Whites include Seyval Blanc, Chardonnay, Kerner, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Blanc, Semillon and Ehrenfelser. Some work better than others because of their fruitiness. Even more astonishing are the reds: Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Sangiovese and even Syrah/Shiraz. It’s hard to envision the tannin and earthy notes of many reds translating well to this naturally frozen nectar, but somehow they do. Either way, you should try some of these odd, varietal Icewines. They’re an unusual delight.