Italian wines are a mystery to many people, even many wine lovers. Most signature varietals are not all that well known in the U.S., such as Nebbiolo, Barbera, and Corvina. And while white wines like Pinot Grigio are often good for drinking alone, the reds are usually not made for sipping but for pairing with high-acid Italian foods. Many make the mistake of trying to drink them alone. To top it off, Italy’s premium reds, like Barolo and Barbaresco, usually carry premium price tags, costing $40 and up per bottle. While many of the less expensive reds can be unexciting.
However, in recent decades, innovative Italian winemakers have been focused on making wines that are a bit more approachable for an American market, moving beyond traditional approaches that are supported by regulations. By law wines that deviated from with regulations could only carry the words “table wine”—providing no information on varietals. Innovators in Tuscany decided to make some great table wines—blending in international grape varieties. These wines received notice, and people began to informally call them “Super Tuscans.” Accordingly, wine regulators in Italy created a special regulatory class for such innovative wines, which now carry the label “Indicazione Geografica Tipica” or IGT. Now IGT wines are made throughout Italy, and they often offer more bang for the buck.
One such wine is the 2007 Tenuta Cocci Grifoni Tellus Marche Rosso, which comes from the Marche region of Italy. This region is located on the Adriatic coast at Italy’s midsection near the better known region of Abruzzo. This wine is a blend of the Italian grape Montepulciano, which is native to that area, along with international grape varieties of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The result is an Italian wine with a bit more a modern appeal. It offers rich flavors of dark fruit and some earth. For more information on the area and winery, see The Tenuta Cocci Grifoni website. It is hard to find reviews on line, but it was available for tasting at Bell Wine and Spirits recently and showed very well, better than to be expected given its price point of $15.99 at Bell Wine and Spirits.
But innovation with Italian wine grapes is not only happening in Italy! Some winemakers in the U.S. are making terrific wines with Italian grapes. The Graziano Family of Wines makes Enotria Dolcetto in California’s Mendocino region. Enotria means, land of wine, which is how many have described Italy because grape vines grow in every part of the nation. The Enotria line of wines is the Graziano family’s wines made with grapes that originally came from Italy’s Piedmont region, where the family’s grandfather once grew grapes.
According to the winery website, “this wine is medium dark purple with inviting fruit flavors and aromas of blackberries, raspberries and dried cherries that mingles with undertones of sweet vanilla oak and earth. The finish is complex and long lasting.” It is indeed rich and full of flavor, more so than many Italian Dolcetto wines at this price point from Italy. The 2007 Enotria Dolcetto retails for $16.99 at Bell Wine and Spirits. It is also available at The Wine Seller in Williamsburg, Virginia should you happen to be out that way.
