Ritmodivino was present in this gala evening in the beautiful rooms of the Excelsior hotel in Via Parthenope, too. We will tell you how this wonderful review was, including all the wines and gastronomic excellences we tried, awaiting the appointment of the next May.
As a wine magazine, we at Ritmodivino could not miss Anteprima Vitigno Italia 2019, an event that is a prelude to the May meetings at Castel dell’Ovo, Naples. Together with the accredited press, we made – as usual – an excursus of some of the major Italian wineries and Campania food and wine.
In a city where the first Christmas scents start to arrive and welcomed in the splendid setting of the Naples gulf, we begin our tasting evening here at the Hotel Excelsior in Via Parthenope.
Our tour
Trentino Alto Adige
We move on from the tasting of different Muller Thurgau, Gewurztraminer and Kerner , but we are impressed – in particular – by the Weissburgunder (Pinot Blanc) of the Meran Kellerei.
A fresh and elegant wine, suitable for every season both as a conversation wine and as a table wine. Of intense aromas, the Pinot of this company (the cost is about 12 euros) stands out on the other two samples of the company wines: a Moscato Giallo and Gewurztraminer.
We also make a special mention to their Kerner, a very good wine but still little known.
Umbria
We start with the taste of Montefalco Rosso and Sagrantino di Montefalco , both of Pambuffetti’s Azienda Agraria Scacciadiavoli. The first is a blend of Sangiovese and Sagrantino, a blend that slightly dilutes the body of Sagrantino, making it suitable for all palates.
Warm and enveloping wines that bring to mind the aromas and flavors of this region.
We leave Montefalco descending towards the town of Torgiano and we allow ourselves to be delighted by the Lungarotti wines. Elegant wines, among which the Rubesco stands out also in the reserve version. Always based on Sangiovese, they strike for a softness that tells the terroir.
Tuscany
Next stop is Carpineto , one of the most representative Tuscan wine-makers.
Of this reality we knew (and particularly appreciated) their Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. This time, however, we were delighted by their Chianti Classico Riserva 2013.
A wine awarded with a 94/100 on Winespectator, is a nectar of extraordinary balance. Elegant, warm and wide, it is a classy wine.
We remain in Tuscany with the winery of the Marchesi dei Frescobaldi , whose Chianti (Classic, Riserva and Rufina) are on display. The latter one is an excellent wine, with marked notes of wood and tobacco, obtained from a vieille vigne and marketed as Nipozzano.
Veneto
Break: a bit of Campania gastronomy!
Because of a temporary addiction of taste buds, we decide to take a break, stopping in the section dedicated to the stands of the gastronomy of Campania.
We then taste the excellent artisan cured meats from the Cillo butcher’s shop in Airola, in the province of Benevento, ranging from a magnificent ham cooked to mortadella, sandwiched with a salami of black pig from Caserta and, to great surprise, a very good frankfurter.
From the meat we pass to fishes, giving us a treat of the excellent Upstream salmon by Claudio Cerati. A Nordic tasting fish, filleted in front of us and presented in smoked and natural versions.
Salmon comes directly from the Faroe Islands and is processed without antibiotics or dyes.
We close our break with some sweet delights, starting with the chocolate of the renowned Gallucci chocolate shop in Naples. Then we continue with the artisan panettone of the farm Villa Rosa di Francesco and Peppe Guida (Penisola Sorrentina) and then we finish the tour with the pistachio cake of the pastry Di Costanzo.
Abruzzo
The first one is their base wine, the Wine of the Tralcetto, then we find the cru, the Chronicon. In all cases, Montepulciano surprises for its pleasantness, its warmth and its typical hints of vanilla.
Lazio and Campania
The last stages of this evening is dedicate to Lazio and Campania regions.
From Campania, in addition to taste the wines of the region (Greek, Fiano, Pallagrello and Aglianico), we taste the only anphorate of the evening: the Quartara di Lunarossa. This is a pure fiano, evolved in clay amphorae, which give it the typical hints of terracotta.
Before moving to Lazio, there is time to meet many of the friends who welcomed us in their cellars, from Alois to Salvatore Martusciello, passing through the Tenuta Cavalier Pepe and Ventitré Filari.
We then close with the Casale del Giglio company in Ferriera di Latina (LT), which produces – unique in Italy – a version of the Spanish Tempranijo. Well known for its Mater Matuta (not on display), Casale del Giglio offers us an excellent intense and persistent Shiraz with hints of blueberries.
In conclusion
A wonderful evening that anticipates the big news coming in the wine sector for the year 2019.
A big news, presented here at the Excelsior, is the new Enosocial app, which allows visitors to buy – in real time – the bottles for tasting, at the prices defined by the manufacturer.
