Manuela Piancastelli and Peppe Mancini are hosting a tasting of five of their wines at my law office: 2011 Ambruco, 2013 Centomoggia, 2012 Roseto del Volturno, 2011 Piancastelli and 2014 Le Serole. These certified organic wines are made from three obscure ancient grapes cultivated only in the Southern part of the Caserta
A wine blog should provide expert tasting notes. Do not expect me to be the one to produce such notes; I know what I like but I have difficulty explaining the varied smells and tastes. Fortunately, my cousin Michael Bonadies, can provide professional tasting notes. As followers of my blog
Here is the wine and olive oil menu: Wine Fruscio 2014, produced by Contea di Sylva Mala which is located part way on Mt. Vesuvio. Fruscio is a blend of the coda di volpe and falanghina grapes. It is the only white wine on the menu. Per’ E Palummo 2014,
On my first six trips to Southern Italy I visited Basilicata (the Region of my heritage) and Campania (the Region of many new friends). This past autumn, my seventh trip, I visited the Region of Puglia, which is located at the heel in the boot of Italy. Italy is comprised of 20 Regions;
Through the years we have purchased, consumed and gifted many bottles of wine from Southern Italy. From each of the approximate 50 wineries we have visited over the past 7 years we have purchased their wines from a variety of places; wine stores in Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey and Italy. The
Giulia Restaurant in Cambridge, MA http://www.giuliarestaurant.com is the real deal; all Italian cuisine, both the food and the wine. Roseann and I had a most enjoyable dining experience at Giulia’s this evening. We ate at the bar because reservations are not available until one month from today. The restaurant opens at
Over the past seven years of visits to wineries in Southern Italy we have observed many organic methods; common ones such as no chemical fertilizers or pesticides; ones less obvious such as colonizing the cellar with native yeast instead of adding yeasts from the outside; use of natural products to secure vines with old
As I prepared for the 12th annual tasting for my Krokidas & Bluestein colleagues (photo above is from last year’s tasting), I reflected on how the tasting has evolved. At the first tasting I was asked whether I had visited any of the wineries; the answer was no. But the question prompted
Roseann, Karen and I spent two weeks in Southern Italy this past fall. Roseann’s sister Cathy and her husband Mel joined us part way through the trip. The first two days we stayed at Lo Scrigno B&B, a short walk to the center of Montemiletto, Avellino. The B&B, which is centrally located in
Happy Thanksgiving! Here is our wine list; we are having 25 people for dinner. From left to right: Ciro Picariello, Fiano di Avellino 2014 Casebianche, La Matta 2013 Casa di Baal, Aglianico di Baal 2011 Salvatore Magnoni, Primalaterra 2013 Reale, Cardamone 2013 Le Vigne di Raito , Ragis 2011 Terre