Anthony Giglio, also the official blogger at Vino 2011, is always a fun wine educator/entertainer and mesmerizing speaker. I attended the Prosecco seminar, which introduced the new quality wine laws and gave a sampling of Prosecco from many quality levels and price points.    

Ugo Chiola Mr. Chiola, producer of Barolo and an incredibly delicious rose wine made from Nebbiolo grapes, was energetic and lively during the 10 – 2 session of producers looking for American distribution. His wines were incredibly crafted, yet his personal story is larger — he owns a spa and hotel adjacent to his winery, [...]

Daniele of … a few years back, I was blind tasting Italian wine and came across a delicious white I later discovered was Vernaccia di San Gimignano. This is an incredible wine made from grapes grown in the special soil of the area, and  a deep golden color produced by compounds in the grape skins. [...]

So Bill Nesto MW lead the very popular seminar "Diversity of Lombardy" today. It was called ‘the ten faces of Italian wine’ and sure enough ten producers showed off their wines, all from the Lombardy region. Some of the grapes were obscure, but delicious. Other grapes, such as the Pinot Nero Oltrepo Pavese DOC "Pernice" [...]

Angelo Cotugno … so I spent my morning at the Waldorf meeting the different producers who were here looking for distributors. This 1- – 2 event was an exclusive tasting of cutting edge and traditional producers. I was drawn to Angelo’s table as he had three types (and price points) of Nero D’Avola – one [...]

  Cantina di Soave … I’ve had the occasion to taste some interesting whites this week, and all four of them would be perfect for to accompany dishes for a Thanksgiving dinner. Let’s go to Italy for the first. Cantina di Soave produces two "Soave" wines, both with very different taste profiles. If you are [...]

  So I just received two wines today from producer Arnaldo-Caprai. The Grecante, a white, is 100% Grechetto from Dei Colli Martani.  This is a delicious white wine with a light straw color and intense nose of very ripe golden melon and a spritz of yellow grapefruit skin. On the palate, medium body with refreshing [...]

  Curious, isn’t it, the way that wine drinking in America goes through phases? Decades ago "Soave" was a very popular imported wine due to its mass market television advertising. Many wine geeks today recognize that Soave is a DOC in Northern Italy, and that the grape is garganega, but thirty odd years ago its [...]

"If your winery is biodynamic," asks a woman of Nicola Rossi, University professor and board member of the Azienda Agricola Cefalicchio winery in Puglia, "doesn’t that mean you have to plant according to the setting of the moon … or something like that?" Handsome and well spoken Rossi laughs the question off with a shrug, [...]

  "I really like this wine!" Such were the exclamations of surprise at a trade tasting today when several enthusiastic producers brought their wine to New York for the first of what is sure to be many Puglia wine weeks. What is a wine week? It’s a way to swirl and sip your way through [...]

Very excited to introduce you in this email to the lovely and very passionate Egle Armani, the wife (and spokeswoman) for the Albino Armani winery she owns with her husband. A few other journalists and I gathered together to taste her wines and hear her story at Dan Meyers new Maialino restaurant in Gramercy Park. [...]

  … so very excited to go on my first trip with the Association of Wine Educators (ASE). I have already met a few of them at UK related events and am curious to learn more about the Valpolicella region Also very excited that Michelle Shaw is leading the group – I had last seen [...]

  … as a loyal student of ancient roman culture, it was quite a treat to listen to speaker Maurizio de Rosa, export Manager of Feudi de San Gregorio, not just speak about ancient romans as if they were next-door neightors, yet also animate his slide presentation with busts of ancient roman emperors. Very excited [...]

Banfi Brunello Tasting So there is nothing quite like driving up to a romantic Italian castle in a private chauffeured limousine on a gorgeous sunny day – unless that includes tasting some of the world’s best wine. Now the Italian castle in question is Castello Banfi, known in the 13th century as Poggio alle Mura. [...]

Review of Collio   One of the more indulgent pleasures in today’s frenzied world (especially when it comes to the tiny kitchens of Manhattan) is to buy a glossy cooking magazine with mouth-watering photographs of incredibly decadent cuisine, and just sit there, savoring a glass of wine as you read the recipe and pretend you [...]

Pietro Ratti Tom Maresca and Charles Scicilone of New York’s Wine Media Guild have done the impossible — they have put together a fantastic tasting of 2005 Barolos with Pietro Ratti, son of the late Renato Ratti and owner of the family winery in La Morra, to come to NY and speak to us. Overall, [...]

Professor Attilio Scienza Seminar Tasting "The Italians seem so happy to be here in New York," says a friend, after the Friday night close of the Italian Wine Exchange Grand Tasting. "Why is  that?" Yes, it’s true – the Italians did really seem happy to be here and have the opportunity to share their wine [...]

Vino 2010 Italian Wine Week … so I am on my way to the opening of New York, February 3, 2010 I had spent the opening day (February 3) in the Napa Valley at a conference related to the Masters of Wine (though happily we did have an Italian wine seminar with many examples of [...]

  “Why is Barolo so expensive!” I remember asking a savvy clerk in my local wine store, fresh from my first class in Italian wines. As an exuberant young student I had been eager to taste the regions I studied, yet the upper-market wines from Piedmont seemed totally out of reach. Even the new vintages [...]

Italy is one of the world’s most imported wines, and for good reason – the country boasts more than 1000 different varieties of grapes. Many collectors swoon for their Barolo and Barbaresco, high-acid, long lived wines that pack a powerful…