Ep. 1942 Nebbiolo Rosé, Negro Amaro by Brie Dema | Italian Grape Geek

The Italian wine podcast is the community driven platform for Italian winegeeks around the world. Support the show by donating at italian wine podcast dot com. Donate five or more Euros, and we'll send you a copy of our latest book, my Italian Great Geek journal. Absolutely free. To get your free copy of my Italian GreatGeek journal, click support us at italian wine podcast dot com, or wherever you get your pods. Welcome to the Italian GreatGeek Podcast. Join us as we explore personal stories of travel and tasting with Italy's must know grape varietals. Chart your own course with my Italian GreatGeek Journal. Your personal tasting companion to accompany the series. Available now on Amazon. With thanks to Colangelo and partners for their generous support with this project. Hi. My name is Brie Dema. I'm proud to be a Vineidgley International Wine Academy, Italian Wine Ambassador. I've also studied with the WSET and hold my diploma. I'm an advanced sommelier with the Court of Master Smallier as well. Why is both my passion and my career? I work with the Pearl Hospitality Group in Ontario, Canada, assisting in creating world class wine and beverage programs for their many properties. I am also a wine educator, and I like to write about wine for quench, a multi faceted wine and culture, magazine, and website. Okay. So today, I'd like to talk to you about several important Italian wine grapes, those that I had the pleasure of writing about in the publication Italian wine unplugged two point o. The course textbook that accompanies the Ben Italy International Academy's Italian wine Ambassador and X vert certifications. So the first grape on my list today is the grape Neviolo Rotay. In terms of its origin and the location where you can find it, it is found in the north of Italy in Piedmont, Lombardi, and Valdosta. In the early two thousands, it was shown to be a distinct variety from Nebula, not a biotype as previously assumed. It makes sense to discuss it in relation to Nebula since it has this longest standing connection and it does share a first degree genetic relationship with Nebula. Due to its characteristics, which I will touch on shortly, it has been uprooted in the vineyards of rural and barbaresco specifically, in favor of Nebula Loews Lampia and Michelle, which many will know are Nebula's main biochase. Many producers cite the character in the finished wine made from Nebula Rosay as the main reason for uprooting it rather than it being difficult to grow. In terms of the characteristics in the vineyard, Nebula Rosade differs from Nebula in several ways. It brightens earlier, and for that reason has the nickname Nebula Martine. Matine refers to the morning as in it as an early riser. It is very vigorous. It has a larger leaf and a more compact bunch with pale red almost pink berries. It's not as susceptible to spring weather challenges, such as Miller Andreas or Kudur. And it is also generally more drought resistant than Nebula grape. In terms of the characteristics in the glass, Nebula Rosay gives a wine that is pale ruby in color. On the nose, it's very aromatic. With aromas and flavors of tart red fruits like cherry, pungent spice, and very elevated floral tones like rose and violet. On the palette, it has less acidity and tannin. It gives less structure and is lighter bodied than nebbiolo. Often, it's used sparingly as a blending component with Nebula adding perfume and elegance to the wine. In terms of its significance, I think due to this historic unpopularity of giving a paler, lighter wine compared to Nebula, it will likely remain as a minor blending companion in the wines of Burlo and Vargoresco. Maybe fashion and climate change might alter that fate as consumers may shift to perfume and elegance and growers might want to work with more drought resistant grapes in the future, and we shall see only time we'll tell. There is one producer, Elvio Cono, who does Hager hat on Nebula Rosay as they proudly bottle a hundred percent mono varietal example, which is their Vigna Ellen of bottling. Naviola Rosay also sees more plantings in areas like the warmest dries sites of Salt Lane hunt, and some producers like Marquesi De Grassei from Barbara Esco do include a more significant proportion in their wines. In terms of my personal connection with the grape, I have been fortunate to taste several vintages of the Vigna Elena Vurolo, which comes from a small plot in the Revara crew. It's a beautiful wine. It's pale. It has a generous flavor profile and a very inviting nose. Outside of that, I've experienced it in blends, such as Marquesas de Graces, Barbara. I've encountered it in this way, both in my home market of Ontario, Canada, as well as through tastings and experiences with the Italy. I think I found it quite interesting when I was reading about the grape, that it really was only recently discovered to be its own variety rather than a biotype of nebbiolo. And I wonder if it will gain popularity in the future in Italy or elsewhere. To my knowledge, I don't believe anybody internationally is working with the grape at this time. For the benchmark producers that you should be seeking out, as I mentioned, Elvio Conio and Marquesa de Grayse. Both the Vigna Elena Barolo and Marquesa de Graysees, Barbara and Normale bottlings have beautiful floral noses that I just love. When you think about the grape in terms of the dinner table, there are several piedmontese dishes and ingredients that come to mind. One being the rich pasta dish tajarin, a pasta made with a significant, proportion of egg yolk and flat to flour. It's often served in a brown butter or similarly rich sauce. If you're feeling indulgent, you can shape some local white truffles on this and you'll have a match made in heaven. Hi there. It's Bree here. I am back to talk to you about another grape. This time we're gonna head south, and we'll be talking about the grape Negro Amaro. So it is a grape found as I said in Southern Italy, mostly in Julia, but you can also find it and come Kanya and basilicata. Storytelling alludes to it having Greek origins. It's not necessarily proven though. Nonetheless, it pairs a very long history with the Pulia area. They are very much intertwined. This history is why Negro Omaro is enshrined in the many DOJs of Poulia such as Felicia Salento, Visano, Cuanzano, and LeBron. In terms of the characteristics in the vineyard, Negro Omaro is known to be quite productive. We might say it's on the easier side in terms of Viticulture. It can manage well in many different soils, but it does excel when it's grown in calcareous clay. It is fairly disease and drought resistant as well. One feature that might help you recognize it in the vineyard is that it has dark, almost blue black berries. The skins have remarkably high levels of polyphenols, one of which is resveratrol, which many know is touted as having antioxidant health benefits. In terms of the characteristics of Neguro Amaro in the glass, I'd say that the trade off to its ease in the vineyard is that if it's not managed properly, it can produce simple and rustic wines. But when we find it at its best as a red table wine, it's medium to deep ruby, has aromas and flavors of black cherry plum and tobacco with moderate to high acidity and generous tannins and alcohol. It is often however made as a roseatto wine. Here it has a deep pink hue. It is intensive flavor with vibrant red cherry, strawberry, blood orange, and herbal notes. It is not the typical pale rose style that I find many consumers in my market gravitate towards, but it's a style that I love, and I hope it gains popularity outside of its home region. Malthasea Nara or Uva Detroita are typically used as its minority blending partners. The former being very aromatic. And a ladder, quite vibrant, and uplifting. In terms of my personal connection to the grape for the red table versions, I've had many, mostly from the Salice Salento doc. They are very pleasant wines overall. Wines that I would prefer to enjoy in their relative youth in order to capture their kind of boisterous fruit flavors. I'm also very, very fond of the rosanna wines, as I said, specifically the drier ones though. The sweet versions do tend to have slightly masked flavors in my opinion. We have several producers available in our market for both Red and Rosado, but I would still say that it is a somewhat underrepresented grape in the Canadian market. When I was learning about the grape, I found it interesting to learn that it was one of the grapes responsible for the wines that would be shipped from the south from Pulia to regions in the north in order to strengthen some lighter styles of wine. This practice is perhaps in the not so distant past, actually. For benchmark producers of Nego Omaro, we can include Leon De Castro. Their claim to fame being that they were the first Italian winery to commercially sell an Italian Rosado. This is recorded all the way back in, nineteen forty three. We're seeking out our Acacola Cosimo Torino, Rosa de golfo, and Agricola Valone, all from Pulia. For ways to enjoy Negro amaro at the dinner table, For the risotto versions, you can try it with burrata, which is a local soft cheese. It's made from mozzarella and cream. The richness of the cheese would really benefit from being cut with the freshness of the risotto wine. You can also try the risotto with Hopeta de ricotta, which is a fluffy fried ball made from bread, ricotta, and parmesan. That's typically served hot as a snack. For the red negro tomorrow, you can pair it with four kiazza pasta or with the local street food Panserati, which is essentially a pizza that is molded into a pocket and usually fried. Listen to the Italian wine podcast wherever you get your podcasts. We're on SoundCloud Apple Podcasts, Spotify email IFM, and more. Don't forget to subscribe and rate the show. If you enjoy listening, please consider donating through Italianline podcast dot com. Any amount helps cover equipment, production, and publication costs. Until next time, Chitching.