Ep. 935 Alberto Pezzuoli | Wine, Food & Travel With Marc Millon

Welcome to the Italian wine podcast. This episode is brought to you by Vinitally International Academy, announcing the twenty fourth of our Italian wine Ambassador courses to be held in London, Austria, and Hong Kong, from the twenty seventh to the twenty ninth of July. Are you up for the challenge of this demanding force? Do you want to be the next Italian wine Ambassador? Learn more and apply now at viniti international dot com. Welcome to this special five star wines and wine without walls series on wine food and travel with me, Mark Millen, on Italian wine podcast. For the next weeks, we will be focusing on a dozen trophy winning wineries from the competitions that took place in verona. The start of Min Italy in early April. The winning wines are without doubt some of the very best that Italy has to offer. What I'm most interested in discovering are the stories behind the bottles, learning about the wines themselves, of course, and also about people who make them. Where they're from, what they eat, how they live. It's a fascinating journey that will take us all across Italy, and I hope you will join me. Welcome to wine food and travel with me, Mark Millen, on Italian wine podcast. In this special five star wines and wine without walls edition, I'm delighted to shine a spotlight on Asiana, Acricola, Cantira Petuoli, in Emilio Romagna, which is just one, the the best semi sparkling wine award. At the prestigious five star wines competition that took place in Venetaly in April. My guest today is Alberto Petsually, who joins me from Maranello near Modena in the heart of the Po valley. One of the great gastronomic regions of Italy. Chow Alberto, many congratulations on this important award, and thanks for being my guest today. Thank you, Mark. Thank you. And thank you for, the congratulations. Oh, wait. Well, it's a great achievement. My aim today is to help our listeners to learn the story behind the bottle of wines that you make. So first of all, can we begin talking about where you are? What the landscape is like, what your world is like. You're not far off a famous Roman road, the via Imilia. So you live and work in a land that's been traveled for thousands of years, and which has been the source of really excellent wines for thousands of years. Tell us about it. Yes, Mark. My my one is a family of Guanery, and, we are located in Marlado. We are, via Emilia. I just thought that this is very famous for, food and beverage. Our core business is, Lambrusco. And, we are very happy this year to won this profit in Italy. That is the best, Italian manifestation of wine. With the ninety three point with Peter Scooter, the vessels, sparkling wine. With Marilani is located the hour winery in, in the middle, in at the feet of the hills of Moderna in the south part of EMEA road, and these lands are located for this type of Lambrusco, DOC. The terrar is a middle claim terrar, and, it's And the climate is a Mediterranean climate. It's very good to produce, of course, labdrosco. Okay. Well, we're so we're really right in the heart of the Terady Lambrusco. Lambrusco being the principal grape variety, though there are in fact a a number of different types of Lambrusco. Yeah. Tell us tell us in general about Lambrusco. Why it makes such extraordinary wines where you are why your terroir is so well suited to Lambrusco and why the wine itself is connected not just to the territory, but to the way of life, food, and everything. I think in Italy, we have a lot of extraordinary type of wines and extraordinary food. And in each region, there is a very good pairing between food and and the wine. In our region, we have, Landruzco, different type, as you told, Casperosa, Sabarra, and Salabinic Modena. And, and the food is very it's very fat food. And so, Lombrozco is is, acidity with its freshness and rangers is is, very good to pair it with, for example, tortellini Tagliatelle, or also some second, like a ham or a a boil meat. And it's a fantastic pairing from, food and wine in the same in the same city and the region. Okay. So just to be clear to our listeners, Lambrusco and your award, we're talking about a Vino Frizante, a fizzy semi sparkling wine, a category in a style of wine that's perhaps less familiar for us outside of Italy. But in your region, this Vino Fritzante is very, very important. How do you make a red wine of Vino Fritzante? What is the process? Can you tell us a little bit about how you make the world? All all Lambrusco dopi are, spartan or semi sparkling wine. It's one of of the many characteristics of this type of, of wine. We normally we have two different methods to to become a spark in the wine in my winery, at now, and Geter Scura is a make make by this, this way is a shall match method, with, in the second fermentation. We'll, we'll use a shall match metal. With the iron tank that take the they take pressure, and they transform the list in, starting. Okay. So the tank method allows that fruit and that freshness to be maintained, which is very important to Lambriscoe. Yes. We we don't have the body of the, for example, to scan a red or some other wines, but we have, our main characteristic are the the the freshness the the the smell and, the happiness to drink, a bottle of Nebraska. Okay? A glass of Beautiful glass of foaming red wine. Yeah. Can be different colors depending on the variety. Let's talk about your award winning wine. And you say it's reserve for your friends. This is a sort of wine alberto. I'm imagining that you love to get together with your bestmates, open a bottle, have a table full of these wonderful foods you've just described, and just drink it. Is that right? Tell us about this. Yeah. We use this, Reservato, and yamiche, because for for us to represent it very well, the, the spirit of drink, a a glass of flambrose because it's, Namruzco is not making meditate wine. Okay. It's it's a you have to drink it. You have to enjoy it. And so what what is the best to enjoy it? Think it's with friends. With a good company and with friends. And so we use this appilation. That's that is very famous. Our Peter Scura is, Lambruso with has got the a rich ruby red with the purple reflection and the form is persistent, and the the bouquet the bouquet is very it's a very grade of, red fruits. Okay. Also, the taste is, dry, but with a good acidity, but it's, at the end, it's a very, very round wine. It's not a very good roundness wine. It's, a balance and then equibrate. Are you enjoying this podcast? Don't forget to visit our YouTube channel, mama jumbo shrimp for fascinating videos covering Stevie Kim and her travels across Italy and beyond, meeting winemakers, eating local food, and taking in the scenery. Now, back to the show. Okay. It sounds absolutely wonderful. And It's interesting. It's a it's a deep color, and, also, isn't it? It's a, a much fuller style of Lambrusco. Then, for example, another special wine of yours Also, is your lambrozco di sorbara. Let's talk about those two different styles of lambrozco and how the wines differ. How do grapes differ and the the whole style of of one? I, yes, I always, talk to my friend and customers that, the name of Lambrusco, it's it's global, but they are very different operation. Rasporosa and Servara, we start from the grapes. The grapes are very different. The grapes born in two different place. Survara in the flat, place in modern in the north part of Armenia, and the south part in the hill middle place. Starting from the grapes, if you press a battery of Grasparosa, your end will be violent. Okay. Instead, in Surbana, it's a little color. And so and after after the grapes, they, we we we have two different wine. We can't lavorated it, but all start from the grapes. We can take normally, serveara, stay less on, on the skin of of the grape. Instead, but all start from the grapes. Also, the characteristic of the the wines at the end for me that I know them are very, very different. Survada is, from the color that is, of course, is clear. Is, it's it's deeper. It's the deeper in LaBRusco. We have, in Solvara. More acidity. It's a little bit a typical wine because it's a very high acidity. And for, for a person who are who who isn't, a bit way to usually drink a Lambrusco, maybe it's not surrounded, surround like like like Okay. And then it's a little bit less less balance. Mhmm. For my taste, also survival is a fantastic wine. Yeah. I think it's important for for our listeners to really understand that Lambrusco is not one wine, but it's a range of wines of different styles, different levels of sweetness as well, which allow it to be enjoyed at different opportunities. And I'm I I love both the grass bar also and the sorbada, but completely different wines. That pale color of the sorbada, almost, a light rose in color, but still with that acidity, the foam, and then that contrast to the deep deeper color and little bit of tannin in the grass but also as well. Not aggressive ever, but you just feel it a bit in the mouth. Is that right? Yeah. Yes. Yeah. Of course. Yeah. Of course. No. It's very difficult to and to make me understand all over the world that that are one with Lambrusco, there is no only one wine, but there are several wines. Yeah. With different characteristics, different grapes. Yep. Yep. We hear the name Lambruscon. We think of one style of wine, but they're completely different grape varieties. Aren't they? Yeah. I I wanted, your area is is, really adapt at making this style of wine, the Vino Friesante, and I want to mention one other grape that I know you cultivate, which is increasingly we're beginning to see it. I think here in England and and abroad, which is the able to make both still and sparkling wines. Tell us a little bit about. Yes. Pioletto is, Pioletto is the name of of the wine. The grape's name is Grecque do gentile. And, it's the only, dop of white wine. In, in modern. It's, has got a a special characteristic, this, of, of, in the tasting, of this wine. And as you told before, you can make it, still, and sparring Normally still is, in the hill of bologna. It's a little bit heavy wine in moderna. Pinolletto, DOP of moderna is, is more, more, a little bit lighter, lighter. Okay. As a color, and they're also tasting. Okay. So these are styles of wine, whether it's the Lambruschi or the piñolato, especially the vini Frizante, that really above all have freshness relatively low in alcohol. Is that right? Normally numbers, it's about eleven, fifty also beyond Which means you can really open bottles with friends and voyage and finish them. And that backbone of acidity that you've mentioned, again, making them really great partners to this wonderful rich, cucina Miniana, this, the cucina Lodinah, of course, is world famous. There's so many So many wonderful foods to enjoy. Let's just talk about some of in more detail, some of those best foods to enjoy with your wines, with your Lambruschian, in particular. I think that you can Most of all in modern, you can pair it with all the food that we eat. From first course like Talia Tallarago or tortellini. And, maybe Talo talarago. I prefer a and tortellini. Maybe I prefer a survival. And you can enjoy with, ham, with, salami, general. And, Gotcha. Great selection of Salumi from your area. Yeah. The from just in modena, the prosciutto de modena, not as well known, of course, his parma, but a very, very fine prosciutto. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So that that's just a perfect nibble or with The mortadella from bologna in cubes. Again, wonderful to have with a glass of Lambrusco, the ideal. I guess you were saying as well that acidity that makes this wine just absolutely made to go with these sort of foods, these fattier foods. Yes. But I want to tell another thing that is to know the versatility of this wine. For for me, it's perfect also with meat, boiled meat, sorbara, heavy meat, red meat, grass perosa. But I think that Sorvara. For example, Sorvara Rosay. It's good also with fish. Oh, that's interesting. Shellfisher. With the shellfish, especially, it's a very good pairing. So you can drink this from the imperative and to all the courses, main courses you can have. And as I talked before, for food and the wines in in the region, maybe they they grow up together. Yes. Because, in modern, all what to normally eat in moderna, it's it's perfect with San Francisco. Yeah. I can see that. So even, another famous food for moderna, a winter food would be the this stuffed pig's foot that has this wonderful boiling salami meat, very rich, very good, boiled, and then laid on a bed of lentils, perhaps, a winter food, a food to have at Capodano. Would that be again a wine the Graspar also would be the one to have with the Zampone. As I told before, I when I I speak about the boy's meat, I'm thinking about Zampone and Cortekino. Yeah. I love them myself. You can put with Graspar also with Sarbao. It's the same perfect. It's the same. Again, that acidity helping to Yeah. Yeah. So as well, of course, the semi sweet or the the sweeter styles would go with the Dolce. What would be, an example of of a of a dessert or a Dolce that you might have with a with a sweeter style of Lambro School. Normally, I don't I I don't drink Lambroscope with the the surf. Okay. Because for for me, the sweet version of Lamrozco is for people that, love sweet wine, but they pairing as I pair with the same things, the, the dry wine. Oh, okay. Yeah. For me, of course, you can drink with the tiramisu, for example, and other dessert. But, I think that this got the viscoffee for, for me, the Landrozco is most of all is dry. All over the world is known as a also sweet wine. Mhmm. But, the real the the the the the Lambrusco waste style in modern and most of all is a dry one. The our semi sweet is, of course, it's, very close to a dry wine. We consider a dry wine. Yeah. Only for us. Yeah. For law, for ground sugar, it's a semi sweet tobacco. We can put also in the dry wine dish. Okay. That's important for people to understand because people have encountered lambrosco's that are that are quite sweet. And it's important to understand this that it's a food wine, not, not just a beverage to drink. It's me, sweet. And that in the region itself, that dry style is what goes so well with the foods, the genuine Lambrusco, which I think is still misunderstood perhaps internationally, and people need to come to the region, people need to have an ambassador such as yourself, explain the wines over the foods, and really experience why they're so wonderful in partnership with this fabulous, fabulous cuisine that, I mean, the cuisine of Amelia, of Amelia Romania, but a particularly around Moderna is known around the world as one of the great great cuisines, and this is a perfect line for it. Alberto, you've been a fabulous ambassador to telling us a story, not only of your wines, at at Agri Cola, Cantina Petuoli, but also explaining your your region, your world, and and your wine. So thank you very much for being my guest today. It's been a real pleasure to meet you, and I really look forward to coming to Maranello and visiting your seller and, perhaps, sharing a glass of this wonderful Yeah. Non brusco, Graspor also the cast of Metro with you. Of course, sir. Thank you, man. Thank you. Thank you. Thanks for listening to this episode of Italian wine podcast brought to you by Vineetli Academy, home of the gold standard of Italian wine education. Do you want to be the next ambassador? Apply online at Vineetli International dot com. For courses in London, Austria, and Hong Kong, the twenty seventh to the twenty ninth of July. Remember to subscribe and like Italian One podcast and catch us on SoundCloud, Spotify, and wherever you get your pods. 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