Terrano

There are more than 2000 varietals in Italy. Yesterday I was introduced to Terrano, a red grape from Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Other common reds from the region include Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Refosco, which is the most-planted native grape, according to Vino Italiano. (Some other less common ones include Pignolo, Schioppettino, and Tazzelenghe.)

Terrano happens to be a clone of Refosco and is used in the Carso DOC zone within Friuli. The name means earth.

On the nose the wine had dark fruits, some pepper and licorice. The palate showed many of the same characteristics, as well as a spice at the end. The overall wine, however, was more reminiscent of something from the  New World instead of from Italy.

Also, given the location of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, which is in the northern region bordering Slovenia, I expected the wine to show more acidity and be a little lighter in body than the heavier mouth feel that I was getting.

It was an unexpected result, but I’m glad I was able to try it. The wine store where I work part-time carries Castello di Rubbia Terrano. I have hesitated pointing out the wine to customers because I was unfamiliar with it. After tasting it, I may still refrain from pushing it. However, when someone enters the store and explains his or her preference, there’s a possibility that the Terrano will suit.

My Terrano experience leads back to the concept of preference. Everyone’s palate is different, and there’s no right or wrong when tasting a wine and deciding what you like and dislike.

The more willing we are to try new things – whether it be wine, food or opportunities in life that confront us – we learn more about ourselves. As in the case with my Terrano tasting, we may be disappointed by what we discover. But something we least expect to enjoy might turn out to be what was missing all along.

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Natural satisfaction

The first time I drank a biodynamic wine was about five years ago at Pure Food and Wine in NY. I recall the wine was sealed with a screw cap and that made me skeptical to try the red vino. To my surprise, my dining companion and I really enjoyed it.

Over the last couple of years, it appears there’s a push towards biodynamic and organic vinification. Yet, as Eric Asimov points out in yesterday’s column of The Pour, not everyone approves of the movement.

“Most damning is the assertion that many wines regarded as natural are unclean, impure and downright bad,” Asimov says.

These adjectives used to describe biodynamic and unfiltered wines are borderline offensive. While I acknowledge that some producers practicing natural approaches to fermentation and viticulture are at risk of a higher occurrence of corked bottles, why would anyone be opposed to drinking something that is not laden with preservatives and chemicals, in addition to a higher level of sulfites? No one opposes organic produce, which also is free from pesticides.

Among biodynamic and natural produces is Movia, which is located in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, bordering Slovenia. Winemaker Ales Kristancic believes in a hands-off approach to his wimemaking, relying on the grapes to essentially produce their own wine. Whites and reds are aged in Slavonian oak casks. The white juice is left to mature on its lees for roughly two years without any manipulation. There is no racking involved, and fining and filtering rely up on the lunar cycle.

Movia’s approach may take the biodynamic efforts to a new level, but the wine speaks for itself. Even the 2002 Movia Veliko Rosso is a superb wine, yet came from one of the most challenging vintages within Italy in recent memory.

You may taste for yourself the fruits of Ales’s labor, but you may also like to attend a special winemaker dinner on June 21 at Italian Wine Merchants where Ales will present and discuss his production methods. There are roughly 10 wines to taste from the 1982 through 2007 vintages, and all are sure to please.

If nothing else, it will introduce to you the world of natural wine and prove the naysayers incorrect.

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Rosé of today

Jay McInerney’s long-rumored and much-anticipated debut wine column in The Wall Street Journal launched this weekend, April 10-11. His “Rose-Hued Memories Of a Summer Night” reminded me of the first time I drank anything rosé, which was in high school.

My friends and I had acquired some wine coolers from a friend’s sibling who was of legal age. After a few too many episodes of overindulgence on the sweet juice I switched to beer and never looked back to Bartles & James.

For years thereafter, I veered away from anything in a glass with such a pink hue, associating the fruit drink from my teen years with what can actually be a very pleasant, dry wine. But in recent years, rosé has emerged and become en vogue, particularly at this time of year.

McInerney focuses exclusively on rosé Champagne. While he mentions two of my favorites – Billecart-Salmon Brut Rosé and Veuve Clicquot  Brut Rosé – he excludes one of my favorite grower Champagnes: Roger Coulon Brut Rosé. Yet, these selections retail for north of $50 a bottle, and rosé Champagne in general can be cost prohibitive. As McInerney eloquently says, “If great Champagne is the vinous equivalent of a white diamond, then rosé Champagne is a pink diamond – rarer and yes, I’m afraid more expensive.”

Even looking to one of my non-Champagne favorites, the Murgo Brut Rosé, consumers will pay up. The Sicilian wine is made from the Nerello Mascalese grape but sells for just under $50.

An alternative is a Prosecco Brut Rosé from the northern region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, made from the prosecco grape and able to be purchased for less than $20.

Of course, nothing will be as inexpensive as those wine coolers from my youth. I still can’t believe I drank them, but we all start somewhere. McInerney had his Cold Duck, and I my Bartles & James.

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Radical Radikon

To the average white wine drinker, Radikon, from the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, will either come across as a delicious alternative or offensive imposter.

If you close your eyes, at first sip this wine drinks like a red, yet the nose has hints of apricot, more commonly associated with white varietal. I’m speaking specifically of the producer’s 2001 Ribolla Gialla, which when poured in a glass looks more like a cider than Italian white wine. It pairs well with meaty fishes or light meats for that matter.

The recommended serving temperature is 15 degrees Celsius, or room temperature, which equates to about 60 degrees Fahrenheit, a contrast to the typical 8 degrees Celsius, or chilled 48 degrees Fahrenheit.  Like most whites that are meant to be drunk young, this one is able to age, and benefits from its years in the bottle.

The producer does not filter the wine, which explains the deep, cloudy color, and insists on superior vineyard maintenance to ensure the integrity of the grapes that go into the final product.  He carefully prunes to ensure that maximum nutrients go to those grapes on the vine.

The result is a biodynamic, no sulphite-added wine that provides an atypical experience for the habitual white drinker. Biodynamic producers generally rely on the astronomical influenced calendar to plant and harvest, and believe in a holistic approach to caring for the vineyard, rather than relying on chemicals to kill off vineyard pests.

I’m generally loath to try white wines, particularly those from Italy and during this time of year. But perhaps the stars were aligned, and the night I ventured to taste Radikon and explored beyond my comfort zone, I discovered an amazing treat that I can’t help but think is worth trying for yourself.

Sometimes radical is delightful.

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