Tip o' the cap to Bobby John. Seriously.

There is no doubt that I have a sick sense of humor. One of the people whom I’ve always enjoyed needling (other than Herr Squires) has been our very own Roberto.

He is the king of esoterica. The champion of name dropping and, I’ll lay $1,000.00 on the table right now that for the first 25 years of his life he went by Bob.

An easy target for sure, but a lovable and passionate one and for that he’s always had my respect.

Well last night I joined fellow board member Craig Pichette at a wine dinner. Craig is a member of Chicago’s Connoisseur’s International - a group of Chicago wine lovers.

Craig is one of the cellar captains and decided it was time to pull an Italian wine out and setup a dinner. We met at Quartino’s and the cellar pull was a 1997 Barolo (right craig?).

However, there were roughly 6 other courses that required pairings and Craig’s group doesn’t have a deep, or wide, enough cellar to do this so he turned to our very own Roberto for advice.

Apparently all Craig did was send over a menu and placed the pairings in Roberto’s hands. Several wines showed up and away we went.

Craig and I arrived early to make sure wines were decanted property and not corked. We also tasted through Roberto’s selections.

I’ll tell you right now that my impressions were not good. And, I’m sad that I currently don’t have the wine list at hand and there is no chance I can come close to guessing what they were. I’ll adjust that later or perhaps if Roberto reads this he can chime in.

I have one memory of a particular wine - a Frappato. My initial review was simple. “wow, this actually pretty bad beaujo!”

Well, let me say this. One hour later the meal was served, the wines were poured and frankly, folks, Roberto nailed - and I mean NAILED - each and every single wine. With food these wines were nearly perfect. Harmony in the mouth was attained and the meal turned into something I had not planned on - in fact, I was contemplating working my way through multiple glasses of scotch.

Roberto, I say this with the utmost respect. Bravo. From the prosecco (which I really don’t care for, but it worked with the apps) to the final muscato which was spot-f’ing-on with a light lemon curd dish, you won.

Tip o’ the cap Bobbyjohn. I’ll never doubt your pairings again. I may still taunt you about the latest porn star to grace your store - but, you know your wine/food pairings.

Really, really well done.

First, you owe me $1000 as I was always Robert till I was in the Army and had another Robert for a roommate and had to be Bob by default (which I hated). But, my mother (who loved all things Italian, especially singers like Mario Lanza and Sergio Franchi) always called me Roberto.

Secondly, I think that Freud would be interested in your idea that I engage in “name dropping”, something about transference I think. A careful look at my posts will reveal the fact that I almost NEVER name anyone. I speak in generalities and protect the innocent and the guilty equally.


Here are the wines:

Vincenzo Toffoli, Refrontolo, Veneto
Toffoli Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Spumante Extra Dry, Veneto
Our most popular Prosecco, this classic bottling is hand made by the local Fire Chief! Crisp, clean, refreshing, delicious…just add Sushi, Salumi, Prosciutto e Melone, a nice pic-a-nic basket and maybe a sunset. Mother Nature’s final retort to wine coolers, lite beer, alco-pop and other fizzy, cold, but ultimately unsatisfying industrial crap, Prosecco just plain rules: It is not about being super dry and toasty and yeasty and all those things we love in great fizz from la Champagne…it chooses to forgo the cerebral path and head straight for the pleasure centers of your brain. It is lighter and zestier and more aromatic but never actually sweet with crisp, refreshing acidity to take on anything from traditional anti-pasti platters to chicken salad, ceviche, Thai food or even some serious BBQ.



Azienda Agricola Fratelli Urciuolo, Forino, Campania
Antonello and Cirò Urciuolo (in cahoots with consultant enologists Carmine Valentino) are on a steep upward path of both quality and fame. Remember you saw them here first!

Urciuolo Fiano di Avellino 2008, Campania
Wildly aromatic with intense floral and citrus elements and the mouthfeel seems to be made from the local volcanic rocks, not grapes…pure minerallity on the palate, huge dry finish.


Vitivinicola Avide, Comiso, Sicilia
Founded over one hundred years ago by a Notaio (a fixture in every Italian province whose duties combined those of a notary, justice of the peace and town scribe) named Giuseppe Demostene who fell in love with and married Giuseppina De Stefano, the daughter of a wealthy, landed family who then inherited some prime land already planted to vines, carob trees and olives. As their brochure proudly says,“Between ancient stone walls and vines that reach beyond the horizon, in a corner of Sicilia where time seems to stand still, the Avide estate produces prestigious wines from selected grapes with great care to offer to true lovers of wine”. Cut to several generations later and Giovanni Calcaterra is firmly in charge of a cantina with an international rep for hearty wines at fair pricing.

Avide Frappato Herea 2008, Sicilia
We like to think of Frappato as sort of like the Grenache or Malbec of Sicilia: a small amount of it is often blended into more “serious” varieties (Nero d’Avola or even Syrah) to brighten up the wine and make it more versatile. On its own it has a lovely wild strawberry nose with some exotic spices singing backup while the darker color and flavors you get once you take a sip propel you into a bit heavier groove. If there is any of this left by Thanksgiving it will be a swingin’ dance partner for the bird and all the trimmings but try some now with a pizza or your favorite hearty pasta to see what it has to offer.



Terre da Vino, Barolo, Piemonte
These guys were our find of the year at VinItaly 2009: a modern cooperative cantina in the heart of the Barolo zona with 2800 small growers tending 5096 hectares to chose from but dedicated to quality AND value for money!

Terre da Vino Grignolino d’Asti Paradis 2008, Piemonte
Our notes from VinItaly: “Yeah Baybeeeee! Fresh, fresh, fresh and so drinkable. Perfect color (it’s either a light red or a dark Rosato) and nice packaging, this will KILL with Asian / Mexican food…grab it!”. Serve chilled with spicy foods or fish dishes on warmer days, at cool room temp with pork, chicken or lighter meats on cooler days.



Azienda Agricola Cascina Fonda
di Marco e Massimo Barbero, Mango, Piemonte
Living in a town named after the most sensual of fruits (Mango, near Asti) the Barbero brothers, Marco and Massimo, just HAVE to make exotically perfumed nectars of seduction, right? Well…YES they do, and, despite the pronouncements of a recent “authoritative” book about regional wines of Italy that you would have to go to Piemonte to find any (Yes, Joe B. I’m talking bout you), we’ve had them (and a lot of the others mentioned) here for years.

Cascina Fonda Moscato d’Asti 2008, Piemonte
A deliciously fun, completely non snobby tipple that is light in body, low in alcohol, lively and fizzy but not full on sparkling, this virtually explodes with citrus, tropical fruit and floral aromas. Yes, it is sweet but so are stolen kisses and homegrown tomatoes so just relax and enjoy this when you need to be reminded of the joy of life and the beauty of nature. It smells like orange blossoms and tastes like love and you just can’t put a numerical score on that…

Great post, Chris!

Just because we may not want to hear him all the time, doesn’t mean he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.

Nice posts, Chris. It takes a big man . . .

Congratulations Bobby John, you’ve won over an amateur with the palate of a yak!

PS: things are only “esoteric” if YOU don’t know about them…

Guys, I would love to stand here and bask in the glory but I just learned that Alex Chilton has passed and need to start digging up clips for a tribute…

I never doubted ye Johnny.

And, Chris, thanks for the kind words…

Time to cry like a baby! RIP.

Thanks for posting this.

My respect for real “tasters” is unending. In the other thread theres talk of who is amateur and who is pro (the Tanzer blog thread). To me, I don’t care who you are or where you’ve been. You can fill the soles of your shoes with RC soil…doesn’t mean a thing… When it’s just you and the glass… that is the great equalizer.

You can tell who is real here and who is bluffing. Roberto is CLEARLY talented and intimately connected to wine.

I had a long day at work, so I was a little slow getting on this. Here is the menu and the wine matches. As Chris said, Roberto did a fantastic job pairing the wines with the food. What was amazing is that all he had was the descriptions below from a restaurant he had never eaten at. As Chris said, when drunk alone, the wines were, well, uninspiring. However, with the food, they were fantastic. It was truly amazing.

Appetizers and sparklers
Toffoli Prosecco di Valdobiaddene

Chris and I both thought this was a little too sweet for us, but all the women loved it.




Roasted Baby Octopus with Braised Escarole, Red Chili & Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2008 Urcuiolo Flano di Avellino[/font]

The most unusual of the wines. It had this really odd chemically component at the front of the palate, then a dry midpalate with some lemongrass. This perhaps should have been decanted for a while. The flavor of the octopus really helped the wine a lot, masking whatever the odd flavor was. Not my favorite, but it was interesting.



Penne Pasta with Salmon & Leeks
2008 Avide Frappato Herea

This is the wine Chris referred to as a bad Boujelais. It was really pretty unappealing when we had it by itself before the dinner. It was perfect with the salmon in the pasta dish though. The fattiness in the fish really rounded out the wine and gave it depth it didn’t have on its own. Maybe there is something to this whole food/wine thing.


Beef Short Ribs with Salsa Verde (Arugula, Parmigiano Reggiano, Garlic,Olive Oil, Red Chili)
1997 Azienda Bricco Roche Barolo

The Barolo was from the clubs cellar. For some reason, we don’t have a lot of Italians-mainly an aged Bdx cellar. This was great though. Still young and fresh and big. Still has a lot of life in front of it.


Parmigiano-Reggiano, Asiago Vecchio
1997 Azienda Bricco Roche Barolo

Baby Spinach Salad with Pears, Walnuts & Shaved Grana
2008 Terra da Vino Grignolino d’Asti

This was basically a rose. Again, a great match with the salad.


Panino al Gelato di Limone (Lemon Cream Gelato Sandwich with Lemon Curd,
Whipped Cream & Lemon “Chips”,) Zeppole (Italian Doughnuts) served with Honey
2008 Cascina Fonda Moscato d’Asti


This may have been the best match of the night with the lemon curd/lemon cream sandwich thing. The moscato was bright, light, and lemony. We usually have Sauternes or Port with dessert courses. This was much lighter and more refreshing. Fantastic.




Roberto did a fantastic job. Much thanks.





Craig

Thanks again, Craig, for trusting me with a good chunk of change when we had not so much as spoken before…

Good work Bobby.

Good on Chris and Craig for throwing him some props as well.

Chris, did you guys like the Averna that Leo got? Now THAT is an acquired taste!

Flavors of bitters and root beer…not my cup 'o tea though I didn’t wretch so I would drink that before Jagermeister.

Chris, as much shit as you (and basically everbody here and there) flip Roberto, it is good to see you be the bigger man and give him his props. Now if you would only stop associating with wine snobs that only drink profound wines that are stratospheric in price.

Wrong Chris, Bill. That was Chris Freeman or Freeberg…or something like that.

Cool post. For what it’s worth, last time I was in Wine Expo I asked if Roberto was in and the guy behind the counter (not Roberto) replied, you mean Robert?

That is true of so many Italian wines (well, maybe not necessarily the uninspiring part). Maybe that is something we here in this country should learn from.