These days lubricating your lockdown with good wine is the way to go! I did that with a velvety Alvarinho from Vinho Verde and a splendid Vernaccia di San Gimignano from Tuscany
While the world is locked down due to the coronavirus pandemic, winelovers across the globe need to find other ways to express their vinous passion. In my last article 10 things any winelover can do in self-isolation I threw out some ideas. But I’m always looking for fresh inspiration under these “new” circumstances we are all facing.
For the next few months, we have to forget about tastings, exotic wine travels and other public gatherings. Now it’s time to relish wine in a more private setting. Of course, isolation is not detrimental to the pleasure a great bottle can offer. In fact, one might find the this more private mise en scène quite attractive.
Prepare to love wine in a more intimate setting…
The intimacy of your own personal place and the company of your loved one, perhaps complemented with a homemade meal, is the ideal environment to uncork a special bottle. Furthermore when it comes to wine appreciation, leisurely surroundings have indubitable advantages over a hasty glass in a crowded wine tasting. When you drink a bottle at home, you have plenty of time to assess the wine, observe how it evolves in the glass, notice the way subsequent sips sit on the palate and savour its interaction with food.
In the next few weeks (or months?) I’ll be sharing with my readers some of the best wines I have imbibed under lockdown. These will always be the wines I share with my partner over a good meal (hey, I’m Italian after all!). No sample size or a mere glass, always the full bottle!
I’m not sure why but recently we have been favouring white wine. As such, my first drinking under lockdown article will deal with two fantastic whites: Anselmo Mendes Alvarinho Contacto (from the Vinho Verde region of Portugal) and Montenidoli Vernaccia di San Gimignano Tradizionale (from Tuscany, Italy).
Alvarinho “Contacto” by Anselmo Mendes
Forget about the watery and slightly fizzy white you might have quaffed during the heated summer days in your local pub. This is a serious wine made by a great producer.
Alvarinho “Contacto” comes from the sub-region of Monção and Melgaço, the easternmost part of the Vinho Verde district of Portugal. Here the alvarinho grape (called albarino in Spain) is king, often producing medium to full bodied wines, rich in stone fruit flavours and adorned with mineral or smoky qualities.
Anselmo Mendes - Alvarinho "Contacto", 2018
Anselmo Mendes is one of the most well-respected winemakers in Minho – and in Portugal. He has considerable experience in the wine world, having worked as a consultant for a number of prestigious projects. In 1998, Anselmo Mendes started making wine under his own name in Monção, his place of origin.
Here he experiments with the trademark local variety, alvarinho. This “Contacto” Alvarinho is produced leaving the grapes in skin-contact before fermentation. That, along with 4 months of ageing on lees, confers the wine a lovely and rich mouthfeel, magnificently integrating it with fruity and zesty flavours.
Brilliant pale lemon hue in the glass. On the nose, it opens up zesty and fruity, with aromas of juicy citrus, nectarine, lemon blossom and freshly cut grass. There are also hints of seashells and savoury rocks. On the palate, the high acidity makes this wine crisp and lively while its rich and velvety texture reveals the experimental skin-contact Anselmo Mendes uses for his alvarinho. Medium to full in body. The fruity aromas (nectarine, melon, succulent lemon) mirror the nose. A terrific granite minerality emerges in the mid-palate and progresses to a salty finish. A great wine, made even better with clams!
Vernaccia di San Gimignano “Tradizionale” by Montenidoli
I hope you decide to plan a wine trip once this coronavirus tribulation is over. If you are in search of inspiration, consider Tuscany. Aside from the rolling hills of Chianti or the medieval towns of Siena and Montepulciano, my advice is to pay a visit to San Gimignano. Its fourteen towers form a trademark landscape not to be missed. Another unmissable experience is the local white wine, Vernaccia di San Gimignano.
Montenidoli is an outstanding producer. I was lucky enough to taste Montenidoli’s entire wine range during Vinitaly 2019. I was impressed by how each of their wines presents a different interpretation of the traditional Tuscany terroir.
Montenidoli - Vernaccia di San Gimignano "Tradizionale", 2016
Montenidoli (meaning “the mountain of the little nests”) is a place of spirituality and history. The Etruscans were the first to discover the potential of this area. They were followed by the Romans and then the Knights of the Templar, who stopped there on the way to the crusades.
Elisabetta Fagiuoli and her husband Sergio came to Montenidoli in 1965 from Veneto. They were greeted by abandoned fields and wild olive trees. With patience and dedication they restored the vineyards following an organic approach. Known for treating the land with the greatest of respect, it is no surprise that their wines are so delicious.
This Vernaccia “Tradizionale” is vinified following (as the name suggests) the old local traditions. Before fermentation, the must is macerated on the skin to fully capture the aromatic complexity of the vernaccia grape.
In the glass the wine is a brilliant and vivid gold. The nose is penetrating and aromatic. Notes of grapefruit, seville orange and nectarine are followed by savoury nuances of hay and dried herbs wrapped in a lovely earthiness. The earthy character evolves into reminiscences of acacia leaves, sage, dill and smoke. On the palate, the wine is rich and textured, with a crisp acidity and focused flavours. Notes of grapefruit, nectarine, even a touch of pineapple. A splendid earthy and herbal note emerges in the mid-palate (sage, tarragon, dill). The flavour intensity verges to ‘pronounced’. The finish is lovely and savoury with a hint of sage and almond. A splendid vernaccia!
Still enjoying wine…
Not only does wine offer great solace during this challenging time, it’s something we can still fully enjoy while locked down at home. I certainly did that with the two great wines I presented in this article. While waiting for better times to come, I hope I inspired you to crack open your next wine bottle… Have faith, those times will come!
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