By The Glass
LYLE FUJIOKA
Wednesday, January 16, 2002
I am consumed by the search for new BVD's. I'm not referring to Fruit-of-the Loom, but rather fruit of the vine from northern Italy -- Barbera from the Piedmont, Valpolicella from the Veneto and back to the Piedmont with Dolcetto. Wines from northern Italian
vines can be joyousThese wines were virtually a non-existent category in Hawaii a decade ago. In truth, their quality -- except in a few cases -- did not warrant much attention, unless you were trying to recapture the experience of a trip to Italy.
Thankfully, Piedmont's modernists, i.e. the internationalists/California stylists, have vinified these everyday varietals into flashy, sexy wines that will tempt even the most jaded.
Focusing on Barbera, the excitement can be realized from the affordable level up to stratospheric $100 labels. Barbera provides an easy conduit to Italy for the California Cabernet consumer. The modernists have transformed this varietal into wines offering amazing color and flavor extraction with matching tannin structure. The naturally high acidity of the grape provides for food pairing flexibility that easily exceeds Cabernet Sauvignon.
Another dimension of Barbera is its ability to absorb oak nuances for added complexity while still revealing its perfect, fruit-driven character when barrel treatment is not incorporated. I can't recall any Cabernet made without wood that could put a smile of joy on my face like a clean Barbera.
Here are some examples and my current favorites:
2000 Villa Giada "Suri Russ" Barbera D'Alba (no wood), $10.95: This Barbera has amazing intense red fruit components with bright fruit ripeness, underlying traits of bramble and great acidity that allows a fabulous versatility with a wide variety of food such as duck, salmon, stews, pizza, steaks and virtually every meal! Pair this with Kalei-Tei's Roasted Chicken, with a brunoise of vegetables, for a rustic, soothing and comfortable feel-good meal.
2000 Corino Barbera D'Alba (slightly wooded), $14.95: This wine captures the essence of Piedmont's 2000 vintage, an incredible balance of ripe fruit with accompanying acidity. This wine, a mid-point between a velvety California Merlot and a ripe Pinot Noir, shows bright, fresh aromas of strawberry jam, tinged with cherry, culminating with a soft and smooth delivery to the palate, a real expression of fruit purity. This is a perfect example of Barbera that can be consumed alone or with food. Pair this with Café Miro's pan-roasted Cornish Game Hen in Natural jus, a memorable meal, an expression of eloquent simplicity!
1999 Parusso Barbera D'Alba Ornati (wooded), $17.95: 91 points from the Wine Advocate. Robert Parker Jr. considers this to be a "Fabulous Buy," showing deep strawberry jam and awesome concentrated blackberry-type fruit extract. The oak is definitely pronounced here, displaying some toastiness and smokiness but balanced very well with the abundant strawberry jam fruit -- deep, voluptuous and opulent. Another very versatile wine that can be paired with anything from pork loin, to steak to even a duck dish; something a Cabernet form California can never do!
1999 La Spinetta Barbera D'Alba Superiore (super wooded), $39: La Spinetta's current release of this wine is a true expression of the Super Barbera category. The little Rhinoceros on the label symbolizes the contents of the bottle -- beastly! This is massive on every front, the nose, the palate, the fruit, the structure and the finish. The intensity of the concentrated fruit easily justifies the obvious exploitation of new French Oak. Pushing the envelope is what this wine is all about.
1999 Barbera "Quorum" Barbera D'Asti: If you can find this, it's worth the $125 price, but so far I've only seen it in Italy. This is nothing less than spectacular quality from the magic hand of Riccardo Cotarella. This artful work has extraordinary ripeness and explosive richness of fruit, with sumptuous aromas of black fruits, vanillin and chocolate. Intensely concentrated and opulent, this would make a very convincing argument against the super premium Cabernets from California. I've tried this in Italy and my mission now is to have it available here in Hawaii.
Lyle Fujioka owns Fujioka's Wine Merchants. This column is a weekly lesson in wine pairing written by a rotating panel of wine professionals.
This column is a weekly lesson in wine
pairing written by a rotating panel of wine professionals.
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