Looking backwards over a month of tasting in order to pick the Top Three Wines is an ambiguous endeavor. Imagine one full month of visiting different amusement parks every week. You climb onto one hundred different rides before picking the top three in hindsight. What’s the criteria? The most unique design? How about the rides that made […]
Valentina Cubi Naturally Connects Valpolicella With Food
It is debatable whether Amarone, or even Valpolicella, have ever occupied a comfortably suitable spot on the dinner table. These combinations of dried Corvina, Rondinella, and Molinara grapes can easily overwhelm most dishes with raisin-prune flavors, powerful concentration, oak, high alcohol, and heat. There are acceptable food pairing exceptions like Gorgonzola and other strong cheeses, […]
Breathing Quintarelli
Alex pointed towards a hilltop as we entered the valley town of Negrar and I respectfully inhaled a first breath of Quintarelli air. We were on our way to visit Francesco Grigoli, Guiseppe Quintarelli’s grandson. Climbing a series of switchback roads and white knuckle turns landed us at a modest home sitting atop the cellars […]