After a very brief trip to Piemonte and Toscana, my Italian trip ended with fifteen hours in the Eternal City. We arrived around 5:00 PM on Friday night at a very nice boutique hotel near the Forum, Hotel 47. Though I only slept for four hours and took one shower, I would highly recommend the hotel. The concierge was fantastic at setting up our transfer to the airport and the espresso was great!
(The meat counter at El Boliche de Alberto in San Carlos de Bariloche)
The past week has been an amazing adventure of food, culture, history, nature and geological events. Though Argentina has a long and storied history beginning with the Spanish in the early 1500's, a war for independence, Juan and Eva Peron, and a dark period in the late 1970's through early 1980's called the Dirty War, my friends only asked me about two things: MEAT and MALBEC.
(The butcher at the San Telmo Market Place)
Prior to the trip, various sommeliers jokingly told me not to drink too much Malbec or my teeth would fall out (a reference to the wines being very fruit forward, bordering on sweet) and not to take too many "shots" less I get too drunk (Malbecs can be as high as 14.5% alcohol). Argentine Malbecs tend not to be very nuanced or complex, and have a reputation with some sommeliers as being boring, simple or just not very good. Many will argue with my claim that the wines are neither complex nor nuanced but in relation to other grapes such as Pinot Noir, Nebbiolo, or Syrah, Malbec is fruit forward, and plays all its card on the first hand. And that is PERFECTLY ok! Not all wine needs to be a doctoral thesis or cause a bunch of wine geeks to sit around and contemplate the evolution of the bottle. I readily admit that I do not drink Malbecs from Argentina at home or would even think about buying one at a wine shop or off a wine list. But I love wine and am always looking to explore, especially when I am in the country of origin. At our first meal, a simple lunch, I immediately ordered a bottle, thought that it was pleasant and kept drinking, yet felt a little guilty and un-sommelier like.
(One of the Parrillas we enjoyed!)
But three days into our escapade I realized what Malbec was for me...a guilty pleasure. If you only drink wines that are challenging, complex and elegant you can become jaded and out of touch. Sometimes you just want to listen to Lady Gaga and not Radiohead. And sometimes I want to eat a big slab of beef and enjoy a rich, over-oaked, and "hot" (a wine with a high alcohol content) red wine. It was this epiphany that made me respect and appreciate "Meat-o-nism", the pure hedonistic experience of perfectly grilled meat paired with big rich red wine. We tried a selection of Malbecs that would retail in the States for $10 up to $65. They each provided me exactly what I wanted for what we were eating and experiencing. The wines from Mendoza tended to be the richest, most oaked, and highest in alcohol and were great with the bife de Chorizo (NY strip). The Malbecs from Rio Negro and Neuquen were best with the empanadas and grilled lamb. In the end, the beef was amazing, the wine was delicious, and the trip was a pure blast.
Here is a list of the Parrilla's (grills) we went to:
Buenos Aires
La Brigada - Great lomo (tenderloin), wine list is better than most for a Parilla.
465 Estados Unidos
San Telmo
El Pobre Luis - AWESOME is the only word to describe El Pobre Luis...this is one of the best! A bit of a long taxi drive but well worth it. We were the only non-locals there! Perfect morcilla (blood sausage) and ojo di bife (rib-eye).
2393 Arribenos
Belgrano
San Carlos de Bariloche
El Boliche de Alberto - One of the best steaks I have ever eaten. The bife de Chorizo was sublime. It was so good we went here twice!
Bustillo Ave - the one we went to was a bit outside of town (go here!)
La Marmite - We had a quick lunch here and though it is not strictly a Parrilla the ojo de bife was good.
329 B. Mitre
More Argentinian dining up next!
(The Williamsburg Bridge)
Shauna and I have lived in the heart of "hipsterdom" for two months and we have enjoyed discovering our new neighborhood's watering-holes and plethora of restaurants. My restaurant life gives us just two short days and nights to discover the bounty of food and drink that surrounds us in our new home. Here are my current favorite spots for delicious cocktails.
Cocktail culture does not just thrive in Williamsburg it is a way of life. There are so many bars in our little hamlet that it will take me a while to get to even half of them. The four below instantly spoke to me for their handcrafted cocktails, both classic and inventive. Each bar has its own style, crowd and soul that make them great spots to relax on my days off and every so ofter a light night tipple after work.
177 S. 4th Street
Brooklyn New York 11211
A warm and inviting bar with large windows that open up to make it feel as though you are outside. My favorite drink is the "Bartender's Choice". You choose your spirit and give them some particulars and you will be greeted with an inventive and delicious cocktail. Dram also serves some tasty bar snacks with a great cheese board.
82 Berry Street
Brooklyn New York 11211
This is the most "hipster" of all the bars. The bartenders dress the part of turn of the century barmen that will pour your a strong and classic drink with a deft hand. The interior is as if you are stepping into a sepia toned picture from the early 20th century. Not only does the menu contain some of the best drinks I have had but also an impressive raw bar that serves up delicious east coast oysters, smoked trout and an impressive plat du mar. Hotel Delmano offers limited outdoor seating that makes the cool cocktails and warm summer breeze a true respite from the fast pace of today.
588 Grand Street
Brooklyn New York 11206
I have only been to Huckleberry while the sun was still up sitting in their large backyard, but the inside is sexy. The drinks at Huckleberry are very inventive and the summer offerings extremely refreshing. My current favorite is the "Green Thumb" a vibrant combination of Tequila, cucumber syrup, lime juice and Peychaud's bitters.
359 Metropolitian Avenue
Brooklyn New York 11211
I LOVE this bar and the group behind it. Not only is it literally around the corner from our apartment but they own two of my favorite restaurants in the area as well, Fette Sau and St. Anselm (No website just yet - it just opened). The bar is simple and classic and has a vintage store motif. The drinks are classic, solid and strong and the beer selections is fantastic. They too offer a great meat and cheese board and a great backyard (that closes at 11:00 PM).
(Image from the town of Polignano a Mare)
In 2008 Shauna and I traveled to Puglia for our honeymoon and I have never been the same since. The "heel of the boot" is a magical place with beautiful vistas, amazing food, and great people. When we picked Puglia I was a bit concerned of only being able to drink Primitivo, Negroamaro and other spicy, ripe and high in alcohol reds, that while enjoyable do not have the same finesse as Barolo or Brunello. I was in for a huge surprise that has had me on a quest for years that was not realized until a few weeks ago.
I'm not sure if it is the constant flux in the weather, the new city, or just being around hundreds of people a day at a restaurant (probably a combination of all) but I have come down with a nasty cold that has got me sidelined this weekend.
(Raphaele Vadiaperti showing off the earth of Montefusco in the Fiano d'Avellino DOCG)
We headed to Avellino (map) to see two producers and their vineyards: Vadiaperti and Ciro Picariello. By seeing the dirt, vines, and methods of farming, one can determine the grower's philosophy. Vadiaperti has been producing its own wines since 1984, but the family has grown grapes since the early 1900's. The estate is 10 hectares of Coda di Volpe, Fiano, Greco and a small amount of Aglianico. All the wines share a common thread of intense minerality, which is from the gray clay that has formed from the millenia of volcanic ash that is all over the area. We were able to try the 2010 vintage from tank and were astonished that all the wines had gone through malolactic fermentation because of the high levels of malic acid (Malic acid is the bracing flavor you get from green apples. When a wine goes though malolactic fermentation the malic acid is converted to lactic acid which gives a creamy texture and softens the wine). Raphaele believes had he not done this his wines would be unenjoyable. His Fiano is pure, clear and focused - when you take a sip and close your eyes, you can smell the air in the vineyards and the flintiness of the soil. At the end of our tasting, Raphaele shared a 1992 and 1990 Fiano d'Avellino. This cemented my contention that Fiano is the best white wine of Italy! Both wines were stunning, pure, lively, and such a unique experience. I immediately bought some Fiano to put in the back of my cellar to forget and rediscover in 20 years.
Our next visit was to a VERY small winery on the opposite side of the region in the commune of Summonte, Ciro Picariello. The key difference between Picariello and Vadiaperta is the soil. Vadiaperta is in the commune of Montefredane and has compact volcanic clay. Summonte has limestone and pumice. The first tank sample showed this difference in a millisecond. The wines of Picariello are very pretty, floral and there is a chalky note that permeates all the wines. We tasted 2004 through 2010 (in tank) of Fiano. These were some of the best wines I have every tried in Italy. There was purity, focus, and distinct notes of the land in each wine. As the wines age, they give off aromas of candied citrus, honeycomb, and magnolia. I can't wait to go back!
(Older vintages of Vadiaperti Fiano d'Avellino)
I have finally arrived back to sunny Los Angeles after a two week tour of Campania, Basilicata, Sicilia and Sardinia. It was an amazing trip that convinced me that I have to spend more time in Italy - there is so much to see, drink and eat! Every time I go to Italy I discover something new, exciting and unexpected. This trip was perhaps the most fruitful yet, as previous notions of Italian wine were shattered on the second day! Many people discount the white wines of Italy as simple, quafable, or just refreshing, (not a bad thing) but a bit of a back-handed compliment. Not that I have ever thought that Italian white wines were less than stellar, but my experience with aged whites from Italy has been limited to Valentini, Emidio Pepe, Gravner, or Gaja (prohibitively expensive). Today, I am here to tell you that Fiano, especially those from the appellation of Avellino need to be consideded in the same breath as great Riesling, Chenin Blanc and Chardonnay.
(A pizza from Taverna 191 in Nola, Campania)
After a week of running around from vineyard to vineyard across the south of Italy we have arrived in Sicily. Our mainland tour was very interesting and inspiring. Southern Italy remains a mystery to most, even those with years of wine industry experience, but there is anamazing depth of quailty producers in the region. Our little Renault with 5 adults and even more luggage started our journy last Tuesday. We headed straight to a region that has been written off by most wine professionals for some time: Frascati.
2010 is drawing to a close. With this last selection of the year, I wanted to highlight three regions: Champagne, Burgundy, and the Rhone Valley. This month's selections are all from France, my first love of wine. When I began my wine career as an upstart college student looking for a good hobby (and some free samples) I was introduced to these three regions and my path was forever altered. Today, I have many loves in the world of wine but these regions always tug on my heart.
I wish you a happy holiday and New Year!
