If you are hankering for fine Italian wine and food, why
not consider the Aosta Valley region of northern Italy? You
may even find a bargain, and I hope that you'll have fun on
this fact-filled wine education tour.
The Aosta Valley is a tiny corner of northwestern Italy
bordering on France and Switzerland. This beautiful valley
is surrounded by high mountains, including Europe's highest
peak, Mount Blanc. While some other regions of Italy are
bilingual, this is the only one where French is extensively
spoken. With a population of only 120 thousand this is by
far the smallest region. Its largest city is Aosta, home to
some 35 thousand people. Tourist attractions include the
remains of a Roman amphitheater, churches and other
buildings dating back to the Middle Ages, Mount Blanc, and
the Matterhorn.
The Aosta Valley devotes a mere fifteen hundred acres to
grapevines ranking it dead last among Italy's 20 regions.
It produces about six hundred thousand gallons of wine a
year, putting it at the bottom of the list. Some 90% of
this limited wine production is red or rose (only a bit of
rose). The region produces a single DOC wine, subdivided
into 23 categories. DOC stands for Denominazione di Origine
Controllata, which may be translated as Denomination of
Controlled Origin. Almost 23% of this region's wine carries
the DOC. The Aosta Valley is home to almost three dozen
major and secondary grape varieties, with somewhat more red
than white varieties.
Before reviewing the Aosta Valley wine that I was lucky
enough to purchase at a local wine store, here are some
suggestions of what to eat with indigenous wines when
touring this beautiful region. Start with Pazzarella; Small
Pizza with Porcini Mushrooms, Mozzarella Cheese, and
Porcini Mushrooms. As the second course try Fonduta; Fondue
with Melted Cheese, Eggs, and Grated Truffles. For dessert
indulge yourself with Pere Martin al Vino Rosso; Pears
cooked in Spiced Wine with Whipped Cream.
OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review
are purchased at the full retail price.
Wine Reviewed Les Cretes Torrette 2006 12.0% alcohol about
$22
Let's start with the marketing materials. "Petit Rouge is
Valle d'Aosta's claim-to-fame grape. It produces dark,
highly perfumed red wines. Many think of roses and peonies
when they smell this pretty red wine. It is a naturally
low-yielding variety that produces very small berries. This
is a virtue, because the small berry size produces wines
that can be very aromatic and flavorful with a good core of
acids and tannins for balance. Enjoy it with braised beef
dishes or a wild mushroom risotto."
And then there was one. Over the past two and a half years
I have tasted wines from eighteen of the twenty regions of
Italy. All that was left was the Aosta Valley and Liguria,
the Italian Riviera, neither of which export much wine to
North America. As soon as I saw that my local wine store
imported an Aosta Valley wine I jumped at the opportunity.
Perhaps my expectations were too high.
On the first sipping I found the wine nice and long with
tannins in the background. It was round as well. The first
pairing involved a slow cooked beef stew accompanied by
potatoes and carrots. The wine was mouth filling and tart.
I got the feeling that the grapes were slightly unripe. It
actually improved when consumed with a relatively mild
tomato-based salsa. On the other hand a Turkish hot pepper
sauce, Harissa, did not improve the wine.
The next meal consisted of a store-bought barbequed chicken
leg with the paprika dusted skin, barbequed chicken wings
in a sweet and sour sauce, potatoes roasted in chicken fat,
and more of the salsa. The wine tasted of black cherries.
It had palate-cleansing acidity with no tannins at all
(like a Beaujolais). The potatoes melted in my mouth but
rendered the wine sour. And the wings were more powerful
than the wine. The salsa cleansed the palate and muted the
wine.
The final meal was an omelet with smoked salmon. The wine
was fruity displaying pleasant acidity but was short.
The first cheese was a cream cheese that took away the
wine's fruit. In the presence of a marbled Cheddar cheese
the wine was sweet and fruity.
Final verdict. The Aosta Valley is an expensive part of
Italy. This wine was overpriced. I've been doing a column
on $10 wines and the best of the lot compete with this one.
Perhaps I was unduly excited about this wine given its
location. Actually the wines from this part of Italy don't
have a special reputation. I certainly won't rush to taste
another one, not at this price. Next stop, Liguria.
----------------------------------------------------
Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on
computers and the Internet, but would rather just drink
fine German or other wine, accompanied by the right foods.
He teaches various computer classes at an Ontario
French-language community college. Check out his global
wine website http://www.theworldwidewine.com with a weekly
column reviewing $10 wines and new sections writing about
(theory) and tasting (practice) organic and kosher wines.
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