More than Moscato. Thank God.
A recent wine marketing survey disclosed that the category of sweet Italian wines has grown rapidly in the past year or so. (I can't reveal which survey because it might give away the person who leaked it to me.)
This bit of news makes me feel like Terry Zeitgeist, because only in the past year have I become aware of the new range of possibilities in Italian dessert wines. I'm happy to report that there's so much more out there than the same old sweet Moscato they give you after dinner at an Italian restaurant in New York. In fact, there's so much more than all the versions of Moscato that you see on the store shelves, from cheap to expensive, from Piemonte to Sicily.
Moscato can be good. At its best, it's peachy and round and luscious. But at its frequent worst, it's sticky and leaves a bad aftertaste. If you crave a different color, texture, aroma, you look elsewhere.
Aleatico to the rescue.
I've drunk two Aleaticos recently -- drunk, not "tasted" -- which excited me for their distinctiveness and their different producer characteristics. Round and soft in the mouth, they both were saved from being stucchevole (cloying) by that all-important thread of acidity that is essential in a good dessert wine, whether it's a Port, Sauternes, Tokaji, or anything else.
The first was a barrel sample of the 2007 vintage at Cantine Polvanera. This semi-sweet rose' was actually a blend of Aleatico with 30% Primitivo, the other specialty of the winery. The perfume was luscious, melon with a hint of citrus, and the taste matched the aroma perfectly. No disappointments in that respect. At 13% this wasn't the strongest of dessert wines; it was refreshing and paired beautifully with almond cakes and other Puglian goodies. It wore its oak lightly.
I also had this wine in its 2006 incarnation, in bottle. The 2007 was less sweet and much more elegant and precise in its flavor and perfume, an improvement I ascribe to the young Puglian winemaker Luca Petrelli, whom Filippo Cassano hired to sharpen up his wines and make them more competitive in the local market -- and in his current northern European markets. A wise move on Cassano's part.
If this wine were available in the states, it would retail at about $12-14 for a 750 ml bottle. Great for wine bars, by the glass.
A vineyard of Piandibugnano at Seggiano
The other delicious (100%) Aleatico was deep red, a more traditional take on this prized grape. Produced by Piandibugnano in the Montecucco district of southern Tuscany, the 2001 Nanerone was mature but still had not reached its peak. At 15% it was rich and round, with perfumed fruit and a lingering finish that was reminiscent of Port. Again, like a good Port it was saved from its own lusciousness by a line of acidity that made it all the more drinkable. This makes it a great pairing with strongly flavored cheeses, like Gorgonzola, but it's also sensational with good chocolate.
Nanerone comes in a 500 ml bottle and would sell here for roughly $22-25 retail. Far less than the Aleaticos that I've seen (rarely) on shelves here.
Aleatico is a grape that is all too rare even in Italy. Whenever and wherever you find it, give it a try. It is capable of producing wines of memorable character, with a seductive and unique aroma that goes right to your pleasure center.
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