2013 Bacaro Nero D'Avola Terre Siciliane

Happy Friday!  It's been a long week (despite the holiday) and I really need to relax.  And what better way to relax than to open up a nice bottle of wine to enjoy!  Tonight I've decided to open a bottle of wine that I bought at a local restaurant when they were revamping their wine list and selling every bottle in the cellar for just $20 each.  The wine is a favorite varietal from Sicily, the 2013 Bacaro Nero D'Avola!

The wine is an inky black color in the glass, just as you'd expect from the "black grape of Avola." The nose presents aromas of leather, black plum, pepper and anise, classic for this varietal.  The taste is a muscular Italian, with some subtle black fruit notes up front, blackberry, plum and a hint of currant that transition nicely to some mineral notes and black pepper midpalate.  The tannins are still a bit tight on this one, but they make a nice foundation for the long, smooth and exceptionally dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8, as it's a wonderful and easy going example of an underappreciated varietal from an underappreciated region.  This wine is also a terrific food wine, and tonight I'm enjoying this with some hot Italian sausage with onions and peppers along with some linguine with garlic and olive oil.  The acidity of this wine really cuts thought the fat of the sausage for a wonderful balance.  In the words of my favorite TV chef, Lidia Bastianich, "Tutti a tavola a mangiare!"

2012 Villa Pozzi Nero D'Avola

So tonight I've decided on a recent wine club selection to open with my dinner, the 2012 Villa Pozzi Nero D'Avola from Sicily.  I know it's still a bit young, but I think this is one of the red varietals of Italy that can be enjoyed relatively young as opposed to something more ageworthy like a Brunello or Super Tuscan.

The wine itself is somewhat lighter in color than many heavier red wines, but it presents a lovely nose of blackberry, tart cherry, rich leather, dried spices and an interesting twang.  The taste was surprising, I was expecting it to be rather tart based on the nose, but rather it was very smooth with tastes of sweet berries, plum and a bit of fig that transitioned into some candied apricots and dusty limestone midpalate.  The tannins were somewhat mellow, lending to the round, supple finish that really capped off the fruit.

Overall I would rate this wine a solid 7.5, it's a bit young, but it was also a good value as I bought this one from wineshopper.com for $9!  Tonight I am enjoying this with a rare marinated T-bone steak topped with caramelized red onions and served with some fresh steamed brussels sprouts and some linguine tossed with garlic and olive oil.  The fruit of the wine offered a wonderful foil to the heartiness of the charred steak and lightness of the pasta.  Cheers!

2008 Naisi Nero D'Avola Tannat

Tonight I've decided to open an little red blend from Sicily, the 2008 Naisi, a blend of Nero D'Avola (75%) and Tannat (25%), which should make a nice wine to stand up to my seemingly daily steak intake!  I bought this wine a few weeks ago at John Russo's in Grand Rapids, which has a really nice selection of interesting wines, particularly from areas of Italy that you don't see as often, like Sicily.

This wine is a deep purple in the glass, with a good bit of opacity near the center and graduating toward a brighter ruby along the edges.  The nose is an interesting combination of ripe cherry, dark chocolate and leather, with a good bit of smokiness as well.  The taste is nicely fruit forward, with a blast of tart cherry and prune up front, which sounds awful, but actually works quite well.  The fruit transitions to some bitter herbs and gravel midpalate, before the rather tightly wound tannins bring it all together for a smooth, dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 7.5, it's a very nice wine that's a bit off the beaten path of your everyday red, with a more rustic quality that pairs nicely with red meat and game.  And the cost wasn't outrageous either, I think I bought this bottle on sale for $14.  Tonight I am enjoying this with a rare grilled New York strip and some grilled veggies and steak fries, which offer a perfect balance to the wine.  Cheers!

A wonderful Italian dinner!

Recently I had the pleasure of discovering a wonderful Italian eatery not very far from my home, of course I knew it was there, but I had no idea how good the food was!  The little gem is called Flo's Pizzaria Ristorante and Sports Bar, and I think it's the last part that threw me off.  Now to be fair, I had known about this place but had never been in, until I found out that one of my students from last semester's Finance Ethics class that I teach at Grand Valley State University was an owner of this place.  So, given I didn't want to have a conflict of interest, I told him I'd come out for dinner after the semester is over (you know how easy it is to bribe ethics professors with food right?) and recently I had the pleasure of dining in Belmont.

Now to be fair, we enjoyed a few items that were not regularly on the menu, but quite a few are there everyday, so for any local folks that would like a nice, tasty Italian dinner you can enjoy anytime, this is a great place.  We started with an eggplant parmigiana appetizer that was simply delicious, perfectly cooked (i.e. no bitterness in the eggplant) with lovely breading that offered great texture contrasts.  Then we had the main course, which was really four courses in one, sort of an Italian sampler that included Spitini alla Siciliana that was basically a beef tenderloin, sliced super thin, tenderized, then coated with a layer of breadcrumbs, ham and cheese (a secret family recipe) and rolled up and grilled.  I expected it to be very dry, but it was moist, and the flavors of the wood grill on the beef were outstanding.  Next was the classic Italian sausage and peppers (on the menu every night!) that they make themselves, and the seasoning was just perfect.  Trust me, having lived in New York with many close Italian friends, this is the real deal!

Oh yes, then there was the wine.  Davide Ucello, my student and the proprietor honored me with two bottles of wine that was produced by his uncle in the town where he was born, Partinico in Sicily.  The first was the 2006 Honoris Causa, a blend of Nero D'Avola (75%) and Syrah (25%).  This wine had wonderful aromas of black currant, ripe plum and leather, with just the faintest hint of anise. The taste was marvelously fruit forward, with ripe berries and a jammy like fruit, which gave way to a wonderful spiciness midpalate.  The finish was quite dry and long, with well structured tannins that supported the velvety finish.  Overall that would be an 8.5 in my book, even though I have no idea where I could get more!

Now back to dinner, on that platter of deliciousness, we also had some wonderful baked manicotti, stuffed with spinach and beef, it was all at once rich and fresh as the spinach was a nice counterbalance to the richness of the beef and sauces.  This one was Davide's mother's recipe and it was fabulous!  Finally, we had some fettuccine with Italian Gorgonzola sauce (this one is also on the menu everyday) which was simply delicious but deceiving, since it looks like plain boring fettuccine Alfredo, but once you taste it, the Gorgonzola blows you away!

Then of course there was the second bottle of wine, which I honestly can't tell you much about from the label.  The 2008 V90 Vinovantarossosicilia, which from what I've been able to find is a blend of Nero D'Avola (85%) and Merlot (15%).  This one is similar to the Honoris Causa, but the addition of the Merlot to the blend adds something quite different.  This one appears to be a somewhat lighter body, and the nose presents some lovely red fruit and floral notes, and a good bit of sweetness.  The taste is very fruity, with a lot of ripe blackberry and plum that transitions to a somewhat woodsy blend of earthy flavors midpalate.  The finish is quite nice, very rounded, almost voluptuous, with nicely balanced tannins to support the bright fruit.  Overall, I would rate this one a solid 8, as I just liked the first bottle a bit more.  The crazy thing is that these wines are quite good in their own right, but they aren't on the menu at Flo's!  We will have to do something about that.

So if you are in the Grand Rapids area and are looking for a nice Italian dinner, or just someplace to grab a pizza and watch the game, I can't recommend Flo's Pizzaria Ristorante and Sports Bar in Belmont more!  In fact, for you locals, I mentioned to Davide that I planned to try my best to make it up for dinner at least once a month, so on the third Saturday of every month I plan to be there.  Let's make it an event!