WHINE #
63
Welcome Jim McMullin of
Antigonish to the Whine!
Ripasso or Second Pass Wine: For many
years producers in the Valpolicella region of northern Italy (near Verona) have
taken their simple, light, and highly acidic reds wines, and through a process
of second fermentation, given them more structure, body and flavor. The process they use, which I shall describe
below, is usually called “Ripasso”, but occasionally is referred to as “second
pass” or “double fermentation.”
First, however, I need to offer
a semantic caution. The phrase “double
fermentation” is also used to refer to the process for making Champagne or
other high-quality sparkling wines. In
this case after the wine has completed fermentation, sugar and yeast are added
prior to bottling. In the bottles
fermentation continues and creates carbon dioxide which of course is the bubbles
that make sparkling wine so unique and tasty.
The ripasso method, long used
in Valpolicella, is quite different. Here
some of the grapes are semi-dried, then squeezed and fermented with the
skins. After long fermentation the skins
are removed. Then ordinary Valpolicella wine
is poured over these skins starting a second fermentation. The process results in a very different and
much better wine than what was originally produced with the same grapes and
ordinary wine-making techniques.
Valpolicella, by the way, is
a wine made of three varietals, Corvina, Rondinella, and Molinara. Ordinary Valpolicella reminds me a bit of cheap
Chianti (made from Sangiovese grapes) and is usually thin and sharp. Though not necessarily bad with pizza or
tomato-sauced pasta, Valpolicella is generally one of my least favorite wines.
But, there are five levels of
wine made in Valpolicella, and fortunately the terms give a clear indication of
what kind of wine to expect when you pull the cork. Labelling is clear and you will easily tell
the quality of the wine you are about to purchase.
At the bottom is
“Valpolicella Classico”, the thin, very highly acidic stuff mentioned
above. Next is an only slightly better
wine called “Valpolicella Superiore.”
The third level is “Valipolicella Superiore Ripasso” and this is smooth,
highly drinkable, and most importantly, affordable. For special occasions one might open a bottle
of the fourth level wine called “Amarone della Valpolicella”. However, you should expect to pay in the $
40-50. range. Finally, at the top of the
pyramid is “Recioto della Valpolicella.”, which in not available in Nova
Scotia. While simple Valpolicella is
very sharp to the taste, the three top wines, all of which are second pass
wines, are smooth and delicious.
Australia and second pass: Very
recently I discovered that there is now a vintner, Nugan Estate Pty Ltd, in
Australia that is using the ripasso method with shiraz grapes. This winery produces two of these wines. The first is Alfredo Second Pass and it is
available in the LCBO stores in Ontario.
A much higher level wine is called Alfredo Dried Grape Shiraz. I was blown away when I tried this a few
weeks ago. While available in select
NSLC stores here in Nova Scotia, it cannot be purchased in Quebec or Ontario. So, Nova Scotians, the next time you are in
Halifax drop into the Port of Wines and pick up a bottle of this wonderful wine
($ 26.29). I consider this wine to be
one of the 10 best wines I drank in 2015.
I should also note that
“ripasso” is a trademark and can only be used to refer to wine from
Valpolicella. Just as makers of
sparkling wine cannot legally use the term “Champagne” unless they are from
Champagne, the Nugan Estate has to call its wine “dried grape” or “second
pass”.
Finally, the Nugan wines are
the only ripasso-type wines outside of Italy that I can find. If any of you discover another “second pass”
wine please, please, please let me know.
Wines of Brazil:
Betty and I just returned from
a great sail up the Amazon River.
Naturally, I had to try Brazilian wine.
As the per capita wine consumption in Brazil is less than that in
several Moslem countries, my expectations were not very high. As it turned out the taste of the red that I
tried was exactly at the level I expected.
On the other hand, Brazil does make some drinkable sparkling wine. Interesting that Brazil could be so different
than its neighbours Argentina or Uruguay in terms of being able to produce
quality wines.
Wine with your Christmas turkey: I sometimes
get asked what is the best wine for Christmas dinner. The answer is easy because turkey goes well
with lots of different wines. For those
of you who like to have white wine with white meat then almost any white (that
you like) will be suitable. However, my personal
preference would be a Viognier or an Albarino.
Reds also go well with turkey
provided they are not overly oaked or too heavy. Pinot Noir is the traditional match, but
Gamay (Beaujolais) also works. If you
have lots of spicy dressing, especially if your dressing contains summer savory
(as all good Maritime dressings do), then a perhaps better match would be
Zinfandel or even a young Shiraz. What
makes the meal even better is to have a chilled glass of your favorite
sparkling wine prior to the meal itself.
Christmas Miracle (thanks to Carolyn McFarlane for sharing this): According to the Bible Jesus was born in
Bethlehem in Palestine, a country where people are usually called Mohammed,
Abdul, Mounir, Aziz, Ahmed, Farid, Omar, Youssouf, Mouloud, etc… And yet he managed to find 12 friends called
John, Peter, Paul, Phillip, Mark, Thomas, Luke, Matthew, Andrew, and Simon… who
all drank wine! What a miracle!
Opimian Offering C237:
For those of you who are
Opimian members this is the one time each year that you can order wines from
South America. So, pick a credit card
with lots left on it and load up on some great wines. There are so many in this offering that it is
hard for me to pick. Nonetheless, if you
are looking for wines under $ 20. try 8407
Cornellana Reserve Carmenere, or 8408 Cornellana
Reserve Shiraz. In the $ 25 range try 8374 Lirico Malbec, 8383 Blason Tempranillo, 8398 Villard Espresion Reserve, or 8411 Cornellana Barrel Reserve
Cabernet. But, why not go for it and
order 8370 Tematico Reserva Malbec. You’ll be glad you did.
