Sparkling Wine from Campania
Wine April 30th, 2008Alessandro de Conciliis likens making wine to playing jazz. The analogy is a good one. Both take specific elements, put them into new combinations, mix the old with the new, and improvise when necessary to make things sing.
Based in Campania, de Conciliis makes a number of great wines, but I wanted to taste his sparkling wine because of the shared Roman heritage that this Italian region has with the French region of Champagne. When I think Italian sparkling wine I think Prosecco, but I'm learning that there's a whole world of choices out there in Italy if you like bubbles.
The 2005 Viticoltori De Conciliis Selim sparkling wine is just one example. ($19.99, K & L Wines; available elsewhere for between $15 and $20) Named after the jazz musician Miles Davis, it's made from 70% Fiano (variety #97 in my Wine Century Club) and 30% Aglianico grape varieties--the first native to the region, the second brought to Campania in ancient times by the Greeks. This was a good QPR sparkler, with a pronounced yeasty aroma. Citrus and nuts played a duet in the flavors, and the wine was active in your mouth with its abundant small bubbles/bead. This wine was better with food, given its yeasty aromas, and it went especially well with appetizers--especially those that involve bread like thin grissini, or nuts (I loved this with a handful of cashews).
Source: http://goodwineunder20.blogspot.com/2008/03/sparkling-wine-from-campania.html


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