L2 - Class 10: Cortese, Garganega, Verdicchio, Fiano, Nebbiolo, Barbera, Corvina, Sangiovese, Montepulciano Flashcards
What are the characteristics of the Cortese grape?
What wine are Cortese grapes used for?
-Dry, light-bodied, high acidity, white wine
-light floral aromas (blossom), green fruit flavors (apple, pear) & citrus (lemon)
-Best known for being used in Gavi DOCG wines
-From the Piemonte region, northwest Italy
-Typically fermented in inert vessels, not in oak
-Ready to drink on release, not intended to age
What are the characteristics of the Garganega grape?
What wines are Garganega grapes used for?
-Dry, medium-bodied wines w/ high acidity white
-Flavors: green fruit (apple, pear), citrus (lemon), stone fruit (peach)
-Widely planted in the Veneto region in north-east Italy
-Most important variety is Soave DOC & Soave Classico DOC
-Soave DOC- aged in inert vessel, drank young & fresh
-Soave Classico DOC - capable of aging and gaining honey & almond flavors
-Recieto di Soave DOCG-sweet white wine, grapes harvested & dried using appassimiento
What are the characteristics of the Verdicchio grape?
What wines are Verdicchio grapes used for?
-Dry, high acidity, medium body white
-Flavors: green fruit (apple, pear) citrus (lemon) herbal notes (fennel)
-Wines labeled Verdicchio are usually simple, fruity, not intended for aging
-Outstanding examples develop honey & nut flavors in bottle
-Widely planted in Central Italy
-Most famous wine is Verdiccio dei Castelli di Jesi DOC
What are the characteristics of the Fiano grape?
What wines are Fiano grapes used for?
-Dry, medium acidity, medium to full body white
-Stone fruit (peach), tropical fruit (melon, mango)
-Most ferment in inert vessels
-Some have secondary aromas from lees contact (bread, biscuit) or oak (smoke)
-Made to drink young
-Some very good or outstanding examples can develop complex aromas of honey in bottle
-Fiano is most important in southern Italy
-Fiano di Avellino DOCG is a wine from mountainous Campania
What are the characteristics of the Nebbiolo grape?
What wines are Nebbiolo grapes used for?
-High acidity, high tannic red
-Wines have red-fruit aromas (red cherry, red plum) , dried herbs, sometimes floral (rose, violet)
-Matured for extended periods in oak to soften its high tannin levels
-the high tannins/acidity means it is good for aging
-Best examples gain complex tertiary aromas of mushrooms, tobacco, leather
-Only Nebbiolo grape permitted in Barolo DOCG
-Typically full bodied with pronounced flavors, high tannin levels, acidity, long aging potential
Describe the Barolo region?
-Barolo is the most famous wine of the Piemonte region in Northwest Italy
-Horse-shoe shaped valley with steep south facing vineyards
Describe the Barbaresco DOCG region?
-Lies to the northeast of Barolo DOCG
-Makes similar powerful and long-lived wines from Nebbiolo
What is the difference between DOC & DOCG?
Both are designations of origin
-Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC)
-Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOCG)
-DOC and DOCG wines are both wines with a designation of origin, but DOCG wines have an additional “garantita,” or guarantee, by the Italian government to be wines of especially high quality.
What are the characteristics of the Barbera grape?
What wines are Barbera grapes used for?
-High acidity, low to medium tannins
-Aromas red fruit (red cherries, red plums), sometimes black pepper
-Many Barbera wines are unoaked & fruity
-Some producers mature their wines for a period in oak to add flavor complexity
-Due to its lower tannin levels, Barbera is generally enjoyable to drink younger than Nebbiolo (less aging potential)
-Widely grown in Piemonte northwest Italy
-Most famously used in Barbera d’Asti DOCG
What are the characteristics of the Corvina grape?
What wines are Corvina grapes used for?
-Produces low to medium tannins, high acidity w/ red fruit flavors (red cherry, red plum)
-Most important grape variety in Valpolicella from Veneto region of North-east Italy
-Corvina dominates blends in Valpolicella but a few local grapes are also permitted
-Basic Valpolicella DOC (typically light body, fruity & simple in flavor, rarely matured in oak, intended to be consumed while young
-Valpolicella Classico DOCG comes from hillier heartland region, has more body & complexity
-Amarone della Valpolicella full-bodied, high alc., high tannins, pronounced flavors fresh red fruit & dried fruit
-Recieto Valpolicella sweet red wine
What is the winemaking process for Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG?
-Amarone is made through appassimento
-This process is widely used in Veneto
-Involves picking grapes & drying them indoors to concentrate sugars, acids, tannins & flavors
-Amarone is dry to off-dry red wine from grapes that have been partially dried
-Full bodied, high alc (15% abv), high tannins
-Pronounced flavors fresh fruit (red cherries) & dried fruit (prunes, raisins, figs)
What is the winemaking process for Recioto della Valpolicella DOCG?
-A sweet red wine made from partially dried grapes
-The grapes have concentrated sugars that the yeast cannot ferment them to dryness
Describe characteristics of Sangiovese.
-dry, high tannin, high acidity
-Flavors: red fruits (red cherries, red plum), dried herbs
-Most famous for wines in Chianti, in central Tuscany
-Sangiovese grapes are typically blended with small amounts of other black grapes
What are 4 types of wine that come from Sangiovese?
-Chianti DOCG - wines of varying quality, simple, inexpensive, and not intended for aging (covers a wide era in the foothills of the Apennine Mountains)
-Chianti Classico DOCG- sits at a higher altitude, w/ pronounced red-fruit aromas, dried herb notes.
–Often matured in oak to soften the tannins & adds complex
flavors (clove, cedar).
– Develop flavors of meat & leather in bottle
-Chianti Classico Reserva - has stricter aging requirements
-Brunello di Montalcino DOCG- powerful, full body wine from the warm & sunny town of Montalcino in Southern Tuscany.
-Very high levels of tannins & acidity, must mature in oak to soften tannins
-long aging potential. Brunello is local name for Sangiovese.
