Lesson 19

Question 1

What is a typical aroma descriptor of cork taint?

Answer 1

moldy cardboard

Question 2

to which moment in the traditional rural calendar does Giosue Carducci’s peom “L’estate di San Martino” (Martinmas) refer to?

Answer 2

beginning of winter

Question 3

the political, social and military process that led to the creation of the italian nation state between 1840s - 1871?

Answer 3

The “Risorgiment’

Question 4

how did they manage to keep under control phylloxera, the aphid that in the late XIX century devasted the european wine production

Answer 4

by grafting Eurasian vines on American vines

Question 5

who was the major scientist that gave an enormous contribution ot winemaking by investigating the role of yeast…. etc…

Answer 5

pasteur

Question 6

wine service order (in case you want more than one) explanation

Answer 6

start from the wine that is lightest (body, intensity) and go up in terms of intensity (mostly) and complexity

Question 7

wine service order

Answer 7

start with sparkling wines
light white wines
med/full bodied white wines
lighter reds
med/full bodied reds
dessert with sweet wine

Question 8

what servicing temperature for sparkling wines

Answer 8

well chilled/right out of the fridge

Question 9

what servicing temperature for white wines

Answer 9

slightly higher temp than sparkling wines (7 - 13 C)

Question 10

why don’t you have white wines to be super chilled

Answer 10

if it’s too cold than can’t perceive fruit

Question 11

what servicing temperature for red wines

Answer 11

room temp

Question 12

why might you chill red wine SLIGHTLY before serving

Answer 12

because most apartments and buildings are hotter than room temperature

Question 13

wine glass for white wine

Answer 13

smaller; because served chilled

Question 14

what do you do if you want white wine to stay chilled while drinking it?

Answer 14

drink half and then top it up so it stays at an appropriate temp and keep doing that

Question 15

wine glass for red

Answer 15

bigger glasses

Question 16

why bigger glasses for red wines

Answer 16

more complexity and if have a broader surface covered with the wine then more of the aromas can be smelled

Question 17

wine glass for port/sweet/fortified wines

Answer 17

small glasses

Question 18

why smaller glasses for port/sweet/fortified wines

Answer 18

more expensive and higher alcohol content

Question 19

wine glass for sparkling wines

Answer 19

champagne flute

Question 20

decanting wine

Answer 20

instead of directly pouring wine into a glass you pour into a decanter

Question 21

what is the first purpose for decanting

Answer 21

to separate the natural deposit that forms in many fine, aged red wines

Question 22

how is that separated in a decanter?

Answer 22

done by GENTLY pouring the wine into the decanter, leaving the sediment in the bottle

Question 23

what is the second purpose for a decanter?

Answer 23

allows the wine to “breath” and more oxygen which can have positive effects on its aromas

Question 24

what is a myth about opening bottles of wine

Answer 24

despite common belief, simply opening a bottle some time before service is almost useless

Question 25

what the last reason for decanting?

Answer 25

looks dope as fuck - beautiful object

Question 26

when did italy have its greatest scandal for wine

Answer 26

1986

Question 27

what was the scandal?

Answer 27

several winemakers were found to have adulterated their wine with methanol

Question 28

what is methanol

Answer 28

an extremely dangerous chemical used to artificially increase the wine
s alcohol content

Question 29

what happened due to this scandal

Answer 29

many died or lost their sight

Question 30

what did this scandal cause

Answer 30

one of the bleakest moments in the history of Italian wine production but also a turning point

Question 31

what good did the scandal due

Answer 31

it caused damage but also caused producers to shift their focus from quantity to quality and more

many of Italy’s most prestigious wines emerged in the 90s

Question 32

aromatic grape varieties

Answer 32

used to produce wines that have intense and distinct floral aromas

Question 33

why do aromtic grape varieties have an intense and distinct floral aroma?

Answer 33

presence of monoterpenes

Question 34

what colors can aromas wines be

Answer 34

white or red

Question 35

examples of white aromatic wines

Answer 35

moscato, zibibbo

Question 36

examples of red aromatic wines

Answer 36

lacrima, centesimino, aleatico

Question 37

moscato giallo

Answer 37

belongs to the large and varied family of moscato

Question 38

what does the word moscato come from

Answer 38

musk

Question 39

musk

Answer 39

a substance that was used for producing perfumes - not used anymore

produced from glands of certain mammals

Question 40

moscato d’asti and asti spumante

Answer 40

sweet sparkling wines, both made with the same muscato grape variety

Question 41

what do moscato d’asti and asti spumante owe their sweetness to

Answer 41

the interruption of the first fermentation, rather than the addition of liqueur d’expedition

Question 42

difference with moscato d’astri

Answer 42

fermentation is stopped earlier

Question 43

what does the earlier stopped fermentation for moscato d’astri do

Answer 43

lower alcohol (~5%) and higher sugar, less fizzy (frizzante instead of spumante)

Question 44

difference with asti spumante

Answer 44

fermentation is stopped later

Question 45

what does stopping the fermentation later do for asti spumante

Answer 45

higher alcohol (~11%), less sugar, more bubbles

Question 46

what does proper sparkling wine need with the cork

Answer 46

needs a cage around the cork so cork doesn’t expel