When I visited Celli in Italy’s Romagna, for a media tasting of some of the sub-area’s best wines, it was hot. And I don’t mean equatorial-Africa hot (I’ve been there, and it’s pretty hot). I mean more like Houston-in-early-August levels of hot. Like, 3rd ring of the 7th Circle of Hell hot. The heat wave…
Tag: Italian Wine
Is Predappio Ready for Prime Time? (A Deep Dive Into Romagna’s Top-Tier Sangiovese Reds)
There’s a movement afoot in Italy’s Romagna to get Predappio Sangiovese—long the jewel in the crown of the region’s top reds, thanks to the diverse ochre and brown calcareous clay and yellow sand soils of its vineyards (thought to impart the wines with their distinct minerality—its own DOCG status. It’s a bit nascent for the…
Yo Yo YO Sannio! (A Sannio Campania Deep Dive in Philly)
A few months ago, I braved the utter hellishness of I-76 rush hour traffic (along with several other fine Philadelphia-area wine pro folks) to attend a media dinner at the venerable Old City restaurant Panorama. The star attraction? Wines from Italy’s Sannio DOC in Campania. Sannio was awarded DOC status in the 1990s, though its…
Movin’ On (Bad Company’s Paul Cullen Takes On Wine Again)
It’s hard to believe that I first met former Bad Company bassist turned chef/wine producer Paul Cullen over ten years ago (“Ten. YEARS. MAN!!!!!!”). Back in 2012, Cullen was establishing his performer/chef second career, which is now successful enough that he’s able to host events for hungry and thirsty food-and-wine (and music) lovers in his…