Gruppo Vino | Wine Thoughts and more

Italian Wine Consulting | Reviews | Essays | Tastings | Wine Dinners

#pinotnero #schiava e #merlot from the #vignettide

#pinotnero #schiava e #merlot from the #vignettidelledolomiti #igp #🍷 #🇮🇹 @cantinatramin @bourbonnegroni @sancarlonyc @ms._melissa_bellini
All makes for an amazing meal, once again, at San Carlo #soho #nyc

I’ve been loving this lobster wine for years. I

I’ve been loving this lobster wine for years. I don’t know anything about it except that it’s a Sardinian Vermentino and I’ve always called it The Lobster Wine. That’s all I got.

There is a wine growing area in Italy’s Lazio re

There is a wine growing area in Italy’s Lazio region that is actually named “Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone”.
It is known for its Tuscan Trebbiano grape which they locally refer to as Procanico to make it more Italian/confusing. The wines are inexpensive and undervalued. This one gives us many subtle flavors of green apple, citrus, and pineapple. Frederick Wildman & Sons imports @gruppoitalianovini
in NY/NJ. We paid $12 retail.
@drinkwildman

So fortunate to share a milestone birthday moment

So fortunate to share a milestone birthday moment with The Amazing Ciro of @gambero_rosso Top Italian Restaurants in the US 2021 winner @songenapulenyc
So much fun to be a part of this 40th birthday celebration.
@mastroberardinowinery made it even better of course.

Well this was a surprise. A client recently gave m

Well this was a surprise. A client recently gave me a bottle of Rinaldi Freisa as a token of appreciation. I had no idea what to expect from this amazing producer but such an odd grape grape to bottle as a varietal wine. I figured it to be fresh and a bit spicy, tannic and acidic, but all in a good way, and so I thought it might be ok to pair it with a Japanese meal considering the rather intense savory seasoning of the meats and the cooked fish. The wine turned out to be not quite what I expected. It was much more refined and although it had a considerable bite front and center, it quickly became a bright and complex blend of herbs and cranberry with a hint of licorice. I don’t know. I’m not as good at this as I’d like to be, but the wine was fit for any top shelf wine drinker at nearly any meal. I wouldn’t pair it with a lot of the sashimi again that we had but that was a stretch to begin with. We moved on to a 2012 Viña Ardanza after that which actually paired just fine with a lot of the sashimi. I find Rioja works with lots of seafood. Of course it was nice to see @rko_robinkelleyoconnor as always. And his fancy saké (too drunk by then to get the name) was highly appreciated by the 3 of us. Nice lunch, man.

@trentodoc in #NYC yesterday. Small tasting but i

@trentodoc in #NYC yesterday. Small tasting but interesting tracking the differences in the #blancdeblancs #pinotnero and #petitemeuniere varietals and blends.
Thank you, @colangelopr and @taralluccinyc

I know trade tastings aren’t supposed to be “f

I know trade tastings aren’t supposed to be “fun” per se, but sometimes they just are. Thank you @skurnikwines and @metropavilion for a great afternoon meeting winemakers and sampling some new and classic labels.
Such an amazing portfolio and each staff member is able to answer most any technical question about their products. Highly impressive company. In the decade I spent as a Buyer at a private club in Greenwich Village, Skurnik never once let us down. Looking forward to more…coming soon.

At a recent night having dinner with my buddy @reg

At a recent night having dinner with my buddy @reggiegooden17 at my other buddy @yannickbenjamin ‘s restaurant @contentonyc ,
I was pleasantly surprised by my, yet, other buddy @mararudzy with a surprise tasting of two beautiful Tuscan wines by my…buddy… @jenzaudke who owns a spectacular winery and guest house #gaioleinchianti 🍷 What a great evening of big laughs and perfect food and wine. Podere Ciona is a small winery that grows mostly #sangiovese but a nearly equal amount of #merlot and small bit of #alicante and #cabernetfranc 🍷 Occupying a highly coveted piece of land in the Chianti Classico area, this wine reflects the beauty of the growing region leaving nothing on the table. All the personality of a Classico is expressed here in this 2015 Riserva including cherry, tobacco, but smooth tannins and acidity to balance out any steak dinner…but more surprising was how much I enjoyed their (not pictured) IGT Merlot-Alicante Bouschet (sp) blend called “Le Diacce”. Picture a deliberate balance of deep and dark color with an insistent weight and tannic grab of the palate that smooths out handily with your cheese and salumi. I loved both these wines. And I had a great night. In fact, it was one of those nights that reminds me why I live in #NewYork 🗽 We gotta get Jan d’Amore on here (long story).

@contentonyc is the place to go for way tasty food

@contentonyc is the place to go for way tasty food and a great wine list. A #Calabrian #Gagliopo by the glass and bottle? Thank you! @yannickbenjamin for keeping things interesting and amazing. Shout out to my buddy @reggiegooden17 !!!

Some great stuff at the @massanois portfolio tasti

Some great stuff at the @massanois portfolio tasting yesterday. @tenuta_fanti is always a favorite of mine but the @carusoeminini was a new one to me. Great bio wines. Looking forward to trying more soon.

Thank you, @scicolonecharles and @michelescicolon

Thank you, @scicolonecharles and @michelescicolon for a great wine and a lovely Friday night dinner a @songenapulenyc @ciroiovinenyc
Double decanting made this 1996 Viberti Barolo a special addition to a ln energetic evening in #greenwichvillage #nyc
Yes. Life can be this good sometimes.#😁

#2019 was my last trip to Piemonte. Looking forwar

#2019 was my last trip to Piemonte. Looking forward to getting back to the quiet little city of Alba this year.

So then I had a lovely Piemontese Battuta di Fasso

So then I had a lovely Piemontese Battuta di Fassona beef tartare with this highly enjoyable Barbera d’Alba from @gdvajra_barolo at @osteriacarlina in West Village, #NYC.
The end.

Best day of my life.

Best day of my life.

Sparkling Barbera del Monferrato? Yes, please. Gr

Sparkling Barbera del Monferrato? Yes, please.
Grazie, @braidawines e Buona Pasqua!

Wonderful trip to #florida to see my pop for his 8

Wonderful trip to #florida to see my pop for his 80th #birthday @annamariaislandbeachlife @annamariavacations

In case you were both wondering and didn’t know…
Rosso di Montalcino is a Tuscan wine made in the town of Montalcino. It is the second signature wine of that town, the first being Brunello di Montalcino. Brunello is a word taken from the original language of the region and it refers to, or means, the Sangiovese grape.
Both Brunello and Rosso di Montalcino are made from the same grapes grown in the same vines, usually in the same soil. What’s different is mostly in the aging of the wine at the winery before it’s released. Brunello is aged 4 years and Rosso is aged for 1 year. So, because the winery does not take on the expense of meeting the criteria to legally call the wine Brunello, the Rosso is always about half the price of the older wine.
I’m a huge fan of both wines but I have great respect for those who can recognize and appreciate the gifted value of a well made Rosso di Montalcino. There are many out there to choose from and this is one of them. Livio Sassetti’s Azienda Pertimali has been creating amazing Tuscan wines for three generations and is among Italy’s most highly anticipated releases every year.
Find this bottle for around $35 at a retailer. When the 2018 Brunello is in your store it’ll sell for around $60. Pair either with a tasty steak or brilliantly with a Stop-N-Shop knish heated up on the grill. Thank you, Bill Falcone, for that suggestion.
And there you have it…

Me and @ms._melissa_bellini at the park by my bui

Me and @ms._melissa_bellini at the park by my building.

My first time at a Brooklyn classic: Ponte Vecchio

My first time at a Brooklyn classic: Ponte Vecchio. @ms._melissa_bellini has been coming here for years with her family but I’ve just now had the pleasure. Old school New York Italian food in a modern setting in proper Brooklyn: Bay Ridge. Great servers and loved the Frutti di Mare (not easy to get this dish right) and Shrimp Fra Diavolo. And if I do say so myself, I picked the perfect wine for the meal: @feudi_di_san_gregorio Fiano di Avellino DOCG which was very well priced at $55, about a 2-½ x markup while much of the city lately is going 4 x. I would come here again any time at all. Do you hear me, @lilang2 ?
Aside from the food, come here for the show of locals. I don’t get this in SoHo. I’m embracing my roots. Fun stuff. Great night.

A Queens classic tonight. Dinner at Park Side Rest

A Queens classic tonight. Dinner at Park Side Restaurant in Corona.

Lovely morning. #nyc #nj #statueofliberty #nativen

Lovely morning. #nyc #nj #statueofliberty #nativenewyorker #italianamerican #photography #streetphotography #boatphotography #sommelier #idraulico #fontanero #licensedtradesman #love #fatbastard

There are very few places left in SoHo that one ca

There are very few places left in SoHo that one can consider special. Blue Ribbon Brassiere is one of them. This is one of those restaurants I’ve come to really embrace and appreciate more since trying to get through lockdown and watching one home-away-from-home after another close up and disappear. Blue Ribbon is still super solid and while there may be some new faces, James is still there to greet you either at the bar or on the floor, and they’re working on bringing back the raw bar in the window and the 4 AM closing time they’ve been known for among Hospitality Industry people. The food is always excellent. My go-to is the fried chicken and mashed potatoes, starting with oysters of course, but everything is always served perfectly prepared. This white Rioja by the glass is $17 which is a bargain for what it is. Lately, the 2.5x - 3.5x wine markup is out the window in NYC restaurants and I’m seeing 4x-6x bottle markups on the regular. A glass of wine should cost very close to the wholesale bottle price. This wine is priced right and it’s just great with everything I tend to order here. Patrick is the right guy to have behind the small, social bar these days and it feels like old SoHo again. Just need the oyster bar back. And the 4 AM thing. Hurry, please.

Ridiculously indulgent dinner at Ciccio on Sunday

Ridiculously indulgent dinner at Ciccio on Sunday night. Such a great locals’ place in SoHo: under the radar but delivers on food, fun, and atmosphere like few other restaurants can. Right, @ms._melissa_bellini ?

Pollo Rollatine "Valle D'Aosta” with my excellen

Pollo Rollatine "Valle D'Aosta” with my excellent Tuscan Sangiovese wine Rosso di Montalcino from respected producer Col d’Orcia (kōl DOR-cha). The winery and estate dates back to the 1700s but was purchased by the Cinzano family in 1973 and went on to become one of the largest producers in the hilly Montalcino area. They are known for their powerful Brunello di Montalcino #DOCG wines but the more approachable option is the younger Rosso di Montalcino for quality-to-price ratio. This is true of many producers in the area but I have a real preference for Col d’Orcia.
Speaking of history, it doesn’t get more classic Little Italy than Il Cortile. Still going strong and making great food after all these years, it’s not to be missed. Bring your group of friends and family and just enjoy the southern Italian regional classics.