Story and photos by Dr. Michael Lim The Travelling Gourmet TM
Copyright all rights reserved
The incomparable and irascible Travelling Gourmet TM aka Il Padrino della Gastronomia goes to Buona Terra ristorante to relish…
MARVELLOUS wines presented by a youthful Winemaker…matched with Italian CHEESES!
Food and Wine are two of the greatest pleasures known to mankind. There are too the joys of high stakes gamblng, fast cars and even faster women…However, you will live longer if you indulge in Food and Wine…believe me (ha! Ha! a la Donald Trump) unless you over indulge that is…then you become grasso (fat in Italiano) fall sick and die…E la vita!
Inama wines are NOT for “label drinkers”. Inama wines are not for those who my good friend, Neil McGuigan, International Winemaker of the Year multiple times, explain candidly, “They tell me that if I don’t know the top five wines of Bordeaux…they don’t want to talk to me or taste my wines!” To be brutally frank…which is not my usual style…they are in Italiano…idiota e mal educato, capisch… “Label drinkers” do not really know, understand or appreciate good wines. They just want to show off what little knowledge they have to bolster their insecure ego and low self esteem, and flaunt their wealth. Always remember that all that glitters is not gold…of this you have been told. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing…but not when it is as little as theirs…Ha! Ha!
The wines are fresh, with good acidity from a unique terroir in north eastern Italy…and in time can only get better.
Matched with Italian cheeses…heavenly!
The youthful winemaker, Luca Inama, is humble and honest…admirable. At one point he remarked when queried scratching his head, “I forgot the name of the clone I used…” That is honesty, no pretense, no fake cover story, just the plain truth. No big deal, what counts is the wine that results from the vines yielding their precious berries.
At the special tasting, I was pleased to learn so much about Italian cheeses and to discover the offerings of this new winery which I had not heard of before. Thanks to mio buon amico Giorgio Ferrari, whose charm is only outdone by his love for Tokai, the celebrated Hungarian wine 🙂
Wine and Cheese Tasting Notes
1. Chardonnay del Vento 100% Chardonnay from Soave Classico and Pedemontana areas
Mineral nose and hints of honeydew on the palate. Clean, fresh, good acidity
2. Sauvignon Blanc Vulcaia from Soave Classico and Pedemontana areas
A buttery medium to full bodied wine reminiscent of the Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc wines, unlike the New Zealand offerings
MATCHED with STRAVACCO cheese from Alpine milk produced by the Bruna cow!
3. Bradisismo Veneto Rosso from the Colli Berici
70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Camenere
Rich, ripe Cherry flavours entice…while firm and yet unaggressive tannins give this wine structure and depth. A long satisfying finish with cocoa and vanilla nuances…
Paired with grainy textured flavoursome
Pecorino Romano (Sheep milk cheese)
4. Oratorio di San Lorenzo from the Colli Berici area crafted with 100% Carmenere
I was intrigued by the notes of Soy Sauce on the 3rd Nose. Nice flavours of Chocolate and Blackberries on the palate.
Good with a sapido (savoury) Monte Veronese Cheese…one of my favourites. On the palate the cheese connoisseur can savour the creamy firm “backbone” of the milk used to make the cheese…mmmmm…intense and appetising buttery notes on the end palate. It is Mezzano which means half a year, that is, the cheese has been aged for 6 months.
5. Last but not least, yes, that old clichéd phrase…never mind, it is apt…A Cabernet Sauvignon made 100% of the varietal with typical “cassis” or blackurrant flavours (think Ribena…) paired with teaspoonfuls of GORGONZOLA. I always say that whoever can eat and like Gorgonzola the smelly Italian Blue cheese…must love Durian. If they do not love the King of Fruits but they like Gorgonzola…there is something very wrong with them. Gorgonzola is always very tasty and has a bitter edge plus a very long length…that does not seem to end.
A small tip as an International Wine Judge and Cheese connoisseur: Never taste a cheese with wine if you are selecting Cheeses professionally. Why?? Simply because cheese makes even mediocre wines taste good…capisch…
Inama wines are now exported to the USA, Singapore (by Giorgio Ferrari), Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, Russia and China.
http://www.inamaaziendaagricola.it/
The Travelling Gourmet 