food and Italian wine
Pietro's Own Merlot - Sorriso Ristorante in Cleveland Park has long been one of my favorite Italian restaurants in the D.C. metro area. It serves genuine northern Italy dishes as well as some Roman favorites. Since they are made with the best ingredients, I can always count on the food being fresh, good and relatively inexpensive. I also like the attentive but unfussy service.
Sorriso’s also has something else going for it – Pietro’s own wine from his family’s vineyard in the Lison-Pramaggiore DOC in northeastern Italy. The vineyard isn’t large – less than an acre – but is planted with 35-40 year old Merlot vines...read full article
A Selection of Pizza-friendly Italian Wines - Finding a wine that goes well with pizza can be an intimidating challenge. What makes the choice of a wine so daunting is that there is no such thing as a “typical” pizza. Pizzas, like people, come with all sorts of personalities and styles. Pizzas may have thin or thick crusts and range from...read full article
The Scoop on the Best Gelato in the D. C. Metro Area: An Interview with Stefano Polles of Sorriso Ristorante - As I write this the temperature is in the low 80’s and there’s a gentle breeze on an almost cloudless day. It is the kind of day that poets love to rhapsodize about and the forecast is for more sun in the weeks ahead. Spring has finally arrived and when spring arrives my attention turns to thoughts of gelato. Yes, gelato! While Italian wine is my main passion, my infatuation with gelato is a close second. Ever since my first trip to Italy...read full article
Interview with Franco Oghittu, Chef and Co-owner of La Barrique Food and Wine in Cagliari, Sardinia - I recently had a chance to spend some time with Francesco (Franco) Oghittu, chef and along with his wife Michela, owner of La Barrique Food and Wine, a restaurant and wine bar in Cagliari, Sardinia that specializes in traditional and innovative Sardinian cuisine. Their restaurant has received favorable reviews in Gambero Rosso’s 2009 Viaggiare Bene and the 2009 guide 365 Migliori Ristoranti Italiani. Franco also knows something about wines, having been certified by the Associazione Italiana Sommelier (AIS) as an official taster and sommelier ...read full article
Food and Wine Pairings - It probably is no exaggeration to say that grapes and wine are “hard-coded” into Italian culture. Grapes are grown in virtually every part of Italy and Italy produces and exports a lot of wine. Wine is a popular drink and many Italians serve it at both lunch and dinner...read full article
For information about scheduling a wine tasting event for you or your company, club, church group or organization, see Wine Tasting or contact us via email at winetasting@WineWordsWisdom.com.