Philly Wine Finder

Piccini Sasso al Poggio Toscana IGT 2004

Dark fruit--black cherry or plum--on the nose and palate, full bodied, smooth tannins, definitely on the plummy and jammy side. Calls to mind a Valpolicella Ripasso; would be good with a bolognese sauce.  Drink now, this seems to be at its peak. Wine Spectator 90 points.

Widely available in Philly.

Piccini Sasso al Poggio Toscana IGT 2004
Chairman's Selection
PLCB Code: 32078
Size: 750ML
Price: $12.99

Region:    Italy > Tuscany > Toscana IGT
Grape Varieties:    
Sangiovese 60%
Cabernet Sauvignon 20%
Merlot 20%
Alcohol Content:    14%

PAWineTalk

Dangerous Super Tuscan Le Macchiole Bolgheri Rosso

Oooh very dangerous Super Tuscan blend (50% Merlot, 30% Cabernet, 15% Syrah, 5% Sangiovese). Dangerous because it tasted so good and was so easy to drink. Lovely nose of dark cherries, great acidity, a bit of sharpness which matched up perfectly with the tangy pasta arrabbiata. International in style, could pass for California, but no matter...good is good. Great buy from Garagiste. 

The Godiva chocolate bar surprised us with real dried raspberries and... 30% daily value of iron!

2008 Le Macchiole Bolgheri Rosso
$16.99

CellarTracker

Who Serves Red Wine At The Right Temperature -- Barbuzzo? Osteria? Tria? Stella?

In our experience, only Tria.

The first time we had a too warm glass of red wine it was in Pizzeria Stella. We loved their signature truffle and egg pizza but were disappointed with the red wine that we ordered with it. We noticed that the pizza ovens were open to the dining room, and the wine was stored on shelves not very far from the ovens.

It happened again a few months later in Osteria, and the other night when it happened in Barbuzzo too, we got worried this was a trend.  Barbuzzo, like Stella, has an open kitchen and wine stored on shelves nearby.

Trendy restaurants take note: the rule that red wine should be served at "room" temperature does not hold if your room is 80 degrees and has a big pizza oven in the middle of it. Please see Philly Wine Rule #8 and get yourselves some wine fridges. And put the REDS in there too!

Thank goodness for Tria, which had rows and rows of wine coolers behind their bar. Both the Riesling and the Sangiovese we had were served somewhere between 55 and 65 degrees, perfect for bringing out their lovely aromas and flavors. Thank you Tria, for doing it right.

What has been your experience with the temperature of red wine at restaurants? Do they serve it too warm?

RIESLING SPÄTLESE "HÜTTE," VON HÖVEL, ’03 (Mosel, Germany)   

Mature rarity made from late-picked, single vineyard grapes: honey, peach, apple and stone—firne!   $9½ gls

 

SANGIOVESE BLEND, CASTELLO DI MELETO, ’07 (Tuscany, Italy)

Supple "Super Tuscan" with bright cherry fruit, soft tannins and leather on the finish   $8 gls

 

 

 

 

 

Monte Antico Toscana 2006

Good go-to wine for pizza or spaghetti and meatballs.   Wine Spectator rated it 90 and ranked it 61 on their top 100 wines of 2009.  What we like about it is how the Merlot in the blend smooths out the Sangiovese.

There are 25 units at 1218 Chestnut for $13.99, which is a few dollars more than what this wine is selling for in New Jersey.   Not a bargain, but still a good wine.

• Code: 5507
• Description: MONTE ANTICO RED
• Size: 750 ML
• Price: $13.99

CellarTracker
WineSearcher $8.79-$10.99
Reds Whites and Bites

Pizza and Wine - Monte Antico Toscana

We don't normally drink wine with pizza, and apparently there is something of a debate as to the appropriateness of this practice since it has come to light that real Italians prefer beer with their pizza instead of wine. Far be it for us to fall for one of the classic blunders--going against Italians when pizza or wine is on the line--but sometimes pizza is just what's for dinner and we just want to drink wine.

Luckily this is Philly, so we can do whatever we want. We uncorked unscrewed a bottle of 2006 Monte Antico Toscana, which is a Super Tuscan-style blend of Sangiovese (85%), Cabernet Sauvignon (10%) and Merlot (5%). Upon first sniff we got nothing, except maybe a little dust. (We thought there might be some dust in our glasses, but later learned that dustiness is one of the hallmark characteristics of Sangiovese!) The color was very pretty: ruby red and translucent at the edges, indicating the wine's medium body. On the palate bright red cherries came through with mild tannins. The acidity was just enough to handle the tomato sauce and cheese but not too sharp like some Chiantis.  With all due respect to beer and Italians, this wine is perfect for pizza!  Of course it will also work well with many other Italian dishes. We thoroughly enjoyed this and will buy more if we can.

Monte Antico is widely available throughout the country; there are over 1600 bottles listed in CellarTracker at an average price of about $10 (Costco appears to be selling it).  PLCB has it for $13.99, so this is not a super value, but we still like it even at $13.99.  If you can find it for less jump on it.  The average rating on CellarTracker is 87.2, Wine Spectator scored it 90.  The 2006 is held to be an outstanding vintage for Tuscany.  Still some available at PLCB stores in the Philadelphia area.

Where do you stand on the great wine-pizza debate?  What are your favorite PLCB wines for pizza?

MONTE ANTICO RED

PLCB Code #: 5507
Size: 750ML
Price: $13.99

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