This pale lemon fiano, from a relatively young winery in Puglia, has a lovely bright floral nose and great acid with a mouth-watering finish. It cuts through the rich acqua pazza sauce beautifully and harmonises with the juicy tomatoes in the sauce and salad.
Menu 2 – Rocca 2020 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC
The dark plum colour of this soft red wine from Abruzzo is echoed in its ripe red fruit aroma. Its fruit forms a bridge between the sweet caramelised onions and spicy ‘nduja in the sauce with this week’s lamb. Pop it in the fridge for half an hour before serving.
Menu 3 – Brigante Phemina 2021 Cirò Bianco DOC
Made from 100% greco bianco grown on rocky slopes between the Sila Mountains and Ionian Sea in eastern Calabria, this pale gold wine has a ripe, savoury nose and gentle tannins. It’s a food wine that comes into its own with the juicy pear and earthy walnuts in this week’s salad.
Menu 4 – Podere Don Cataldo 2020 Primitivo Salento IGT
This primitivo, grown near Lecce in Italy’s heel, has a slightly herbaceous nose reminiscent of cabernet sauvignon, a perfect match for the herbal salmoriglio in this week’s menu. Its touch of acid balances the abundant olive oil and its firm tannins marry well with the steak.
Complete your vicarious tour of southern Italy with these wines chosen to complement our four menus.
Archaeological evidence suggests that grapes from wild vines may have been harvested in Sicily as far back as the Bronze Age. When the Greeks arrived in southern Italy in the 8th century BC they dubbed the people there Oenotrians, from oinos meaning wine, due to their abundant vineyards. So the wine made in the area today has had millennia to harmonise with the local dishes. I’m sure you’ll enjoy these four indigenous varietals from Calabria, Puglia and Abruzzo with our southern Italian menus.
