I don't know about you, but I have had enough of the so-called "big" reds-you know, the high-alcohol, black-red, tannic, heavily extracted wines that are supposed to be important. Often, they come in super-heavy bottles-to let you know how important they really are-at a hefty price, of course. They're made from the popular varieties, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah/Shiraz, or a combination of these grapes. If they're from Italy, Spain, or Argentina, they also could be made from Sangiovese, Tempranillo, Garnacha/Grenache, Malbec, or other varieties.
Other than being full-bodied and tannic, this relatively new-style of red wines which have come to the forefront in the last 20 or 25 years has few redeeming qualities. They usually lack complexity, have absolutely no subtlety, often do not age particularly well or improve with time, and most importantly, do not complement most foods. As a wine writer, I often review 30 to 40 wines a week; when I taste red wines such as these, most of the bottle goes down the drain. Then for dinner I choose a wine from my cellar which I know will accompany my food a lot better.
The red wines that I find complementing food especially well invariably come from fairly cool-climate regions. Many are made from indigenous varieties that might be unfamiliar to some, but in my judgment are definitely worth trying. Usually my favorites are light or medium-bodied, are transparent in color rather than opaque, and have less than 14° alcohol. Many of these off-the-beaten-track reds happen to be from Italy, the land of food-friendly wines-most of which are made from indigenous varieties. In fact, I could write an entire book on Italy's offbeat wines. Italy's wines dominate this article, but I also touch on some wines from France and Greece.
Piedmont, a region in northwest Italy at the foot of the mighty Alps, has lots of food-friendly red wines. Barbera, an everyday stalwart performer in Piedmont, is not exactly unknown in the U.S. nowadays, thanks to its increasing popularity here during the last 15 years or so, but it's such a good food wine-dry, deliciously fruity, with lively acidity-that I must include it in this roundup.
Barbera is the name of the variety, and its two most popular versions are Barbera d'Alba and Barbera d'Asti; the latter is generally leaner and crisper, the Barbera d'Alba usually rounder and slightly more full-bodied. Barbera comes in two basic styles: the traditional style is fresh and lively, with no barrique aging, and retails mainly in the $11 to $18 price range. This style goes particularly well with simple tomato-based or a ragu pastas or pizza. In fact, I can think of no better wines with pizza. Wines to look for in this style include:
Vietti, Barbera d'Asti Tre Vigne or Barbera d'Alba Tre Vigne
Marchesi di Gresy Barbera d'Asti
Icardi Barbera d'Asti
Pio Cesare Barbera d'Alba
Marcarini d'Alba Ciabot
Coppo Barbera d'Asti l'Avvocata
Giacomo Conterno Barbera d'Alba (over $20, but high in quality)
The relatively new barrique-aged Barbera wines have more weight; they are fine with beef and other meat entrées, and generally retail in the $25 to $45 range. Wines in this style that I recommend include:
Vietti Barbera d'Asti La Crena
Vietti Barbera d'Alba Scarrone or Scarrone Vigna Vecchia
Coppo Barbera d'Asti Camp du Rouss
Prunotto Barbera d'Asti Costamiòle
Barbera wines age well; the currently available vintage, 2004, is excellent. Both 2001 and 1999 are also superb.
Dolcetto is the first red wine that Piedmontese use in their dinners; it's quite dry, often lean, and medium-bodied. It's best when young, and should be consumed within three years of the vintage, or earlier, if possible. Drink it with antipasti and light pasta dishes. You can buy Dolcetto for as little as $11 to $13 (a good one in this range is Renato Ratti's Dolcetto d'Alba), but it pays to spend a few dollars more for a really good one. In the $16 to $19 price range, I recommend the following:
Ceretto Dolcetto d'Alba Rossana
Vietti Dolcetto d'Alba Tre Vigne
In the $20 to $23 price range, I recommend three:
Marcarini Dolcetto d'Alba Boschis di Berri (from old vines; outstanding)
Qunto Chionetti Dolcetto di Dogliani San Luigi or Briccolero
Bruno Giacosa Dolcetto d'Alba Falletto
Dogliani is an especially prime district for Dolcetto; any Dolcetto from this zone is quite good, but Chionetti is regarded as the best in the area.
Two definitely off-beat reds from Piedmont are Grignolino and Freisa. More producers made wines from these varieties 30 years ago, but they're now more difficult to find. Nevertheless, both are interesting enough to seek out. Grignolino is light-bodied and rather high in acidity, with fascinating raspberry aromas and flavors. I'd recommend serving it with aperitifs or Italian antipasti. A Grignolino I enjoyed recently was Acconero's, from Monferrato della Casalese, a wine zone near Asti. Freisa can be really fine in the hands of a good producer; it is similar to Barbera in structure, but has less acidity. Try Giuseppe Mascarello's Freisa de la Langhe Toetto. Most Grignolino and Freisa wines retail for around $15 or less; they're both best in their first few years.
Trentino-Alto Adige is Italy's northernmost region, surrounded in the north by the Dolomite Alps. Two red wines that I enjoy from this area are Lagrein and Teroldego. Both are medium-bodied, fairly dark in color, with a nice balance of fruit, tannin, and acidity. I really can't compare them to other red wines, because they are unique, although they do resemble each other. Of the two, Lagrein, from the more northerly Alto Adige district, is easier to find. Both Alois Lageder and Josef Hofstätter, two leading producers, make fine Lagrein wines; Bottega Vinaia, Tiefenbrunner, and La Vis also produce very good, less costly Lagreins. Foradori, in Trentino, is the premium producer of Teroldego; also, look for Bottega Vinaia's and La Vis' Teroldegos. Both wines go well with the hearty Austro-Germanic foods of the area, particularly sausage dishes.
One surprising recommendation: Lambrusco. But not the vapid, semi-sweet, frothy stuff, which is good for wine punches, I guess. I'm referring to the quite dry Lambrusco di Sorbara, from Emilia-Romagna. I recently enjoyed a 2005 Lambrusco di Sorbara, from the producer Ca' De' Medici, with a plate of sausages and peppers at an Italian wine bar. The wine, only 10.5° alcohol, was slightly fizzy, completely dry, and perfect with the sausages.
The Marche region on Italy's east (Adriatic) coast offers a number of off-beat interesting reds, including Rosso Cònero, Rosso Piceno, and Lacrima di Morro d'Alba (the latter no relation to Alba in Piedmont). Rosso Cònero is probably the best-known, and the best of the three. Made primarily from the Montepulciano variety (the mainstay grape in neighboring Abruzzo), Rosso Cònero remains one of Italy's great, under-the-radar, undervalued wines; try Lanari's Rosso Cònero (about $19-$20). Rosso Piceno, an interesting blend of Sangiovese and Montepulciano, is similar to Rosso Cònero but a bit lighter in body; try Saladini Pilastri's (about $18).
Many of France's off-beat reds come from the central Loire Valley, and are made from the lesser-known Cabernet, Cabernet Franc. The combination of the Loire Valley's fairly cool climate and the herbaceous, quicker-ripening Cabernet Franc variety yields many delightful, medium-bodied reds, with names such as Chinon, Bourgueil, Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil, and Saumur-Champigny. All of these charming wines, which can go with poultry, lighter meat, and even fish and vegetable entrées, are in the $12 to $20 price range. Chinon is probably the easiest to find; leading Chinon producers are Charles Joguet and Olga Raffault.
Lately, I've been enjoying the cool-climate red wines of Greece, especially those made from the Agiorghitiko (a.k.a. St. George) variety. The best come from the Peloponnese peninsula, especially the area around Nemea. Two really fine Agiorghitiko producers to look for are Gaia Estate and Katogi & Strofilia. Sometimes, these wines are simply named after the region, such as Nemea.
There you have it: some of my favorite offbeat reds, if your palate yearns for subtlety of flavor rather than mere brute power.
