Le Marche is basically about verdicchio
April 3, 2011
Its reputation may be founded on it classic reds, but Italy is fast gaining ground for appetising dry whites is and I’m not talking pinot grigio. Halfway between the devilishly good wines of Italy’s North and those from the deep blue Mediterranean sea, Le Marche, or what we English call The Marches, is in the forefront of turning rosso into bianco. The fact that it’s in the shadow of neighbouring Tuscany and Umbria makes it all the more intriguing a destination. Le Marche recalls Tuscany with its colourful patchwork of grain, sunflower and olive groves, its wooded hills and valleys bisected by rivers that run from the Apennine backbone to the Adriatic. Yet despite its seafood restaurants and mile upon mile of beach, its pretty inland cities remain mercifully unspoilt. One such city, the impressive walled city of Jesi (yay-zee), is home to one of Italy’s best white wines, verdicchio.
Not forgetting Rosso Conero, the much-improved local red, Le Marche is basically about verdicchio, the versatile white grape variety grown inland of Ancona around Jesi and Matelica. Verdicchio is not just a high quality grape when it’s handled well, but it’s also immensely versatile. It’s well-known as an everyday thirstquencher, like Moncaro’s crisp, lemony 2008 Verdicchio, £4.99, Waitrose or Monte Schiavo’s 2008 Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, £6.99, buy two = £5.99, Majestic. Yet it’s capable of producing more stylish dry whites at classico and riserva levels that go wonderfully well with seafood, and then again richer, fuller-bodied and more intensely flavoured wines that have something of the white burgundy or vouvray about them. This is Italy, so there’s even a luscious sweet verdicchio made from dried grapes.
Just a tenth of the size of Jesi, Matelica’s 300 hectares of clay-soil vineyards in the west close to the Apennines are higher and more mineral than Jesi, and with more of a continental than maritime climate, Matelica tends to produce wines that are more floral, elegant and mineral. Typical of the style is the full-bodied and delicate 2007 La Monacesca Verdicchio di Matelica, £9.99, Waitrose, with its lees-derived nuttiness and honeyed glints and fresh, yet opulent, nutty 2008 Le Vaglie Verdiccio, £9.99, Booths. In similar vein, Belisario’s 2008 Verdicchio di Matelica ‘Vigneti del Cerro’, around £10.99, Fortnum & Mason, Shills of Station Street, Cumbria (01900 826427), Free Run Juice, Newquay (O1872 510037), is a delightfully complex style energised by a fine isotonic freshness, while the 2006 Mirum, Verdicchio di Matelica Riserva, £19.50, Berry Bros. (0800 2802440) is a wonderfully intense and classically minerally dry white.
Back in verdicchio’s bigger heartland of Jesi Classico are to be found deliciously Spring-like dry whites such as the stonefruit and apple-laden, textured and refreshingly juicy 2008 Ca’Ruptae Verdicchio Classico Superiore, £8.99, Sainsbury’s, and Pievalta’s expressively vibrant, organic 2008 Verdicchio Classico Superiore £8.99, Vintage Roots (0800 980 4992). Another favourite is the 2008 Verdicchio Classico Superiore, Casal di Serra, Umani Ronchi, around £10.95 – £13.50, slurp.co.uk, Carluccio shops, SWIG (0800272272), Christopher Piper, Devon (01404 814139) Villeneuve Wines, Scotland (01721 722500), a mouthwateringly citrus-fresh, nutty dry white with a lovely textured richness of flavour. While for the richer style, the powerfully built 2006 Plenio Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Riserva, 14.05- £16.50, slurp.co.uk, agwines.com, Wine Unearthed (01477 537072) is a highly distintive, complex style halfway between a dry vouvray and a white burgundy. Why drink pinot grigio when you can get so much more from verdicchio? Why indeed. www.anthonyrosewine.com
Something For the Weekend 10 April 2010
Under a Fiver
2009 Sainsburys Taste the Difference Chenin Blanc
From chenin king Ken Forrester a Cape dry white moreishly juicy pineapple peachy fruit quality and subtle vanilla note, enlivened by a refreshing spritz. Good at the list price, great with the discount. £4.66, normally £6.99, Sainsbury’s, until Tuesday.
Under a Tenner
2008 La Grange St.Martin Réserve Côtes du Rhône
Not an over a tenner wine, but the Perrin brothers’ ripe, blackberryish southern Rhône blend with its spice and pepper undertones and refreshingly savoury acidity punches above its deal price. £5.99, down from £11.98. The Co-operative.
Splash Out
2006 Cedro do Noval, Douro
Vibrant and intense, a one-third portion of the syrah grape gives this otherwise classic Douro blend an aroamtic peppery uplift that combines beautifully with its vibrant, succulently spiced black cherry fruitiness. £14.99, or buy 2 = £11.99, Majestic.
Foodies and wine lovers travel north from Manila to wine and dine at Philippines’ best fine dining restaurant in Pampanga Clark Freeport worth the 60-minutes drive for a memorable evening of good food with vintage wine at Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar
This fine dining restaurant is also famous for its low carbohydrates “low carb” dishes highly recommended for frequent diners who are on a low fat food and favor healthy food. This is a unique restaurant that can help frequent diners maintain a healthy diet and enjoy delicious fine dining cuisine at the same time. Vegetarian dishes are a specialty here also and so are “halal” cuisines also.
Favorites of frequent diners, foodies and wine lovers are steaks, Wagyu, Foie Gras, lobsters, venison, kangaroo loin, osso buco, veal chops, Kurabuto pork, escargots and a good selection of cheeses to enjoy with fine Vintage port and Sauternes. Cuban cigars such as Monte Cristo, Cohiba, Upmann, Partagas, Romeo Julieta and Trinidad are also available in the Magnum Room which is a wine bar and lounge for before and after dinner relaxation. A good selection of Armagnac, Cognac, Single Malt, Vodka and other liquor is served in addition to the wine vintage wines some served by the glass.
Recent opinion survey of frequent travelers heading north towards Subic and Clark Pampanga revealed that the number one most frequently visited fine dining restaurant in Pampanga is Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar located in Clark Philippines.
Inquiries and reservations
Restaurant@Yats-International.com
(045) 599-5600
0922-870-5178
0917-520-4401
Ask for Pedro and Rechel
Getting to this fine dining restaurant of Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone Pampanga Philippines
How to get to this fine-dining restaurant in Clark Philippines? Once you get to Clark Freeport, go straight until you hit Mimosa. After you enter Mimosa, stay on the left on Mimosa Drive, go past the Holiday Inn and Yats Restaurant (green top, independent 1-storey structure) is on your left. Just past the Yats Restaurant is the London Pub.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5u5vLLIlNgw
Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar
Mimosa Drive past Holiday Inn, Mimosa Leisure Estate,
Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga, Philippines 2023
Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 Rea or Chay
For assistance in hotel and resort booking in Clark, Philippines, log on to http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com
For assistance in locating a suitable venue for wedding reception, log on to
http://www.PhilippinesWeddingVenue.com
Source: http://www.anthonyrosewine.com/article/independent/verdicchio-italys-great-white-hope
