Chianti Classico, Valpolicella Classico, Soave Classico&hellip; Why do all these Italian wine regions have the Classico addendum and what does it mean? What is the difference for wines labeled as Classico?

Classico is a wine term in Italy seen on a few wine labels and it indicates that the wine&rsquo;s from the historic center of the region, the heart. Using Chianti and Chianti Classico and their Sangiovese-based red wines as an example, Chianti is a rather large wine district within the Tuscany region. Chianti Classico is located withing Chianti as the central part and the one that originally existed. Back then this smaller region was actually called Chianti, but as the region grew the quality of the wine plummeted and the well-known characteristics of these red wines were watered down. The reputation took a hit and sales diminished. Eventually this led to the creation of Chianti Classico, which would be drawn from the original Chianti borders to recover the typicity of these wines. Today the quality of both Chianti and Chianti Classico have risen a lot due to modern techniques and knowledge about pruning, planting and temperature control in the winery.

This development has not been historically exclusive to Chianti, leading to the creation of more than one Classico district. In general, the Classico wines tend to be slightly better as these regions are smaller and have stricter rules regarding plantings and winemaking. If not better, at least more traditional and typical of the region.

The most well-known Classico regions, apart from Chianti, would be Valpolicella Classico making red wine from Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara, also known as the grapes for Amarone. Valpolicella Classico is located within Valpolicella in the region Veneto, also home to two lesser known Classico regions: Bardolino Classico and Soave Classico. Bardolino Classico is located to the west of Valpolicella and produced from the same grapes, while Soave Classico, in contrast to the rest, makes white wine from the local Garganega. All great wines and certainly part of the Italian wine history.

Chianti Classico, Valpolicella Classico, Soave Classico… Why do all these Italian wine regions have the Classico addendum and what does it mean? What is the difference for wines labeled as Classico?

Classico is a wine term in Italy seen on a few wine labels and it indicates that the wine’s from the historic center of the region, the heart. Using Chianti and Chianti Classico and their Sangiovese-based red wines as an example, Chianti is a rather large wine district within the Tuscany region. Chianti Classico is located withing Chianti as the central part and the one that originally existed. Back then this smaller region was actually called Chianti, but as the region grew the quality of the wine plummeted and the well-known characteristics of these red wines were watered down. The reputation took a hit and sales diminished. Eventually this led to the creation of Chianti Classico, which would be drawn from the original Chianti borders to recover the typicity of these wines. Today the quality of both Chianti and Chianti Classico have risen a lot due to modern techniques and knowledge about pruning, planting and temperature control in the winery.

Decoding the wine label: Classico

Wines from grapes grown in higher altitude areas with cooler climate has become quite the trend recently. This specific growing environment gives intense flavor but elegance and freshness to the final wines. To highlight and champion these conditions more and more winemakers are starting to use alto as a marketing and labelling term to show their grapes were grown in high altitude vineyards.

Decoding the wine label: Alto

Brut is a word often seen on labels for different kinds of sparkling wine. As you may have discovered when drinking these wines, it indicates that the wine is dry, meaning there is no perceived sweetness in the wine. But how about Extra Brut or Dry, what do they mean and are they the same as Brut?

Decoding the wine label: Brut

Semi-sweet Riesling, a type of wine falling out of style. It’s a shame, since these wines are perfect to pair with flavorful cuisines like Asian or Mexican, or simply drink as they come under the summer sun. The higher level of sugar left in the wine also means that the alcoholic fermentation was stopped before finishing, providing a wine with lower alcohol level and therefor easier grabbing a second glass of.

Decoding the wine label: Spätlese

Have you ever heard the word Xinomavro? Most have not. It is however a word on many sommeliers’ lips today, as it happens to be considered the grape variety with the highest quality in Greece, and one that is trending at the moment. The fact that Greece have been making wine for a long time comes as no surprise, but they have never exported an amount to make sure wine lovers around the globe tried it. With the growing wine tourism many have discovered these wines and are serving them in wine bars and restaurants in many countries today.

Decoding the wine label: Xinomavro

In the rarefied world of fine wine, where bottles can command prices equivalent to luxury cars, authenticity is everything. Laurent Ponsot's gripping memoir "FBI: Fake Bottle Investigation" reads more like a high-stakes thriller than a traditional wine book, chronicling his relentless pursuit of one of the wine world's most infamous counterfeiters, Rudy Kurniawan.

From Burgundy's Vineyards to the FBI's Most Wanted: A Winemaker's Quest for Justice

Chablis – one of the more popular styles of wine today and a region known by many. Most are familiar with the word Chablis and the light, fresh white wine with a touch of minerality it brings. Even though it’s a renowned wine, few knows what it really is.

Decoding the wine label: Chablis

Many grape varieties around the world of wine have names local to the region or country they’re grown in, even though they’re exactly the same. The most famous example would be Syrah in France where the same grape is named Shiraz in Australia. Another variety with two names is Pinot Grigio, or Pinot Gris.

Decoding the wine label: Pinot Grigio

Have you ever seen the term sur lie on a wine label? It’s not a grape and not a wine region, but a winemaking method used to give certain styles of white wine a rounder texture and a more complex flavor profile.

Decoding the wine label: Sur lie

Grace Hood

Bavel

RT: Hello and Welcome to CorkRules!&nbsp;

A podcast where&nbsp;we will review a wine list from your favorite restaurants. I&rsquo;m your host Robert Tas along with Grace Hood, wine educator and certified sommelier. Hello Grace,&nbsp;it&rsquo;s great to have you!

GH: Hi Robert! Happy to be back.&nbsp;

RT Before we jump in, let&rsquo;s talk about those wine lists. We created CorkRules to help demystify wine lists because we know from experience, that sometimes when we get that list handed to us, well&hellip; it can be intimidating, and even a little daunting.

Our aim is to help prepare you to navigate that list, find those hidden gems, or value wines or that special bottle that will take your dining experience over the top.

RT:&nbsp;Today we will be reviewing the Los Angeles Middle Eastern hot spot, Bavel. Grace what are your initial thoughts on Bavel?

GH: Well I don&rsquo;t know about you Robert, but I love Middle Eastern food. The flavors the spices the aromas. No matter where in the world you&rsquo;re enjoying it, you feel like you&rsquo;re dining in some far off place, sitting on a floor poof about to dive into a layered rich textured decadent dish.

RT: Totally. I love all those flavor combinations. Now what did you think of their wine selections?

GH: So they have a pretty approachable list. Just two pages with an expansive selection of both new and old world wines. On the first page it&rsquo;s broken down by style &ndash; aperitif, which has a selection of sparkling, - lighter, which they have some aromatic whites and lighter style reds &ndash; and then heavier which is going to be your full-bodied whites and big tannic reds. On the second page is their reserve section which is going to be your higher end bottles. There&rsquo;s definitely a variety of styles and price points so there&rsquo;s something for everyone here for sure.

RT: Love it. Lots of options means happy wine drinkers. So should we start with some sparkling?

GH: I don&rsquo;t see why not! Haha! If you wanted a traditional easy drinking non-vintage champagne, you could go with the Liebert Fils, or if you&rsquo;re looking for an interesting older vintage, you could do the 2008 Clos Cazals. They also have a sparkling Spanish on the menu, the 2020 Anima Mundi. 

RT: Yum, those all sound pretty tasty. Now, what about some whites. I can see some mineral driven whites really pairing with some of these Middle Eastern dishes.&nbsp;

MV: You&rsquo;re totally right. Middle Eastern food uses a lot of herbs, which are a perfect complement to white wines. For instance, parsley and cilantro&nbsp; are very common herbs used in Middle Eastern cooking. You&rsquo;ll want to pair with an herbaceaous, dry white like this 2016 Gruner Veltliner Peter Malberg from Austria, or this 2018 Pouilly Fume from Didier Dageaneau out of the Loire valley of France.

RT: Yum sounds super refreshing. Now when I think Middle Eastern, I definitely think cumin. What kind of wines would pair with that savory spice?

GH: Cumin is one of my favorite spices. It&rsquo;s used in a few different types of international cuisine, but you definitely see a lot of it in Middle Eastern cooking. For cumin, you&rsquo;re definitely going to want to pay attention to the main element of the dish, like the protein or dairy, to see what kind of wine to pair. If we&rsquo;re going to with a meat dish that uses cumin, then a savory light to medium-bodied red will pair really well, like this 2011 Syrah from Pierre Gonon from the Saint Joseph region in the Northern Rhone. Or you could go with another 2011 &ndash; this Volnay from Michel Lafarge would be a beautiful pairing for cumin.&nbsp;

RT: Delicious. I&rsquo;m already hungry. What about some of those vegetarian dishes in Middle Eastern cuisine? Like falafel or taboulleh?

GH: Great question Robert. Falafel and tabouleh both have those lemony garlic and onion elements to them, and they&rsquo;ll pair really well with citrusy rounder whites, like this 2020 Herri Mina Petit Courbu white blend from the southwest region of France, or the 2017 Pouilly Fuiss&eacute; from Denis Jeandeau. 

RT: Those sound like great choices. Now you know we always want to highlight some value bottles as well as some special occasion selections. What would you recommend on the Bavel list.&nbsp;

GH: You got it. For a value white, I would go with this 2015 Portuguese white blend from Herdade do Mouchao. And then for a special occasion white, I would be really interested to see how this 1970 White Bordeaux from Chateau Haut-Brion would be drinking

RT: Oh wow a 52-year-old white? That would be a really unique white experience. Now, what about a value red and special occasion red?

GH: My value red pick will have to be the 2020 Beaujolais Gamay Noir from Paul Henri Thillardon, and then my pick for special occasion red would be the 2008 Barolo from Cavalier Lorenzo Accomasso.

RT: Awesome Grace. Thank you so much for all your great suggestions and helping us navigate the Bavel wine list.

To our audience, thank you all for joining us here on CorkRules.&nbsp; If you would like us to review one of your favorite restaurants, please send us email to: <a href="mailto:Info@corkrules.Com">Info@</a><a href="mailto:Info@corkrules.Com">CorkRules</a><a href="mailto:Info@corkrules.Com">.</a><a href="mailto:Info@corkrules.Com">c</a><a href="mailto:Info@corkrules.Com">om</a> or visit our web website where we have a request form available and we will do our best to get it in the queue as quickly as possible.

&nbsp;

We are looking forward to being with you on another CorkRules episode soon. In the meantime, please check out our website for other episodes of your favorite restaurant wine lists. Follow us on social media @CorkRules and @wineswithgrace

&nbsp;

And finally, drink what you love and please make sure you drink responsibly.

&nbsp;

Thank you.

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BRAT

Bocca di Lupe

Gap Weekend: A Film Shoot in Wine Country

Alba Restaurant

Alba

10 Greek Street

L'Auberge Chez Francois

Andrew Edmunds

Salt Seafood and Oyster Bar

Matteos Ristorante Italiano

Matteo's

Catena is a renowned family-owned winery in Mendoza, Argentina that has been producing exceptional wines for over a century. Their expertise in high altitude winemaking has allowed them to craft some of the most sought-after wines in Argentina.

Two-story quaint, modern eatery turning out elevated American & international fare, plus cocktails.

Steak Frites

Alexis Percival is a New York City based CMS certified sommelier, consultant and event planner who puts the art in party.

Certified sommelier Alexis Percival

homepage

CorkRules application allows you to discover wines at your favorite restaurants, learn with friends and be confident with price transparency. Order wine with confidence at restaurants and retailers. Get personalized recommendations. #DrinkWhatYouLove

The Harold

Available Wines
Total Wines - 10

Sclavus (Sclavos)

Orgion NV

Mavrodafni

Slopes of Enos, Greece

Mythic Malbec Block, Argentina, Mendoza, Lujan de Cuyo NV

Malbec

Lujan de Cuyo, Mendoza, Argentina

Bosca

Stories of Italy Pinot Grigio NV

Pinot Grigio

Delle Venezie, Italy

Bordeaux

NV La Fleur de Francois Brut, France, Bordeaux, Cremant de NV

Semillon-Sauvignon Blanc Blend

Bordeaux, France

Alma Cersius

La Capelude Sauvignon NV

Sauvignon Blanc

Pays d'Oc, France

Storyteller

Summer Camp Chardonnay NV

Chardonnay

Sonoma County, USA

Casa Viva

Cabernet Sauvignon NV

Cabernet Sauvignon

Central Valley, Chile

Clos du Caillou

Cotes du Rhone Les Quartz NV

Blend

Cotes du Rhone, Rhone, France

Cotes

Olema, de Provence, Rose NV

Provence, France

Domaine Guillerault - Fargette

Chassenoys Sancerre NV

Sauvignon Blanc

Loire, France