My
basil plant has become a basil bush.
What does that have to do with this week’s Wine Wednesday feature you
ask? Well, it has to do with how I arrived at serving it. You
see, I decided to use some of my fresh basil to make a double batch of my
homemade marinara.
Whenever I’m making “sauce” I usually freeze most of it for
future meals, but after smelling it slowly simmer for a good part of the day, I had to
reserve some for dinner that night. So,
I browned some hot Italian sausage, sautéed some mushrooms and heated it with
my marinara – then decided to choose my wine.
I had used some
Chianti in the sauce, but when I noticed that my wine fridge was now void of Chianti, I spotted the bottle of 2015 La Quercia
Estates Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. I thought to myself “Montepulciano –
Sangiovese – Chianti – same thing – that’ll work”. That could all be true if
not for the d’Aburzzo part I had hastily overlooked.
To clarify, Montepulciano is a town in Tuscany. It is also a
red wine grape varietal. The key grape varietal grown in Montepulciano, the town, is
Sangiovese which is also the key grape varietal in Chianti. However, Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is the
Montepulciano varietal grown in the Abruzzo region of Italy. The good news is
that though the wines are uniquely different they do share some common
characteristics which still made my choice a delightful pairing for spaghetti with
marinara.
Both wines tend to be very fruit forward and this one
certainly was. On the nose, blueberry with a hint of spice and cassis. It was slightly
sweet on the tongue but exhibited a well-balanced acidity with pleasant pepper
on the finish. I actually preferred this over a Chianti with my sauce as my
sauce is on the zesty side and with the addition of the Italian sausage, the
wine stood up nicely to the bolder flavors. This wine is fermented in stainless
steel with no barrel aging which in my opinion usually makes the wine a little
brighter and more lively on the palate.
With a price point of $11 - $12 a bottle, this versatile wine
for pairing makes for a great weeknight choice.
I would also recommend with pork loin or Baked Chicken and Wild
Rice. Click the links below to print or save the recipe pairing suggestions.
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