Read more of Cristina wine picks
Cristina Mariani-May is family proprietor and co-CEO of Banfi Vintners, America’s leading wine importer, and the award winning Castello Banfi Vineyard Estate in Montalcino, Tuscany.
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Summering with Old Friends
Cristina Mariani-May
co-CEO Banfi Vintners
America's Leading Wine Importer
Summer calls for simple and satisfying wines, light, breezy, uncomplicated yet satisfying and well made. In the summer my wine selections are what I like to refer to as “no brainers,” very obvious and easy choices. Some of my old favorites include the flavorful bottling on Chile’s Casablanca Valley and Tuscany’s coastline and southern hills. This year though I’ve gone back to a couple of names long familiar to the wine world, but no less interesting for it.
The first is Fontana Candida Frascati. This wine hails from just south of Rome, where summers can be much like ours on the east coast of the US – sunny and sultry. Likewise, the cuisine of Rome is full of pepper and spice, sharp pronounced flavors that might clash with a heartier red but find the perfect foil in a flavorful, fruit forward white.
The name Fontana Candida takes its name from an abundant fountain in the area, and appropriately so. For years now, this pristine winery has been turning out a fountain of very good wine, the kind that charms visitors to the Eternal City and brings the memories alive back home. Like many of my fellow Italians, it is straight forward and wears its heart on its sleeve. It is consistently good, always refreshing, and quintessentially satisfying.
Another blast from the past is Bolla, and they offer two of my summer sippers. Soave long ago became synonymous with Bolla, and Soave Bolla became synonymous with white wine. To many Americans, Bolla was the first sip of sophistication, a white wine with noble European heritage yet appealing to our new world lifestyle in its breezy way. Fish, pasta, barbecued chicken, Caesar salad, you name it, Soave Bolla goes with it. The name seemed to have been overshadowed for a little while, but recently my family took a direct interest in resurrecting the wine’s image and – most especially – its quality, and the results are showing quite nicely in the glass this hot summer.
Another fun summer entry from Bolla is their Bardolino, somewhat of a sleeper. Younger sibling to the more popular Valpolicella in the heirarchy of Veronese wines, Bardolino comes from a neighboring town and is known for making lighter, less complex wines – which in my book is good for summer. Sipping a glassful of chilled Bolla Bardolino is like diving into a bowl of icy cherries. Being a red, it also satisfies the doctor’s admonition on drinking red wine for health. It also just seems so right with barbecue, be it flank steak and London broil or ribs and burgers. Because it is light, it fits the bill for poolside sipping quite nicely too.
Well, right now the kids are in camp and I’ve got a book calling from my beach chair – making the choice of which of my three favorite wines to choose the hardest decision of the day. Pretty cool.
Wines for a Mid-Summer’s Night – or Day:
Fontana Candida Frascati – This ancient wine, born in the Roman hills, has deservedly been called "the wine of popes and of the people." Fontana Candida Frascati exhibits a delicate fragrance of wildflowers with a hint of Golden Delicious apples. This wine is refreshing and lively in character. Dry, elegant and soft with notes of peach and almond on the finish. Average national retail is around $10.
Bolla Soave – This wine is pale yellow in color with green nuances and has aromas of melon, ripe apple and pear. Trebbiano di Soave grapes add body and complexity. The finish is crisp and balanced. Average national retail is around $9.
Bolla Bardolino - The wine is bright ruby red with hints of black cherry. In the mouth, the wine is soft and fruit-forward, followed by a bright and fresh finish. To be served young. Average national retail is around $9.
