sangiovese

On December 20, 2023 we did a sangiovese tasting. This is a grape predominantly  grown in Italy in regions like Chianti, Montepulciano and Brunello di Montalcino and  known for its high acidity and tannin. Due to this, sangiovese is a wine that prefers to be consumed with food. Tart cherry, red plum and strawberry are typically its dominant fruits on the palate along with fig, roasted pepper, tomato, leather, clay and herbs. Not a whole lot of wineries outside of Italy, or in Maryland, are making this varietal but there are three making it that we had in our possession for this tasting: Fiore, Cove Point and Love Point. For the food pairings, I decided on a very Italian menu of gnocchi with roasted mushrooms and broccolini, sun-dried tomatoes and bacon, french bread pizzas cut into strips - one with mushrooms and broccolini and one with italian meats,  meatballs and aroncini on a bed of red sauce, crispy kale and prosciutto, cheddar, hummus, crackers and carrots & caprese with roasted peppers subbed for tomatoes. Not only are my husband and I not the biggest fans of tomatoes, they are also hard to pair with wine due to their umami. The first wine we tried was Fiore's. This one was the most complex with earthy, leather, vanilla and floral aromas. On the palate we got dark cherry, raspberry with medium acidity and tannin. It didn't quite have the acidity and tannin to cut through tomato sauce but it did pair well with the gnocchi and veggie pizza, along with the kale, cheddar and hummus. Cove Point's was next and the fruitiest. We got aromas of plum, cherry cola, earthiness, licorice and orange peel. On the palate, was plum and cherry and its color was a deeper tawney. This had a little more tannin and paired best with the aroncini, caprese and kale. Last was Love Point's which had the lowest tannin and least intense aromas. On the nose, we got earthy, floral notes and on the palate it was smooth plum, currant and root beer. This was the first wine to pair well with the meat and was great with the meatballs and prosciutto, along with the caprese. Our overall  takeaway is that all three of these wines were less tannic than what we were used to tasting with Italian sangiovese's. Knowing that ahead of time would have probably resulted in a few tweaks to the menu with less red sauce and maybe some other Italian sauces like carbonara, a creamy pesto or marsala. These are still three great representations of the grape in Maryland that don't necessarily need food to be enjoyed. Grab a bottle and enjoy with or without!