Weekly Saturday Tasting

Southern Italian Wines
with Special Guest Laurence O. Vuelta

Saturday, October 11th
1:00 - 3:00

Wines from southern Italy have historically been overlooked in favor of the better-known and popular wine regions of northern Italy - mainly Tuscany, Piedmont and the Veneto. However, southern Italy has a rich wine making heritage and is considered by many as the birthplace of Italian wines. With its warm Mediterranean climate, rich volcanic soil and abundance of ancient native grape varieties, vineyards have dotted southern Italy’s landscape for thousands of years and its wines were much prized by the ancient Greeks and Romans. However, for most of the 20th century, southern Italy’s wine industry languished in obscurity amid a sea of mediocre plonk. While southern Italy didn't lack for wine, the vast majority of it was consumed locally or used as a blending wine. But even in those difficult years there were some quality-oriented winemakers in southern Italy that kept the region’s wine making heritage alive by turning out top-quality wines utilizing the region’s unique native varieties. These producers were in the vanguard of a renaissance in southern Italian wine making. Other producers in southern Italy gradually began adopting advanced cultivation and wine making procedures with the goal of making their wines more attractive in larger, more competitive markets. While some experimented with "international" varieties to good effect, others integrated modern techniques and technologies with traditional practices and use of native grape varieties. In the process, they began turning out wines that were modern yet distinctly southern in character. Today, southern Italy is, arguably, Italy’s most exciting and dynamic wine making region. With an added emphasis on quality, wines from southern Italy are increasingly receiving much critical acclaim and can compete with wines from more popular areas of Italy that carry loftier prices.
We will be guided through Southern Italy this Saturday by the one and only Dr. LOV - Laurence O. Vuelta of Sunrise Wines. Laurence is well known by most of our regulars, and has been one of our longest and most ardent supporters here at Hope Valley Wine & Beverage. He'll take us on a wine journey ranging from vineyards in Campagnia just outside of Naples, into the mountainous Basilicata region, from the region of Umbria just south of Tuscany down to Puglia in the heel of the boot of Italy, and out into the islands of Sardinia and Sicily. Tasting with Laurence is always as fun as it is informative, and you don't want to miss this great event!

Le Masciare Falanghina
Irpinia DOC, Italy, 2023

Sterpáro Greco
Basilicata Greco IGT, Italy, 2024

San Moro Negroamaro
Salento IGT, Puglia, Italy, 2024

Leonardo Bussoletti 'Asla' Ciliegiolo
Ciliegiolo di Narni IGT, Umbria, Italy, 2023

Binzamanna 'Rentiles' Cannonau
Cannonau di Sargegna DOC, Italy, 2022

Fazio Nerello Mascalese Rosé
Spumante Extra Dry
Sicilia DOC, Italy, 2023