Updated: 08 January 2008
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KNOW YOUR ITALIAN GRAPE VARIETALS
| 1. MONTEPULCIANO | 2. PINOT GRIGIO | 3. FIANO | 4. SAGRANTINO | 5.VERDICCHIO |
| 6. PRIMITIVO | 7. SANGIOVESE | 8. NEGROAMARO | 9. PROSECCO | 10. AGLIANICO |
| 11. INZOLIA | 12. VERMENTINO | 13. NERO d'AVOLA | 14. NEBBIOLO | 15. GARGANEGA |
WHICH BEST DESCRIBES WHICH VARIETAL?
Select the corrrect description to match the Italian grape varietal listed above.
| A. Hi, I'm the sexy, young Italian on overyone's lips - huge in the States, guest star on Desperate Housewives and now big in the UK. I'm no heavily perfumed blonde, yet some call me dumb. Others say I'm cruising for a fall. | B. I am a bonde-dry, urban sophisticate from the hills avove Venice and I'm fizzing with energy. I'm not as serious as my famous cousin in France, but I have loads more class than that Spanish bubble head Cava. | C. Ciao Bella! I'm a curvy, bottle blonde from the Marches beside the Adriatic. Despite my acid tongue, I'm full of soul and southern warmth, if a bit nutty at times. | D. With a name like that, I never stood a chance on my own, but you'll find me in Soave near Verona. In the cool of the hills, I can be really quite appealing, but lose my looks in the heat of the plain. | E. Come on down to Sicily or Campania and I'll seduce you with my sweet-natured, southern charm. You may not have heard of my yet, but you will. One day, I'll be as famous as Pinot Grigio. |
| F. Wrap your lips around me and succumb! I'm another beguiling temptress from Sicily - all lithe and supple if treated right, but can get a little flabby if over indulged. | G. Hey, look at me! I'm a frisky little number from Sardinia, occasionally seen on the mainland, with a racy charm that deserved to be better known. | H. With a name that means "the blood of Jove", I've been around since the earliest times. In the Chianti hills south of Florence, I am a ture Italian stallion. Down on the plains of Romagna, I'm a bit of a big girl's blouse. | I. People rarely call me by my family name because I am the King of Barolo and Barbaresco. As reisdent rape in the finest estates in Piemonte. I'm a rich, thick-skinned bastard of impeccable pedigree. | J. Come down the adriatic and roam around with me. I am a generous, home-loving guy from Abruzzo, with balls. Work me too hard, though, and I get a little mean. |
| K. Officially, I'm the little-known count of Montefalco in the heart of Umbria. i used to be somewhat austere, brooding and occasionally unbalanced, but I've softened with age and am much more approachable. | L. I was the original "unknown grape", travelling the world by sea in anonymous rusting ships. Being a well-endowned Sicilian with a muscular tanned body, i am now tipped to be the next big thing. | M. I've heard all the jokes, but I'm not the missing link. I'm a spicy character with a big, fruity nose and I live down in Puglia. I've got relations in California - including a weird alcoholic uncle called Monster Zin. | N. Despite the name, I am neither black nor bitter. i'm just full of earthy goodness and home-spun warmth from my native Puglia - where I star in a number called Salice Salentino. | O. they call me the Barolo of the South in my homeland south of Naples. i am vigorous and a little tough on the outside, but have a soft centre. i occasionally smell of coffee and the odd cigarette. |
Do you think you got them right? CLICK HERE to check your answers.
courtesy of "Wine & Spirits" ITALY supplement Dec 2007
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