Italy 2010 - Travel Journal - Part I

This past May, my brother and I took my Dad to Italy to celebrate his 60th birthday. On this amazing trip, I wrote a travel Journal. I would like to share that journal with you over the next 7 posts. I hope that you enjoy, because this was truly a special once in a lifetime type of trip for me.

May 20, 2009

We arrived in Italy at 8:00am, the flights went well and we arrived a little early. Bags and rental car came quickly and our drive was rapid and full of beautiful green countryside.

Arrival at the Poderi di Luidi Einaudi was highlighted by some pyrotechnics from Chris as a result from some road gripping driving by Dad, I think we’ll have Chris sit in the front seat from now on…

The Poderi is as perfect as I remember. Our room is spacious and well appointed. After checking in, we ventured to La Morra to find Osteria Veglio for lunch. I can’t be certain if it was the enchanting beauty of this wonderful place, the jet-lag, or our growing hunger but it took us a little while to locate our target. And alas, it was closed, typical… only in Italy, closed on Mondays and Wednesdays. We will be back, you can count on that.

We searched for something of sustenance before our appointment at Paolo Scavino. We stumbled upon a hole in the wall that served a daily special without any chance of substitutions. Prosciutto and salame followed by farfalle pasta with pesto and an insalata mista definitely hit the spot.

On to Scavino, beautiful compound with a wonderfully rustic yet refined addition completely in 2003. High tech meets old world here. Nice tour with an American who is working at the winery. Seemed to be a privileged kid but undoubtedly taking full advantage of his spectacular situation. We tasted through 8 wines ranging from their only white, Langhe Bianco** which is a Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Viognier blend, house red, Dolcetto**, Barbera d’Alba**, ’05 Barolo**, ’05 Barolo Carobric**, ’05 Bric del Fiasco**, and ’99 Barolo Carobric***. All the wines were high quality; the Barbera along with the Carobric Barolo’s really stood out to me. I couldn’t walk away from the beautiful nose of that ’99 Carobric; rose, violet, sweet chalk (almost like the chalk in the old packs of baseball cards that had a stick of gum in them) – fantastic!

Back at the hotel, we wandered down to the pool (which by the way is shaped like a 25 meter long Bordeaux style wine bottle); surprised an overexposed guest, took a few laps, and then rested the ol’ eyes before getting ready for dinner. Refreshed, we ventured downstairs to the pergola to enjoy the vista along side a glass of ’99 Luigi Einaudi Barolo Nei Cannubi*** that Dad fen-angled from Elvira (our ever-present and helpful host). She followed us out there with a plate of delicious sheep’s milk semi-soft cheese and breadsticks. How Perfect?! The wine was rose, anise, deep rich sassafras and chocolate covered cherries. Wow!

The drive to dinner was through the lush valley leading from Dogliani to Monforte d’Alba. We cut through Monforte to Trattoria della Posta arriving 20 minutes before they opened. Luckily, they opened the gate for us and sat us on the veranda with a glass of Brut Rose Franciacorta**. What a start! Strawberry on the nose but very dry and crisp on the palate. First experience with Franciacorta for me and it was a memorable one. Our reservation was at 8pm (yeah, first day in the country and we are still going strong). Chris decided it would be a good idea for us to get the fixed price menu, and what an idea it was! It ended up being 40 euro per person and 8 courses of Piedmonte goodness. A trio of antipasti to start along with linen wrapped homemade breadsticks before a beef carpaccio, veal with tuna (tunny) sauce, roasted onion filled with cheese, primi of local tagliatelli (called Tajarin) with a ragu, secondi was medallions of veal in a Barolo reduction, and a two part dolci of Italian crème brulee then sorbetto di fragola. We barely made it through, but the ’06 Vietti Barbera d’Alba Scarrone*** gave us the fortitude to finish the job. Quite a day.

0 Stars - No rating
1 Star (*) - Not of significant quality or interest
2 Stars (**) - A notable wine of legitimate interest
3 Stars (***) - Great wine that is worth searching out
4 Stars (****) - Fantastic wine that should not be missed
5 Stars (*****) - An absolutely mind-bending wine - beg, borrow, or steal to get your hands on some of this amazing juice!

Disclaimer: This rating is based on my palate and at the given time when tasted and may differ from yours. Also, I may catch a bottle in a dumb phase or it just may not speak to me at that particular time.