Enter the World of Lesser Known Wines
Scene from when Vero founder, Sheila Donohue, was discovering new wine grapes in Italy.
Ever since Vero was founded, we knew we were up for a challenge. We forage for wines and olive oils that no one knows about and we import them into the US, mostly for the first time. Not only are they from small farmer-artisans, tucked away in the hidden corners of the earth, but they are also wines steeped in tradition, including many grape varieties that most people don’t know about. Like some which were just recently discovered, like Famoso, and others that are super rare, like Boschera, for which we were the first ones even to import the grape into the US!
Naturally, wine drinkers tend to have their ‘favorite’ wines identified by grape, like chardonnay, pinot grigio, sauvignon blanc, pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon and malbec, just to name a few. This makes sense, since, as we discussed in a recent article, we all have different wine tasting palettes, hence we tend to like different wines from one another. Every so often you find someone with the same winetasting preferences.
Yet, less well known wines are gaining traction in the US, like VeroVino wines which focus on off-the-beaten-path grapes beyond the most widely sold wine varietals in the US. With this trend, it can be difficult for our customers to select wines made from grapes they never had. So, here’s our shot at explaining what does wine taste like by drawing parallels between some unknown grapes to known dry wines. It is not meant to be an exhaustive list, nor a wine ‘bible’ as it is a subjective opinion how grapes express themselves in certain wines. It is meant to point you in the right direction, so you don’t feel at lost amongst a ‘sea’ of unknown wines. Let’s journey to discover unknown fruit!
Some White Wines to Discover
Wines Similar to Chardonnay -> Turbiana Grape (Lugana Wines)
Let’s start with the ubiquitous go-to, chardonnay. Once Vero Founder, Sheila Donohue, discovered Lugana white wines, made from the Turbiana grape, being a chardonnay lover herself, she was drawn to this appellation and to discover the area, which we went to visit for the first time in 2010. Then, once she tasted Zamichele’s Lugana wines, she was after them to import them in. She knew that chardonnay lovers would enjoy Lugana wines as an alternative to Chardonnay. In fact, wine educator Mary Beth Vierra, who wrote about Lugana wines, calls Turbiana a ‘noble grape,’ putting it in the same category as noteworthy French Chardonnays. For those of you that prefer unoaked chardonnays, we recommend Zamichele’s Lugana and for those of you that prefer oaked chardonnays try Zamichele’s Lugana Gardè ‘Riserva’.
Wines Similar to Pinot Grigio -> Bombino Bianco
Pinot grigio wines are described as “lighter-bodied, crisp, clean, and vibrant with citrus flavors”, according to Wine Spectator. We just imported in, first time to the US, wines from a family in Puglia, the “heel” of the boot of Italy, and one of their wines is a white wine made from the bombino bianco grape. This white wine pretty much fits the above description of pinot grigio wines with the exception that, at least this bombino bianco white wine, has more peach fruit than citrus and has more minerality than a typical pinot grigio. But still, if you are looking for a alternative to pinot grigio and are curious to explore, it’s worth the try!
Wines Similar to Moscato & Sauvignon Blanc -> Moravian Muscat
Moscato (muscat in english) is a family of grapes of which there are over 200 types, like, white muscat (moscato bianco in Italian), yellow muscat (moscato giallo in Italian), muscat of Alessandria and this list goes on. About 40 years ago, the Czechs were seeking a way to better grow muscat in their region, which, especially before climate change impacts, has been not so easy to make balanced and aromatic wines, as we discussed with Thaya’s winemaker recently. So, they went out and created a cross between a German muscat grape, muscat ottonel, and a rare Czech grape, prachttraube, to create moravian muscat grape. Just a couple of months ago, we imported in, for the first time to the US, wines from the Czech estate, Thaya, including their Moravian Muscat wine. This wine is intriguing - it is semi-aromatic with accentuated floral aromas likened to a moscato, then its taste is citrusy, reminding you of a sauvignon blanc. They say the best Moravian Muscat wines are those that have a good amount of acidity as well as fruitiness to create a balanced wine. Thaya’s Moravian Muscat fits this bill. It is not only a good choice for those who love moscat and sauvignon blanc, but also those who think they don’t like wine - try this and you’ll be surprised!
Some Red Wines to Discover
Wines Similar to Pinot Noir -> Saint Laurent
The saint laurent grape is actually a descendant of pinot noir. It is aromatic, with distinctive violet aromas, and is deep colored, distinguishing itself from the transparent colored pinot noir, along with chaulky tannins. Wine folly calls saint laurent a '“beefier version of pinot noir.” Saint laurent is actually the most planted red grape in the Czech Republic, so when we imported Thaya’s wines from the Czech Republic earlier this year, their Saint Laurent wine is an intriguing addition to our portfolio, and is an interesting alternative for Pinot Noir lovers.
Wines Similar to Malbec -> Ciliegiolo
Ciliegiolo gets its name from the Italian word for cherry, ‘ciliegie.’ And it has noteworthy tannins. So you could consider it reminiscent of a Malbec with cherry notes and taste. Certainly, it’s worth to try it if you are a lover of Malbec wine.
The Ciliegiolo wine we carry is an extra special one. It is from Tuscany, known for bigger, more structured style Ciliegiolo wines, from Maremma to be specific, where the grape thrives in the hot climate. Ours is from woman-owned farm, La Maliosa, and is 100% natural, with nothing added, not even sulfites. We tasted this wine recently with La Maliosa’s owner, Antonella Manuli, and were impressed by the herbal characteristics of this natural wine which according to Antonella is found in all of her vegan wine. In fact, if you go to visit La Maliosa, who is organic, biodynamic and practices regenerative agriculture, and you walk amongst the vineyards and then taste their wines, you will notice that the glass in front of you has herbal aromas seemlingly infused from the vineyard. Fascinating.
Wines Similar to Syrah -> Schioppettino
Schioppettino is a red grape most people don’t know about because it was illegal to cultivate in the EU back in the 70s. Fortunately, thanks in part to the passion and commitment of Hilde Petrussa, vigneron and owner of Vigna Petrussa, as we covered in a previous article, Schioppettino is back on the Italian wine map and making inroads in the USA. It has higher acidity and lower tannins and a dark fruit taste, but the 1 thing that distinguishes it from other varieties is its green peppercorn aroma and taste. In fact, this is where it parallels with syrah: the molecule, Rotundone, that is found in green (and black) peppercorn, has the highest concentration, of all grapes, in schioppettino and syrah. Like Syrah, Schioppettino has a distinctive darker red fruit taste.
Vigna Petrussa stands out as being the only women-owned winery in Friuli to make 4 types of Schioppettino wines, and we are super fortunate to have all of them. In fact, they were cited in a recent article by the wine critic Ian D’Agata as being the top 2 wineries in the world that make the best Schioppettino wines! Try the full range of Schioppettino wines:
the unoaked version, whose latest vintage we just imported in, and has been cited a best buy of Italian wines;
the oaked version, whose 2018 got 95 points by Decanter;
the Riserva, produced only in the best years, and we waited 3 years now to finally get the latest vintage. This Riserva is a super-charged Schioppettino making it a great red wine alternative not only for Syrah-lovers, but also for those that enjoy California Pinot Noirs and Cabs.
the 100% air-dried Schioppettino, made like Amarone with the appassimento method.
So, you get the picture, right? Certainly if you like Syrah, you should try Schioppettino, but overall it’s a great red wine alternative for red wine explorers.
Start Your Exploration to Discover Good Bottles of Wine
We hope this list, which is really just a start, will help you choose wines from the growing portfolio we have of different and interesting grape varieties.
You may have observed that we excluded certain better known varieties which we assume that you are already familiar with like riesling, barbera, nebbiolo, sangiovese, montepulciano and tempranillo. If you’d like we can cover them in a future article with tips like how to find wines similar to Chianti?… look for a red wine made with the sangiovese grape. Let us know!
And don’t forget, that there are a lot of similarities between extra virgin olive oil and wine, so for you foodie’s out there, we can help you choose one-of-a-kind EVOO, also as gifts for people that appreciate unique, gourmet foods.
