by Mary Bailey
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Three classic Greywacke wines for your Thanksgiving table.
The 2022 Chardonnay (Marlborough, NZ) has just enough oak influence to allow it to stand up to turkey and all the fixings. Pretty lemon meringue tart notes in the aromas, with compelling flavours of stone fruit and fresh hay, bound by pleasing minerality and acidity.
The 2023 Pinot Noir (Marlborough, NZ) is always best in class, intensely aromatic with an elegant presence, not a heavyweight. Gorgeous texture with fine tannins and a long, slightly spicy finish. Drinks beautifully now or keep for Thanksgiving 2026 and on.
The Greywacke 2023 Wild Sauvignon (Marlborough, NZ) will blow your mind, super textural, with layers of flavour—woody herbs, guava, fleeting hints of ginger and wet stone. Completely wild fermented, just delicious. Drink with grilled scallops, we also like it with cheesy tomato dishes.
Juanita Roos (Color de Vino), Count Sebastiano Capponi (Villa Calcinaia), Kelsey Roos.
Count Sebastiano Capponi of Villa Calcinaia (Tuscany, Italy)
was in town recently with the new vintages. His family has been making wine in Greve in Chianti since the 16th century. Be sure to get your hands on the Grechetto-based Comitale Bianco when it’s back in stock, just a terrific white wine to have in the fridge door, especially for the upcoming entertaining season.
2022 Villa Calcinaia Chianti Classico DOCG. Each block of Sangiovese and Canaiolo are vinified and aged separately; the blend is 90 per cent Sangiovese, 10 per Canaiolo. A classic Chianti Classico with the aromatics and flavours of dusty brick, earthy forest floor and cherry, little bit of spice. Drink with anything tomato based or mushroom dishes.
2018 Vigna Bastignano Chianti Classico DOCG Gran Selezione. The classification of Chianti Classico vineyards and bottling continues with various vintages. Gran Selezione is the highest quality tier, with stricter aging requirements. The grapes must be estate grown, but not necessarily single vineyard. This one is—the family had been making wine from this particular limestone terrace since 2006. It’s all Sangiovese and what a great example. Gorgeous mulberry notes, fine rolling tannins, compelling, complex, with a stunning finish, a glorious wine. Drink with beautiful pastas.
Not classic choices for your Thanksgiving dinner:
The 2024 Tovo al Pigno Soave Classico (Veneto, Italy) is from a single vineyard in the hills of Soave, 100 per cent organically grown Garganega. Love the almond and chamomile notes. Fermentation and aging in cement encourage a mouth-filling texture, it’s crisp and generous on the palate, with a tremendous finish, a delicious white. By the glass at Bar Bricco. Drink with fish dishes, potato gratin or pretzels.
2024 Gérard Bertrand Le Chouchou (Languedoc, France). This light and zesty red was on repeat this summer, but it will be just as refreshing on a sunny fall day. Made from organically grown Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah with soft tannins, loads of berry fruit contained within a bit of structure from the Cinsault. Lowish alcohol, very much in the glou glou style. Drink slightly chilled with popcorn, tacos, even on ice.
We met Ben Franchetti on his first trip to Edmonton this summer at a tasting at RGE RD. Lucky us! He is continuing the work of his father, wine pioneer Andrea Franchetti, on Mt. Etna at Passopisciaro and in Tuscany at Tenuta di Trinoro. There will be more on Ben Franchetti and the Tuscan wines in the Nov/Dec issue, but for now, let’s get to Mt. Etna.
Elena Sindayen (RGE RD), Tanis Palmer (Keg n’ Cork), Ben Franchetti, Lisa Zinck, importer
(Boutique Wines), Marcia J Hamm.
2023 Passobianco (Sicily, Italy) is, surprisingly, 100 per cent Chardonnay (you might expect Catarratto). The soil is deep in lava dust. The wine? Outstanding. Singular salinity and minerality, lovely and fresh, tangy citrus notes with a long finish. You just keep wanting to take another sip. Drink with oysters, chicken dishes, anywhere Chablis or white Burgundy lives.
2023 Passorosso Etna Rosso DOC, (Sicily, Italy), is a juicy, joyous, a little rambunctious Nerello Mascalese, the red grape of Etna. Unfiltered, with snappy red fruit and lively herbaceous notes and wafts of exotic spice. Drink with pasta, birds, braised meats.
2023 Contrada G Terre Siciliane, (Sicily, Italy). The Guardiola Contrada (single vineyard) sits just at the edge of the 1947 lava flow. Ben talked about the difficult vintage, but the painstaking selection of the berries resulted in a spectacular wine. The aromas promise an intense experience followed by a lively, almost delirious, lightness and dimension. It shimmers with flavour. Drink with hard cheeses, grilled meats.
this summer and brought some beautiful wines with him. It’s getting harder and harder to find lovely gracious Dolcetto, ones bursting with fruit and vitality. Look no further. Viberti Dolcetto d’Alba Superiore DOC (Piedmont, Italy) is lively and thirst quenching. Drink while making dinner and with charcuterie boards or pizza.
Curtis Bawden (Pacific Wines), Andrea Masuelli (Viberti).
2018 Viberti Buon Padre Barolo (Piedmont, Italy). If you are curious about Barolo and want to get your feet wet, the Buon Padre is an excellent place to start. It’s accessible, both in structure, flavours and price. And it’s delicious—a blend from the top vineyards—with aromas of roses, strawberries and forest floor, with attractive bitter notes providing some tension along with dried red fruits. Ripe tannins and balanced acidity create a structure for aging but go on, enjoy this right now. Drink with roast beef or rich pasta dishes.