The wine region of Piedmont definitely holds a special place in my heart and I’ve always been very impressed from many kinds of wines produced there. Along my travels I stopped in at one winery, Paitin, within the Barbaresco wine region and had a personal tasting with Giovanni Pasquero-Elia, son of Secondo Pasquero-Elia whom founded the wine estate...

Chianti Classico, which is an appellation under Italian wine laws, is a topographical region distinct from seven other Chianti zones, which include Colli Aretini, Colli Fiorentini, Colline Pisane, Colli Senese, Montalbano, Montespertoli and Rufina. But it is the Classico zone that has long been considered the most distinguished, the only zone with...

When Alessandro Rotolo came to Houston from Italy’s Friuli region at the end of January to present his family’s Schiopetto wines, the coronavirus was a non-topic. Not once did it come up in our conversation, although it had already been killing people in China for more than a month. The same was true when Salvatore Ferragamo, whose famous fashion f...

Italy is now the country second-hardest hit by COVID-19, right behind China. For now, it is on lockdown and even travel within the country is discouraged. That led us to inquire with the Italy-America Chamber of Commerce of Texas (IACC Texas) whether there would soon be a shortage of imported Italian ingredients, such as real Parmigiano-Reggiano ch...

The 2020 Slow Wine US Tour, celebrating the 10th anniversary of the English-language edition of the Slow Wine Guide, was held last month in five cities across the United States, to an enthusiastic reception from trade, press, and consumers. The guide was born in 2010  with the objective of expanding Slow Food’s work to the world of wine. The “Slow...

People living in a small village near Modena, in the northern region of Emilia-Romagna, got a surprise on Wednesday when they turned on their kitchen taps and got wine instead of water. Not a miracle, but a fault at a nearby winery meant wine had accidentally been pumped into the local water supply, technicians later discovered. Residents said the...

La #DopEconomy italiana si conferma driver fondamentale e indiscusso dei distretti agroalimentari del nostro Paese. Lo certifica il XVII Rapporto Ismea-Qualivita che nella sua analisi sui dati produttivi 2018 registra una ulteriore crescita che si inserisce nel trend degli ultimi dieci anni per il settore Food e Wine DOP IGP, con un valore alla pro...

The VIA team is working to stage the advanced-level Italian Wine Ambassador certification in Verona from 10-14 April 2020, shortly before Vinitaly. With five advanced Italian Wine Ambassador courses in Italy and 10 overseas held from 2015 to 2019, this year the VIA will run five Wine Ambassador courses, including one in Atlanta in June, Seattle in...

Hailing from the northern regions of Piemonte, Lombardia, and Val d'Aosta, Nebbiolo is the key to some of Italy's most refined red wines. Step into the vineyards to discover this prized grape variety. WHAT IS NEBBIOLO? Dating back to the 13th century and named for nebbia, Italian for "fog," this ancient and thin-skinned grape variety is right at ho...

Italians take their wines very seriously, and no wonder when wine is produced in all 20 regions of the country. To keep abreast of all the selections available, at least a half dozen wine guides are published in Italy each year, rating thousands of wines in all price ranges and styles. The best known Italian wine guide is the one published by Gambe...