Tasting Report: Outstanding Italian Whites for Summer June 2011

Hot summer weather means crisp and bright whites for me, preferably with fresh seafood. I love Italian whites from the Northeast – primarily Alto Adige and Collio. The wines have such clarity of fruit with a mineral undertone. They are wonderful as aperitifs as well as with food.

My tasting coordinator was rummaging through my office cellar and came across a number of bottles of delicious whites that are on the market that begged to be tasted, particularly those from the Alto Adige wine cooperative of Terlano. About 100 vine growers are members of the Terlano winery in the village with the same name.

I have been to the winery and walked the mountainous vineyards, and they are both stunning. What I love about Terlano is the base wines that are a very good value – normally under $20 a bottle. These are my go-to wines in the summer in restaurants on the Italian coast.

I am also a fan of the standard bottlings of Collio’s Livio Felluga, especially the Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc and Friulano. They are all bottled with screw caps and offer bright, focused fruit character and crisp acidities. They are excellent buys as well.

Other wines I tasted yesterday but did not receive scores of 90 points included:

2009 Cantina Terlano Alto Adige Chardonnay2009 Borgo Conventi Collio Pinot Grigio2009 Borgo Conventi Collio Friulano