Hello friends and wine lovers!

The name “Tuscan” may be confusing for people who are unfamilliar with Italy, or Star Wars geeks who may confuse the name with the Tuskan Raiders, also known as Sandpeople. (To my knowledge, the Tuskan Raiders are a savage people, and most likely not adept enough at agriculture to cultivate a wine. The desert planet of Tatooine would probably not be suitable to grow vines anyway, due to the dual suns and scorching heat. However, Zinfandel might do fairly well in higher elevations, if irrigated.)

My sci-fi geekiness aside, Tuscans are wines from the Tuscany region of Italy (Toscana to the Italians). The region is home to the well-known wines of Chianti, and the historic city of Rome (Roma to the Romans). Choosing the wines for this Friday Flight was a daunting task for me, considering the styles of Italian wines I had previously tried ranged from moderately dry to dry-as-the-sands-of-Tatooine dry. Advocates of Italian wines say that they really need to be matched with food to fully appreciate them. Perhaps something to offset the dryness. I have heard from other people that to improve their drinkability they need to breathe. . .for 1-3 days. On the flip side of both of these hypotheses is the third that I have heard from people who have vacationed in Italy. The wines served in Italy are much better, as they drink most of the good ones and ship the rest. Italy is also the world’s largest wine exporter. So by that theory, I knew that better ones MUST exist, though the vast numbers of Italian wines available make it hard to weed through. I tasted through dozens upon dozens of these wines to bring to the tasting just the best ones I could find. (Within reason, of course. The best one I tried recently retails for over $70, which I would gladly order for you!)

For more about Italian Tuscan wines, drop by Carpe Vinum tomorrow, Friday 24th, from 4:30 until 9:00 to taste these for yourself. Bread will be available, as food is recommended. Feel free to bring your own antipasta! (Antipasto, antipasti. . .)

For more about Star Wars, Tuskan Raiders and Tatooine, just type “Star Wars” into your favorite search engine, and see what happens. There may be a link or two. . .

The wines for this week that passed my rigorous Italian Wine Test:
Maremma 2002 Micante IGT
Altesino 2000 Rosso di Altesino
Poggio Capponi 2001 “Petriccio” Chianti Montespertoli
Le Corti 2001 Chianti Classico
Capanna 2001 Rosso di Montalcino

And the Extra Two Premium Pours:
Villa Caffaggio 1998 Chianti Classico Riserva
Sammontana 1997 Maestro Rosso (Super-Tuscan)

Quite a bargain at $10 for the first 5, and $6 for the Extra 2.

This one was a lot of work, so it ought to be good!

Hope to see you here!
Seize the Wine!
M

Next week is Rhone-style Blends! (Not excluding Rhone wines themselves)