Northern Italian Themed Sunday Euro Lunch: Giacosa, Scavino and Masi

As we prepare to return to Donato tomorrow for a Southern Italian Euro lunch, I thought it was about time to get my report up on last month's delicious Northern Italian themed Euro lunch. We took full advantage of the range of Northern Italian wines, so that meant sparkling, whites, Brunellos, Barbera, Barolo, Barbaresco and Amarone. Virtually everything showed very well (the exception was a very peculiar, and presumably faulty, '07 Mascarello Dolcetto d'Alba, that smelled and tasted of cat pee--not what one expects or hopes for in Dolcetto by a terrific maker). The super standouts were a stunning '97 Giacosa Barolo Le Rocche del Falletto, that was everything one might hope for in an early middle-aged Barolo, and a '96 Scavino Barolo Cannubi, but these were only the stars out of a terrific lineup of excellent wines. The food from Northern Italian-themed Donato was also excellent, and together with the wines, made for a delicious, long, civilized way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

For more detail on the wines, and wine and food pairings, see below.

We started with a very nice Prosecco, by Sorelle Bronca, that paired beautifully with our opening dish--nova scallop crusted with panko over mixed wild mushrooms, zucchini blossoms and squid ink. The Broncas are sisters, who grow their own fruit in steep hillside vineyards. This bottling, the Particella 68, is named after a particular vineyard parcel.

• NV Sorelle Bronca Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore Particella 68 90 Points

  Italy, Veneto, Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG

  Very light yellow color; pear, apple, white fruit nose; nice and dry, pear, tart apple, mineral palate; medium finish

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For our second flight, we got to compare two Arneises from two top producers. This is probably the most interesting white varietal grown in Piedmont, and both of these examples were from the sandy soils of the Roero, where Arneis excels. Both were oily textured, with lovely fruit and good acidity--the '07 Giacosa showed that the wine has a little aging potential as well. Our dish for this flight was roasted Sonoma quail wrapped in speck with fava beans and balsamic vinegar reduction.

• 2009 Vietti Roero Arneis 91 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Roero

  Light butter yellow color; focused peach, pineapple, oily nose; oily textured, tart peach, mineral palate with good acidity; medium finish 91+ pts.

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• 2007 Bruno Giacosa Roero Arneis 92 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Roero

  Light golden yellow color; peach, apricot, citrus nose; oily textured, tart citrus, tart peach, mineral, lime palate; medium finish (should be drunk up within the year)

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Our next flight comprised four wines, including two very mature Brunellos, a delicious Barbera d'Alba from Cascina Val del Prete, and the faulty Dolcetto. Both of the mature Il Colle Brunello Riservas showed well, but the '79 had a little more complexity and grip. The Barbera was spicy and very tasty. Our dish for this course was pappardelle with lamb cheeks and burrata. Delicious pasta.

• 1978 Il Colle di Carli Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 92 Points

  Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino

  Bricking medium red color; ethereal, black fruit, dried berry, fig nose; tasty, velvet textured, dried berry, mineral, cranberry palate; medium-plus finish (good pairing with quail course)

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• 1979 Il Colle di Carli Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 93 Points

  Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino

  Bricking medium red violet color; dried berry, sandalwood, rosewood, dried raspberry, tobacco nose; tasty, dried berry, dried raspberry, cranberry palate with good balance; medium-plus finish 93+ pts. (more complex and grippier than the '78 poured alongside it)

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• 2007 Giuseppe E Figlio Mascarello Dolcetto d'Alba Bricco 74 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Dolcetto d'Alba

  Dark red violet color; cat pee nose; non-pleasurable, odd, cat pee, beet, root vegetable, geranium palate; medium finish (I've never used "cat pee" as a descriptor for a red wine, something definitely seemed faulty, but hard to identify; similar bad experience to that described in another CT TN)

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• 2004 Cascina Val del Prete Barbera d'Alba Superiore Carolina 93 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba Superiore

  Black red violet color; big berry, black fruit, plum, spice nose; very tasty, rich, black fruit, plum, berry palate; medium-plus finish 93+ pts. (much better, even, than last time I tried it)

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Our Nebbiolo flight included two Giacosas, a Scavino and a Massolino, and a range of maturing vintages from the '90s. The three Barolos all showed the roses and tar I love in Nebbiolo, while the older Barbaresco was starting to show more secondary characteristics, including lovely cigar box aromatics. All were wonderful in their own way--the Giacosa Barolo was just particularly outstanding, velvety, complex and delicious. Our pasta course with this flight was agnolotti dal plin, stuffed with veal, pork and rabbit and castelmagno cheese with brown butter sauce. The '96 Scavino Cannubi paired particularly well with this pasta.

• 1998 Massolino Barolo Riserva Vigna Rionda 93 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  Bricking medium dark red violet color; roses, tar, smoke, earthy, tobacco nose; a little tight, roses, tar, muscular palate; medium-plus finish 93+ pts (decanted for about 90 minutes)

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• 1996 Paolo Scavino Barolo Cannubi 95 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  Opaque, bricking red violet color; tawny, oak, roasted meat, berry nose; tasty, rich, berry, dried berry, roses palate; medium-plus finish 95+ pts.

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• 1997 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Le Rocche del Falletto di Serralunga d'Alba 97 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  Bricking medium dark red color with pale meniscus; lovely, roses, milk chocolate, leather, incense nose; delicious, gorgeous, poised, velvety, roses, spice box, tar, resin palate; medium-plus finish

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• 1993 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco 93 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  Bricking medium red color with clear meniscus; refined, tobacco, charcoal, cigar box nose; tasty, cigar box, tobacco, graphite palate; medium-plus finish 93+ pts.

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I didn't think we had much more room for food at that point, but our final savory course, with the Amarone, were delicious lamb chops. The Masi single vineyard Amarone we closed with--Masi's first single vineyard Amarone, first made in 1958--was another fabulous wine, with great complexity and nuance, and an unusual sense of salty licorice for me. A delicious end to another memorable Euro lunch.

• 2001 Masi Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Campolongo di Torbe 94 Points

  Italy, Veneto, Valpolicella, Amarone della Valpolicella Classico

  Nearly opaque red violet color; black olive, tart licorice, black fruit, tar, seawater nose; nice, black plum, licorice, salted licorice, anise, tar, sage palate; long finish (70% Corvina, 25% Rondinella, 5% Molinara; aged 30 mos. in large French oak foudres, and then in bottle for 6 mos. before release)

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Oh, and there was dessert too--a citrus-infused panna cotta with raspberry sauce.