Three Northern Italian Bottles in NYC
Because NYC Wine Retailers Are Catching on to Alpine Wines
It was in late winter of this year when I saw the below headline on the homepage of the Eataly Vino site:
Wines born in the shadows of the Alps: Ski Trip Wines
The carousel linked to a page inviting shoppers to explore the wines of Alto Adige, Valtellina and Valle d’Aosta, citing the unique terroir of the Alps, as well common traits in the wines across the different regions, such as high acidity and floral flavors.
A small promotional move that nevertheless felt like a breakthrough. Part of the fascination of Alpine wines for us is that, despite the many nuances, there is a common thread that runs through the wines of the Alpine range. And so it was validating to see a major wine retailer connecting the dots between the three northern Italian wine regions, as opposed to marketing them individually.
Often, we argue, the wines can have more in common with other Alpine wines than with other wines from their own native countries – hence “Alpine wines,” and not just “Alpine France,” or “Alpine Italy.” Leon & Son, the Clinton Hill wine store stocking some of the most of-the-moment bottles, has an Alpine tag on their site (a tag! We’ve truly made it!) that directs to wines from Savoie, Alto Piemonte, Lombardy and Valle d’Aosta. The Astor Center, affiliated with Astor Wines and Spirits, held a class on Alpine Wines last Tuesday.
Back to Eataly Vino, I had a word with wine buyer Frankie Nunez, who keeps the wines from Valle d’Aosta and Alto Adige displayed next to each other where possible. “It’s one of the most important regions for white wines, Pinot Noir, and lighter-style wines,” Nunez says. He cites Manni Nössing and Pacher Hof in Alto Adige and Maison Vevey Albert in Valle d’Aosta as some of his favorite Italian Alpine producers.
He reports that customers embraced the idea of “Ski Trip Wines” this past season, connecting to the French and Swiss influences on the wines of the areas they travelled to. He sees the potential to highlight Alpine wines as summer refreshment in the months ahead. “If more people were aware of how clean and bright these wines are, they’d be drinking them all the time.”
We certainly plan to drink Alpine wines all summer long, and to support the NYC retailers helping to push them forward, here are three of our favorite bottles to purchase from these stores. That they all hail from Italy seems like a technicality, and something I only realized after the fact; there is indeed something about Alpine wines that seems to defy borders.
2023 Ermes Pavese Blanc de Morgex et de la Salle - $33.96 from Astor Wines & Spirits
Prié Blanc is a native white grape to this part of Valle d’Aosta, which is located closer to the French border than it is to Piedmont. This wine is bracing but not harsh despite the serious mineral profile, with additional notes of wildflowers and lemon thyme.
2022 Manni Nössing Muller Thurgau Sass Rigais - $30.59 from Eataly Vino
Edging up towards Austria, Manni Nössing makes wines from traditionally Germanic grape varieties that reflect Alto Adige’s very particular heritage. Muller Thurgau is treated as a throwaway grape in many wine regions, but here it’s a carefully crafted wine of electric energy, bearing notes of tropical fruits, white flowers, salinity and lemon zest.
2021 Chiussuma Carema - $79.99 from Leon & Son
We never stop recommending this wine, and not just because it’s Alpine – it’s simply one of the best Nebbiolos around. Notes of forest berries and rose petals make this one painfully pretty, and the 2021 vintage has an extra boost of acidity that makes it ideal for warm weather sipping.
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