"New" Italian Wines

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A night of Italian wines you’ve probably never tasted will be featured with the next Five-Course Pairing Dinner at M’tucci’s Italian on Thursday, November 17.

Chef’s Shawn and Cory sat down with local distributor who imports wine from small producers. One of the wines that is popular on the East Coast is Orange Wine. It is made from white wine grapes (rosé is made from dark-skinned grapes) that is crushed and left in contact with the skins for several days.

They have chosen wines from throughout Italy, Puglia, Veneto and Piedmont for this wine dinner. The menu will be added to this space and to Facebook soon.

Here are some notes about the wines from the importer, Portovino:

Our first course will begin with Flora Prosecco. Col di Luna is a Prosecco producer at the foot of the Dolomites, in the Vittorio Veneto area of the Prosecco growing area, and they have a long family tradition of producing a zingy Brut Prosecco. Pairs well with all kinds of dishes, from aperitivo foods and light meals, to crudo and sushi.

Two wines from the small, boutique vintner, Sfera, will go with the next two courses.

Sfera is a natural wine project that collaborates with small organically certified wineries throughout Italy– from the Alps to the Mediterranean– to bottle distinctive wines in small batches. In the spirit of full transparency, each vineyard is represented on the always changing back label. Macerato is a clean and structured, textbook example of orange wine, with moderate acidity and medium body. Verdeca grapes are harvested in mid-September, and then see 14 days of skin contact in stainless steel vats. Notes of sandalwood and spice dance with citrus peel and saline minerality.

Sfera’s at once terroir-driven, but also an interesting take on liters, and bottling wine in general. As Sfera says on their quirky site: Cosmic Verve in a Grounded Italian Liter…From the Alps to the Mediterranean.  Sfera collaborates with multiple small certified-organic farmers to bottle liters in limited runs, and are keen to give the producer credit by clearly putting the winery’s name and providence on the back label.

This all means that the producers change, but front labels don’t. Another constant is that the wines are naturally made, and fall into certain guidelines that are lab tested before and after bottling. It’s a win-win, small certified organic producers get to do a fun liter project, and we get to explore Italy. 

While working in Africa for National Geographic in 1999, I met an Italian photographer who invited me to visit his home in the Piedmont. The hill town of Avolasca is surrounded by farms and vineyards in the valley called Colli Tortonesi. The wines were memorable, particularly the Barbera.

From Portovino: “Walter Massa is the real deal: a contadino (farmer) with deep family roots in his native Colli Tortonesi who’s usually plowing his vineyards or buzzing around his cellar when someone arrives for a visit. He’ll then stop to spend hours pouring wines for, and talking with the continual waves of journalists, sommeliers, importers, buyers, and just plain fans who make their way to his village of Monleale in the southeast corner of Piemonte. Massa is universally known as the Maestro di Timorasso — he rescued it from obscurity and near-extinction and now leads a mini-renaissance of the variety in the Colli Tortonesi. But he also produces amazing and distinctive reds (and the occasional rosato) from the local varieties Barbera, Croatina, Freisa, and Nebbiolo. Besides being one of Italy’s truly great producers, he’s a stellar example of what the Italians call a personaggio — a real personality. This is his all cement Barbera that is a fun and funky daily drinker, and a great introduction into the reds of Vigneti Massa. People from all over Italy come to fill up their glass jugs (damigiana) from his cavernous cement tanks he has in his cellar.

Expanded Food Menu at Teddy Roe’s Bar

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Weekend Specials

M’tucci’s Italian

Ravioli - Portobello & Ricotta filling, Beef Tips, Turnip Greens, Caramelized Onions, Brodo Cream Sauce, Pecorino, Micro Greens $27

14 oz Ribeye: Crispy Salt Water Potatoes, Grilled Asparagus, Grilled Lemon, Balsamic Reduction $39

Pan-Seared Swordfish - Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Sautéed Arugula, Grilled Artichokes, Lemon Caper Sauce $33

Braise - Confit Octopus - Roasted Red Onion, Roasted Butternut Squash, Creamy Sage Risotto, Arugula, Micro Greens $25

Weekend Cocktail

Hungover You - Sazarac Rye, 6pm Montanaro, Fresh Lemon Juice, Simple Syrup, Orange Bitters


M’tucci’s Moderno

14 oz. Ribeye - Traditional Italian Salsa Verde, Crispy Saltwater Potatoes, & Grilled Asparagus $39

Pan-Seared Icelandic Cod - Roasted Artichoke, Braised Escarole, Mashed Potatoes, Caper Lemon Butter Sauce, & Smoked Prosciutto Powder $28

Shrimp Diavolo - Pink Patagonia Shrimp, Caramelized Onion, Pepper Flakes, Capers, Green Chile, Garlic, Marinara Sauce, House Made Spaghetti $21

Weekend Cocktail

O Canada - Knob Creek Rye, Maple Syrup, Chocolate Bitters


M’tucci’s Twenty-Five

14 oz. Ribeye - Grilled Broccolini, Whipped Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Smoked Blackberry bone Marrow Butter $39

Pan-Seared Artic Char - Garlic Whipped Potatoes, Braised Greens, Stem on Artichoke Hearts, Lemon Butter Caper Sauce $33

6 oz. Sackett Farms Pork Belly Risotto - Crispy Pork Belly, Creamy Risotto, Sugar Snap Peas, Roasted Fennel, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Blackberry Lemon Beurre Blanc Sauce $24

Weekend Cocktail

Fall Into Spice - Spiced Rum, Strega Liquore, Ginger Beer, Liquid Alchemist Apple Spice


M’tucci’s Bar Roma

Pan-Seared Ruby Trout - Garlic Whipped Mashed Potatoes, Braised Arugula, Garlic, Pan-Seared Artichoke Hearts, Lemon Caper Butter Sauce $27

Sea Scallops - Rosemary & Vanilla-Brined Sea Scallops, Roasted Golden Beat and Italian White Bean Succotash, Citrus Grilled Escarole, Tomato & Crab Beurre Blanc, Fresh Herbs and Cracked Pepper $43

Weekend Cocktail

The Takeoff - Absolut Grapefruit Vodka, Aperol, Strega Liquore, Fresh Lemon Juice, Simple Syrup

Live Music for October & November

M’tucci’s Bar Roma - Wed 6:30-8:30. Sunday noon-2pm

11/6 Nathan Fox

11/9 Rj Perez

11/13 Oscar Butler

11/16 Shane Wallin

11/20 John Martinez

11/23 Ron Martinez

11/27 Shane Wallin

11/30 Oscar Butler

M’tucci’s Twenty-Five - Thursday 6:30-8:30 * Friday 7:30-9:30

11/4 Jason Seel

11/10 John Martinez

11/11 Lani Nash

11/17 Rj Perez

11/18 Matt Jones

11/25 Rob Martinez

M’tucci’s Moderno - Thursday 6:30-830 *Friday 7:30-9:30

11/4 John Martinez

11/10 Rob Martinez

11/11 Rj Perez

11/17 Matt Jones

11/18 Lani Nash

11/25 Alex Long

Thanks for reading. See you next Friday. Ciao!