Wines
Brachetto d' Acqui
Color: Ruby
Nose: Strawberry, syrupy, sweet
Mouth: Strawberry, syrupy, sweet, not enough frissante to offset syrupy flavor
Price: $13.99
Conclusion: This wine was quite sweet with less fizz than I expected and hoped for. However, for individuals who enjoy sweeter wine, this Brachetto is likely right up their alley! On the nose and palate, there is strong strawberry notes.
Nivasco Piemonte Brachetto
Color: Light ruby red
Nose: Rose, fresh,
Mouth: Long finish, sweet, but less so than first, crisp, tart finish on back of tongue, more dry than first, more fizz.
Price: $15.99
Conclusion: This was a sweet wine, but with just enough fizz to offset the sweetness just the perfect amount. This wine paired well with sweeter cheeses and chocolate. On the nose, this wine is freshly aromatic with floral notes. On the palate, it has a long finish with sweet notes, but tartness and fizz allowing it to pair well with sweeter cheeses and chocolate.
Sottimano - Mate
Color: Brilliant garnet
Nose: Anise, earthy, violet/floral
Mouth: Tart finish, bitterness on the middle of tongue
Price: $19.99
Conclusion: This wine was the driest of the three and was a great food wine. It paired well with several of the cheeses and was quite enjoyable. On the nose are floral, earthy notes with hints of anise. On the palate, there is a bitterness with a tart finish, but pairs well with food.
Pairings
Cheeses
Manchego
Boursin with pepper
Midnight Moon goat cheese
Cambozola with honey
Chocolates
Dark chocolate
Chocolate truffles
Dark chocolate covered wine grapes
Crackers
Water crackers
Final Thoughts
Beth: My taste buds were a bit off with this class, but I can definitely see the Nivasco Brachetto pairing nicely with a dessert. As is the case with Italian wines, they were great paired with food, although the Brachetto d' Acqui was too sweet for my taste buds. In the end, I still prefer Tuscan Chiantis as my choice for Italian reds!
Lisa: So why did we go out of our comfort zone? I sampled the Sottomano at Fezziwig's and had never had a dry Brachetto before and was intrigued. Knowing that most Brachettos are sweet and bubbly, I thought why not compare. Since the class, I am STILL a dry wine drinker! As for the two sweet wines, you need to try the Cambozola with honey on a water cracker. Paired with the sweetness of the wine, they compliment each other. The chocolate pairings with all the wines were definitely winners too.
Mary Jo: My favorite wine of the three was the Sottimano. This is not surprising since it is the closest of the three to a dry red wine - my favorite. This is a great food wine and paired well with the Manchego, Boursin and goat cheeses. My second favorite was the Nivasco with which had just enough fizz to offset the super sweet taste. The Nivasco was delicious with the Cambozola and honey and paired well with the truffles. Unfortunately, for my palate, I could not get into the Brachetto D'Acqui. It was very sweet, with less fizz than the Nivasco, thus not offsetting that sweet taste. While these three wines were out of our comfort zones, I could definitely see a time and place and how individuals could enjoy these wines very much!
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