By Len Gulino
Harry’s Wine and Liquor
harrys@snet.net
Our extended family is much
smaller today with relatives having moved away and the natural
passage of time, but when I was young our family Christmas Eve
dinner was a classic ethnic Italian celebration that lasted from
mid-afternoon until well after midnight! Back then I knew
little about wine except for the few sips that the “adults”
would offer to us youngsters, but if I were to provide the wines
for our classic family dinner today these would be some good
selections.
Afternoon
visits – On the way
to the annual dinner at Grandma’s house, all the families would
stop and visit friends and extended relatives to give holiday
greetings and exchange gifts. This is the perfect opportunity
to serve Italy’s favorite aperitif wine, Prosecco -
Bortolmiol Prosecco NV, $10.99.
Pre
dinner cocktails –
Once at Grandma’s house there were lots of folks helping to
prepare the food and set the table, and almost everyone had a
glass of wine nearby. For this purpose the Alois Lageder
Pinot Grigio, $13.99 will do very nicely.
Antipasti
– As the dinner
begins a couple of bottles of both white and red are
appropriate. The Palagetto Vernaccia di San Gimignano 2002,
$10.99 and the Scaletta Dolcetto d’Alba 2001, $12.99
will match well with the wide range of flavors and textures that
comprise our “Italian Smorgasbord”.
Pasta
& Sauce – No, not in
our house…this entree was called “Macaroni & Gravy”. Regardless
of what you call it a fine Chianti is all you need to pair it
with. Try the Carpineto Chianti Classico 2001, $16.99.
Fish
course – Our family
was perfectly happy breaking the “white wine with fish” rule, so
when a variety of differently prepared fish are served, the
Zenato Valpolicella Ripassa 2001, $18.99 will be sure to
please everyone.
Meat
course – Time to
break out some big red wines as the roasted, stewed, and braised
meats hit the table. With these entrees a couple of relatively
unknown but real beauties like the Cusumano Noá, $28.99
and the Paolo Bea Montefalco Rosso 2000, $31.99 are
definitely in order.
Dessert
– Always room for cannoli and what better dessert wine to match
it with than the delicious Santo Stefano Moscato d’Asti 2002,
$17.99.
After
dinner – For those
who can take it (and truthfully, I’m not a big fan but this one
sounds pretty good!) the bottle of Grappa lands on the table –
Michele Chiarlo Grappa di Barolo (375ml), $29.99.
“Happy
Holidays”
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