I ate very well across Puglia. The cheeses, the seafood, the pasta (pasta di Gragnano is pugliese). And being in the South, aperitivi abundanti! So what’s there to drink with all that food?! Well, there’s a lot of good wine. Puglia has 4 wines that are DOCG’s, 29 DOC’s and 6 IGT’s. Some varietals are indigenous of the region, others may be found in other southern regions, and some are more international.
As a red wine lover, I was happy to taste some nice wines, from primitivo grapes as well as negroamaro, nero di Troia, and discovering the susumaniello. Primitivo and negroamaro are the two most produced varietals of the region.They both are deep in colour, bold yet smooth, with notes of black fruits, red fruits, cocoa and spice, then it’s in the hands of the winemaker and its terroir. The susumaniello, is a varietal which was used for sweet wines, then almost disappeared. It is now back, and in the right hands, making great wines. Like the above mentioned, the susumaniello is dark in colour, with notes of dark fruit, red fruit, spices and more herbaceous notes.
Due to the region’s foods, especially the abundance of seafood, the majority of red wines are also vinified in rosé. The majority will give you a fresher version of its red counterpart. More red fruit and sometimes citrus, other times tree fruit, a nice acidity, still with structure and complexity to accompany a meal. I had so much fun drinking good rosés, I almost forgot to taste some white wines! However, keep an eye out and do drink these white varietals; verdeca, bianco d’Alessano, falanghina, fiano and vermentino.
I am glad that more and more red wines are made to accompany even fish. Italian gastronomy is, afterall, about local terroir, and using what is in the vicinity together. The difficult part is now picking just one! So much choice, so many possibilities! Rosso, bianco, rosato! E anche macerato. Salute!
Buon Appetito!
lachefingiro 