I can’t think of anything more delightful than sharing bowls of pasta with good friends and loads of red wine. (Not necessarily in that order. Sorry friends.) But finding the perfect pairing for pasta is challenging, given that there are so many delicious pastas, so many delectable red wines and so many diverse palates among my friends.

What to do? Hold a blind tasting to find a wine that worked for most if not all of the tribes. (Before we go any farther, let’s make sure you know your Wine Tribe by taking this quick quiz to identify your palate preferences.) Capiche?

Yummy. Feeling hungry and thirsty yet?

Now, on to the wines. I thought it would be fun to sample a variety of Italian reds at a variety of price points in hopes of finding the perfect pairing for pasta.

The lineup

Here’s what we tasted:

Italian amore

The Italians have been making wine for over 3 millennia, and with roughly 400 unique grape varieties and thousands of subvarieties, one could be forgiven for not having a grasp on all Italian wines (guilty). However, I’ve never met an Italian wine I didn’t like. Many Italian grapes are high in acid, so the wines they produce tend to be very food friendly, albeit a bit acidic on their own.

The Bindi Segardi is a Tuscan wine made from the Sangiovese grape. Since this was a Riserva, it was aged for more than two years before release and had slightly more alcohol than a non Riserva Chianti. I visited this winery while on a bike tour a few years back and have fond memories of it, though it should be noted I wiped out on my bike post-tasting. Whoops.  Regardless, I was hoping it would perform well in our blind tasting.

That’s me, on my Italian bike tour. Needed some water post wine tasting wipe out!

The Podere Ruggeri Corsini wine blends together the three most important red wine grape varieties of the Piedmont region in northwestern Italy: Barbera (the region’s workhorse), Nebbiolo (a powerful grape known as the region’s blockbuster) and Dolcetto (the “poor cousin” to Nebbiolo). Would tasters like this example of “Piedmont in a glass?”

The Vietti Barbera d’ Alba is also from Piedmont. It’s made with the Barbera grape, which is high in acid and has less pronounced tannins. Sounds food friendly to me. And the whimsical label was an added bonus.

And finally, the Valpolicella, a wine from the Veneto region that’s typically a blend of three  grapes, Corvina, Corvinone and Rondinella. Given the enthusiasm of the saleslady at my local store, I was excited to try this blend.

The results

The good news? You can’t go wrong with any of these wines. But not surprisingly, each tribe had their own take on things.

For the Complex Tribe, the Bindi Segardi was the winner, whether they were drinking it with or without food. Scents of herbs, cherry and ether led into tastes of pepper, licorice, cola and black currents. It’s worth noting that the Balanced and Developed Tribes liked this one too, especially when drinking it while eating. Its balanced tannins and acids and medium body made it a winner all around.

The Podere Ruggeri Corsini was the fave of the Accessible Tribe. With soothing scents of cinnamon applesauce, cloves and fruit roll ups, it tasted of figs, black plums, wet earth and spice and the Accessible Tribe liked its tiny bit of sweetness. This wine comes from grapes grown on the winery’s own estate, which is farmed organically.  All of the tribes liked this well enough, and at $12 to $14 a bottle, it’s a bargain.

The Vietti Barbera d’ Alba was a favorite of both the Balanced Tribe and the Developed Tribe. This one had some unusual scents of sour cherry and “something from the dentist’s office,” but on the palate, it shines. Tasters commented on flavors of dried figs, cranberries, wet dirt and a hint of prune. Also, because of its balanced acids and tannins, it was especially good with pasta because it didn’t linger or fight with the food.

The Valpolicella was another fave of both the Balanced and Developed Tribes, but for different reasons. It had some funky scents of farm animals, cherries, green onions and blackberry syrup, which is a strange yet weirdly appealing mix. Its robust tastes of plum, tobacco, fig newtons and baking spices were yummy. The Balanced Tribe thought it competed a bit with food, but the Developed Tribe complemented the wine’s assertiveness and felt that its supple tannins and juicy acidity made it a perfect pairing.

So, in a nutshell Italian wines rock. When you’re looking for a perfect pairing for pasta, choose the Podere Ruggeri Corsini Rosso Matot for the Accessible Tribe, the Vietti Barbera d’ Alba or the Alegrini Valpolicella for the Balanced and Developed Tribes and the Bindi Segardi Chianti Classico Riserva for your Complex friends. And to learn more about Italian wines, check this out.

Prego!

 

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