“I’d much rather eat pasta and drink wine than be a size zero,” proclaimed Sophia Loren.
Chianti Wine has often been thought of as Table Wine and not on the same caliber as Bordeaux. The idea that the Blood of Jupiter and the sweat and tears of the viticulturalists could be so undervalued is a sad affair.
How did that happen? First, the Chiantis were mean to be food wines. The culture of Italy is different than those of other places. It has the second highest consumption rate of any country in the world at 46.6 liters consumed per person annually. (The average person in Portugal consumes 51.9 liters annually). The average American consumes 2.9 gallons (or 10.9 liters) annually. To put that into perspective. Each bottle of wine is 750 mL, with about 2.37 gallons in a case of wine. That means Americans are drinking a little over a bottle of wine per person, per month. I don’t believe that’s what the founding father’s intended for us.
John Adams, our second President of the United States (1797-1801), served as our Ambassador to Great Britain and negotiated our peace treaty. We might not have our sovereign nation if it weren’t for Abigail Adams who made spiked cider for French dignitaries in order to help secure funds for fighting the British. John Adams was notorious for his drink, so much so, that it was frowned upon by French dignitaries. “Dinner was washed down with cider, weak or strong beer, then white wine….They keep drinking right on through dessert….” But it was that very nature of pouring everyone a drink that made him so easy to negotiate with.
So what happened to America’s drinking culture? First Phylloxera happened. The quality of wine went down. Vines need to be at least 5 years old for the grapes to have quality and something in the neighborhood of 40% of the vines in the world died. Then Prohibition happened. Couple that with two world wars wherein people couldn’t afford luxuries, Americans made drinking an occasional or weekend thing. Then Americans splurged on special events and drank the hard stuff and became binge drinkers. Thus, wine didn’t stay part of our American culture.
I do blame the Wholesalers of America for part of the problem. Some states only allow a handful of distributors to make all of the decisions about what wines were allowed in any given demographic. Thus, they determined the quality of wine the average American consumed. When the state of opened up from being a Control State with ABC stores to being a state that allowed Direct-to-Direct Distribution, their Comptroller’s office put together an audit. They found that the people of Iowa wanted consumer education and the Iowans not only drank better quality wines, but the quality was quantified so the average person was willing to spend more on a bottle of wine. This meant more excise taxes as income for the state of Iowa. This is a perfect example of when freedom and consumer education prevails, everyone benefits. The freedoms didn’t increase alcoholism. It also only mildly increased consumption rate.
On the Italian side, in the 1800’s to create Chianti, Sangiovese was blended with 10-30% Trebbiano (the grape used to make brandy) and Malvasia. These are white grapes that increased the acidity to Chianti, making it less balanced and desirable. Chianti consumption went down. It wasn’t until the 1960’s and 1970’s that French blends with more oak aging in smaller casks improved the quality and age ability of the wines. The new name of Super Tuscan emerged and so did American consumption of Italian wines.
Going back to Americans consuming the Italian Chiantis, Americans drank these while eating pizza on vinyl checkered table cloths with the Billboard Top 20 Hits playing on the Jukebox. That doesn’t convey high caliber. But, imagine eating Veal Parmesan at a high-end Italian Restaurant. The wine that is poured is a Chianti Classico Reserva or a Super Tuscan. You went to the pizza place in high school and college and you go to the Italian Restaurant on Ventura Boulevard as a grown-up for birthdays and anniversaries. Chianti is nostalgic. It is in fact part of our culture. It grew up and so did we. Now we just have to remember Chianti with our Tuesday night pasta night instead of CocaCola or Sweet Tea. Then we’ll be catching up to the Italians in no time at all. The price point is for a Chianti Classico is budget friendly, so there’s no need to wait for the weekend.
Cheese pairing: Asiago Cheese
Asiago Cheese is a cow’s milk cheese that may only produced in Veneto and Trentino regions in Northern Italy. It has a semi firm texture with a buttery aroma. Other places may produce it but look for a PDO (Denominazione do Origine Protetta) sticker on it for authenticity. It is sometimes mistaken for Parmesan and the two may be used interchangeably but, Asiago is more mild in flavor, while Parmesan is more salty. Sangiovese, may also be produced in a lighter style hence the pairing). There are two styles of Asiago. Asiago Pressato has a smooth texture and is only aged for about a month. Asiago d’allevo is aged for up to two ears. The Italians are serious about their cheese and label according to how many months it’s been aging. But look for the words Asiago d’allevo Stravecchio. These are aged between 18 months and 2 years. They get more crumbly with the extra aging, more golden in color and develop a hint of a spiciness which is perfect with Sangiovese. So apparently, Veal Parmesan is a creation by Italian immigrants right here in the USA. My Italian friends say that it’s not found in Italy. We took Italian flavors and made them better! (Please don’t tell Italians I said that. It could start a war.). It’s not something that I eat regularly, but it’s a splurge for a nice dinner date. It’s also, not kosher, so I can feel my Bubbie from beyond the grave, shaking her head and saying, “tisk, tisk, tisk.” Also, I feal guilty about eating a baby calf that didn’t get to live a long life. But veal is usually from males as opposed to females which are prized for their milk, so then I feel less guilty. And, Bubbie, if you are looking down on me, let me remind you that you married down. You didn’t stay with the Kohanim, so my defiant sprit has been handed down from generation to generation. And by the way, it’s so good. I can’t believe you lived your whole life and never tasted this. It’s possible that things that are forbidden taste just a little better than anything else. My mouth is watering at the thought.
Veal Parmesan recipe
Veal cutlet slices pounded thin with a meat pounder
Dip the veal in egg whites slightly whipped with a touch of water
Dip the veal in seasoned bread crumbs
Pan fry both sides until medium brown
Boil Capellini Pasta
Strain and add Marinara Sauce
Put the pasta in a baking pan with the veal on top. Add chopped mushrooms and shredded basil on top. Cover with grated Mozzarella and Romano cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes. Garnish with Italian Parsley leaves, fresh basil with a sprinkle of Asiago Stravecchio on top.
Goditi la tua cena! (Enjoy your dinner!)
