Federal Wine & Spirits

This Week's (Virtual) Tasting

Italian Solidarity Case + Make your own Hand Sanitizer

March 25, 2020

One sentence tells us how serious this all is: All of the restaurants in Italy are closed. We wish all of our friends well in Italy as well as here. Today’s offer is for a mixed case of Italian wines from all over the country.

 

Peter writes,

These are selected to convey the unique quality of Italian wine and are perfect to accompany your home cooked meal or the one you take out from your favorite restaurant.

Try some seafood with the 2017 Montecappone  Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi. Located in the heart of the Ancona region of the Marche, Montecappone was bought and restored by the Bomprezzi Mirizzi family from Rome. Verdicchio is a fantastic white grape that produces wines that should be on many more tables here. From here we will go up the coast to the Soave region outside of Verona. The 2018 Pieropan Soave Classico is a wonderful example of one of Italy’s oldest and best known whites. This is a very fresh and versatile wine that the Pieropans have been making for centuries.

         Now that roses are so popular every year we will continue to point out that they can be very useful in winter as well. Also, the good ones age well, for say three to five years.  Such is the case with the 2018 La Spinetta Il Rose di Casanova. This Rosato of Sangiovese was our most ordered and reordered last year. It is still fresh and even rounder and a bit spicier than it was.

Next up is one of the lighter reds that they do so well in Italy. The 2018 Sottimano Mate is made from a single vineyard of Brachetto in Barbaresco. Everyone else uses these grapes to make a sweet wine. Sottimano makes his completely dry. On the lighter side with many savory and interesting flavors and aromas.

Fabio Alessandria owns and makes the wines at Burlotto in Verduno. Burlotto is one of the hottest and best producers of Barolo. Everything he makes is traditional and transcendant. Today we are including the 2018 Burlotto Langhe Freisa. Freisa is one of the parents of Nebbiolo and gives us a wine with many similarities. This one is floral with deep fruit, spice and structure.

Heading deep south we come to Cilento in Campania with its national parks and historic agriculture. Luigi and Rafaella grow traditional grapes organically. They also have three dogs. The 2017 Luigi Maffini Cilento Aglianico Kleos  is bold and has plenty of structure and great balance. You can taste the beauty of the landscape.

 

White

2017 Montecappone  Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi:  Straw yellow with green highlights. Mostly citrus when young and developing richer flavors with age. Well structured with bright acidity and almond notes in the finish.   Very Good Plus  15.99/bottle 14.39/mixed case  13.59/case

2018 Pieropan Soave Classico:  Balanced and textured with peach blossom, apricot, golden apple and almond and a scent of lilies in the finish:  Very Good Plus  21/bottle 18.90/mixed case  17.85/case

 

Rosato

2018 La Spinetta Il Rose di Casanova:  Tangerine, white peach and strawberry. Floral mineral center and silkiness in the finish. Very Good Plus to Excellent   18.99/bottle  17.09/mixed case  16.14/case

 

Red

2018 Sottimano Mate:  Light ruby. Cherries, roses, dry layered mouthfeel with exotic spice. Different in a Very Good Plus way.  21/bottle  18.90/mixed case  17.85/case

2018 Burlotto Langhe Freisa:  Powerful and well balanced. Violets, dark cherry, raspberry. Fine acids with supple tannin in the finish.  Very Good Plus to Excellent  21/bottle  18.90/mixed case  17.85/case

2017 Luigi Maffini Cilento Aglianico Kleos:  Supple and aromatic. Layers of dark fruit, damson plum and blackberry. Long finish with herbs and black pepper.  Very Good Plus to Excellent  21/bottle  18.90/mixed case  17.85/case

 

 

Order by phone at 617.367.8605, or reserve here: order@federalwine.com

 

           - Peter Hemenway

 

*******

 

Make Your Own Sanitizer

 

Store shelves are bare of bleach and sanitizing products. What to do?

There is another solution. The CDC says that an alcohol-based sanitizer can be just as effective as an anti'-viral agent. They recommend an isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol, the kind you find in a drugstore,of at least 70% or ethanol of at least 60% (120 proof).

 

You can use this to make your own sanitizing wipes or a spray for surfaces.

Googling “alcohol sanitizer” will give you many variations.

But be aware that this should support but not substitute for thorough hand-washing.

 

You can find the CDC formulation here.

 

You can find the WHO directions (for industrial production, but you can adapt to it) here.

 

We have long supplied high proof ethanol alcohol to those who make their own fruit infusions. More important now, it also works as a sanitizer. Our high proof alcohol is 95% (190 proof), well above the CDC minimum.

 

You don't have to go out to get it. We can add a bottle to any order for wine, beer, or other spirits or bring it to you by itself (which might incur a small delivery charge depending on where you are.)

 

We have it in two sizes, 750 ml or Magnum. 

Stay safe, whether you use this or some other method.

 

 

Order by phone at 617.367.8605, or reserve here: order@federalwine.com

 

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