Calabria is the toe of the Italian boot. It is located in the southwest corner of Italy, with 500 miles of coastline on the Gulf of Taranto and Ionian and Tyrrhenian Seas. Its total population is about 2 million. The countryside is mountainous, and prone to earthquakes. Over the centuries the peasants learned how to extract the maximum from the poor soil. The red onions from Tropea are as good as they get. Some people eat them raw. Does anybody out there have a wine pairing for raw onions?

An excellent starter or side vegetable dish is Carciofi Ammollicati (Artichokes with Breadcrumbs) that also includes grated Pecorino cheese, lemons, and olive oil. Some say that artichokes are difficult to pair with wine. They haven’t tried this dish with a Vermentino di Sardegna DOC, a Vermentino di Gallura DOCG from Sardinia, or an Italian Gewurztraminer, Pinot Grigio, or Sauvignon Blanc.

Another first dish is Bucatini con la Mollica (Bucatini Pasta with Breadcrumbs) that includes salted anchovies, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Use whole-wheat breadcrumbs. This dish is traditionally served without cheese and works best with Bucatini, large hollow spaghetti. Enjoy with an Italian Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio.

An alternative local pasta dish is Spaghetti al Ragù di Totano (Spaghetti with Squid and Tomato Sauce). Of course the hardest part of preparing this dish is cleaning the squid. Other ingredients include onion, garlic, and basil. If you are up to it, save some of the squid rings for your second course. Wine pairings for the pasta dish (often made with angel hair spaghetti) include Italian Pinot Grigio and Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi DOC or Verdicchio di Matelica DOC from The Marches.

Pesce Stocco alla Calabrese (Salted Cod Calabrian style) is made with tomato sauce, black olives, onion, potatoes, and some herbs and spices. The real thing is cooked in a terracotta dish. If you like salt cod, you’ll enjoy this meal with an Italian Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc.

I’ve saved the best for last; namely Pesce Spada alla Bagnarese (Swordfish Bagnara style). Bagnara is a fishing and now tourist village that is also known for Torrone, a delicious almond-nougat candy. The swordfish is roasted with capers, chopped parsley, lemon, and olive oil. Suggested wine pairings include Vernaccia di San Gimignano DOCG from Tuscany but you have to get a good one, an Italian Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio.

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Italian Wine

It is no real secret that much of Europe is passionate about their food and drink. They like to spend time preparing fresh food and eating a meal is more of a social occasion. This is probably what has influenced Italy to be so passionate about their wine. There are lots of different types of Italian wine available on the market to suit every taste budget.

The great thing about Italian wine is that no matter what type of wine it is, they do it well. This means you could go for a Cabernet Sauvignon from Bolgheri or a Cabernet from Sicily and still know that you are going to get a great tasting, well loved wine.

Italian wine is also world renowned for its appasimento style. This is where grapes are hung to dry for a minimum of 3 weeks and a maximum of 6 months before they are used to make the wine. This allows the grape flavour to be really rich and give the wine a full bodied taste. The appasimento range comes in a massive range of flavours from all over Italy but they all use this style to create the base of the wine.

Don’t worry if you are unsure of where you can get Italian wine from locally, because you can easily buy it online. Buying online is ideal, especially if you are looking to buy in bulk. Wine bottles are heavy and easily breakable. By ordering online you can buy as many as you want and not have to worry about how to safely transport your wine home.

Also if you are unsure what type of Italian Wine to buy then look online. There are different resources that recommend different types of wine for various occasions. In fact many websites that stock Italian wine for sale will have paragraphs next to the wines, giving you recommendations on what to serve them with – making your life even easier.

Italian wine is great for numerous different special occasions because of the fact there are so many different varieties and flavours, you can shop around for the exact flavour type you are after.

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