Below are the April, 2006 Featured Wines for the Wines by Jennifer Wine Club.

Red Wine 2001 DIEVOLE FOURPLAY Sicily, Italy   Dievole Fourplay No. 1 is the first release in a collaboration between the Tuscan estate Dievole and the Sicilian vintner Saro di Pietro. It was estate bottled in the Saro di Pietro Estate in Pachino, Sicily. The red wine's provocative name refers simply to the blending of equal parts of four native grapes of Sicily: Frappato Nero 25%, Nerello Cappuccio 25%, Nerello Mascalese 25%, and Nero D'Avola 25%. Dievole Fourplay is a dark ruby red in color, full-bodied, rich and powerful. This fruit-forward red offers aromas and flavors of blackberries, black cherries, spice and smoke. The palate is lush with soft tannins and beautiful balance. Delivering on the promise of its name, Fourplay provides superb length and richness on the finish. Enjoy Dievole Fourplay No. 1 over the next 5-6 years with grilled meats, beef stew, rich pasta dishes and aged cheeses. Sicily has more vineyards than any of the other Italian regions, competing with Apulia for first place as the largest wine producer. Yet, Sicilians consume less wine per capita than any other Italian. Many grapes are made into raisins, used in local cooking, and Sicilian grapes also play a large role in creating dessert wines, which require a higher concentration of grapes and are consumed in smaller quantities. In fact, in the world of international wine, Sicily is renowned for their many outstanding dessert wines, such as the world-famous Marsala. Though dessert wines account for about 90% of the total DOC production, don't disregard the several good reds and whites that are produced all over the island by both large producers. If you happen to travel to the island around November 11, the day dedicated by the Catholic Church to Saint Martin, look for signs announcing the local Festa del Vino or "Festival of the Wine". It is believed that on this date the new wine is ready for consumption, hence the saying: Il giorno di San Martino il mosto diventa vino or "On Saint Martin's Day the grape juice becomes wine".

White Wine 2004 VALLEROSA VERDICCHIO DEI CASTELLI DI JESI CLASSICO CARPANETO VINEYARD Marche, Italy Cupramontana, the ancient native land of Verdicchio, is situated in the heart of the Marches, on one of the sunny, green hills bordering the valley of the Esino River. There, the Bonci family has been producing wine for at least three generations. In that time, the Bonci estate has become one of the leading producers of Verdicchio in Italy. This single vineyard wine is straw yellow with greenish highlights. On the nose, it has a very intense bouquet of yellow flowers and jasmine that matches a complex mix of tropical fruit and spices, from pineapple to peaches and seductive fennel seed aromas. The palate reveals a medium- to full- bodied wine that has a firm but elegant character, and is crisp and fruity with good acidity, yet smooth and creamy on the palate. The characteristic mineral sea salt creates a soft feeling that lingers from the front to the back of the tongue, achieving a long, long finish. Try with fish, seafood, veal, pork, chicken, salads, soft cheeses or as an aperitif. The Marches lies along Italy’s Adriatic coast. It is just south of Emilia-Romagna, east of Umbria and barely borders Tuscany on its northwestern shoulder. This peaceful region boasts an agreeable climate that is moderated by breezes coming off the Adriatic or down from the Apennine mountain range that runs along Marche’s western border. The region ranks 15th among the regions in size and 13th in population. Vineyards cover 77,500 acres and registered DOC plots total 25,000 acres, making them 11th in terms of total vineyard acreage as well as in acres dedicated to the production of DOC wine. Historically, the region is most famous for the production of Verdicchio, a crisp white wine that made a distinctive impression outside of Italy when it arrived in a green amphora bottle. Producers have worked hard to revitalize Verdicchio’s image by focusing on the fact that when well made, Verdicchio is a white wine capable of reaching top levels of quality. Production standards have risen steadily. This seems to herald a revival for a white produced at the rate of more than 20 million bottles a year, and is typically described as Italy's premier fish wine. A lot of excitement has been generated about the potential of this area. Many are convinced that this region is able to produce wines that are more comparable to the famous Super Tuscans from the Maremma on Italy’s opposite coast than they are to many wines made from the same varietals in the bordering region of Abruzzo.

 

Wines by Jennifer is also proud to announce our new "Cellar Club", featuring a new wine each month suitable for long-term aging. Call the shop and ask for Jennifer for all the details on this exciting new Club, or visit our Featured Cellar Club Wine page for details on this month's selection.

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