Shrimp Scampi Pizza Paired with Masciarelli Montepulciano Rosé

If you haven’t discovered Italy’s many styles of rosé wines what are you waiting for?  If you have yet to jump on the rosé bus then there is no better time than the present.  You can find many Italian rosé wines from northern to southern Italy utilizing a variety of native grapes.  Today’s rosé feature will be based on the Montepulciano grape, Abruzzo’s signature red grape, from Tenuta Agricole Masciarelli.   With Valentine’s Day right around the corner the enticing pink hues and flavor profile of Abruzzo’s rosé will be sure to please yourself or that special loved one in your life.

Montepulciano rosé 

For those of us that are regular rosé drinkers or Italian wine lovers at that, if you’ve had the opportunity to drink rosé in Abruzzo you’ve probably had Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo.  Although, this wine I’m sharing today doesn’t fall under the Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo DOC.  It Is part of the Colline Teatine IGT.  Per winesearcher, the name Teatine is believed to be named after Teate, which was the name for Chieti in Roman times.   The Colline Teatine IGT was created in 1995 and covers the hilly terroir around Chieti.  Here the hills meet the foothills of the Central Apennines as well as the Maiella Mountains.  The cooling breezes from the mountain range along with its close proximity to the Adriatic Sea is what creates ideal conditions with its Mediterranean climate. 

Montepulciano not only makes great red wines, but rosé wines as well.  Even though Montepulciano I think really claims its home in the Abruzzo region, you can also find Montepulciano produced throughout several other regions in Italy.  It tops the charts for Italian grapes produced throughout the country.   The Montepulciano grape has thick skins that creates wines with deep colors and concentration and is part of the reason it does well as a rosé.  This grape needs a long growing season to reach its full maturity.  You’ll see a variety of colors in rosé wines made from Montepulciano based on the producer and how long they choose to macerate the skins with the juice, although not much time is really needed before it imparts its rich colors and flavors. 

The Wine

I’m not going to dig into the Masciarelli estate much today as I have featured them previously as I shared Montepulciano wines from around Abruzzo .  The 2022 Masciarelli Rosato Colline Teatine IGT that I’m featuring today is made from 85% Montepulciano grapes and up to 15% other red grapes.  Masciarelli has been making this wine along with their Montepulciano d’Abruzzo and Trebbiano d’Abruzzo since 1981 from the owner, Gianni Masciarelli’s, original 12 acres at his home vineyard.

The free-run must is fermented in stainless steel to preserve the freshness in this wine along with its acidity.  The grapes are sourced from 3 of Masciarelli’s vineyard sites around the area of Chieti in the Bucchianico, Martino sull Marrucina and Ripa Teatina vineyards mostly made up of calcareous clay. 

The 2022 Masciarelli Rosato Colline Teatine IGT was a beautiful salmon color in the glass.  Fresh on the nose with aromas of wild strawberries.  Simple and delicate on the palate, but refreshing acidity with notes of slightly tart strawberries. 

If you’re looking for an introduction to Italian rosé without dropping too much on a bottle, this is a satisfying and easy-drinking wine priced at $15 a bottle.  Plus, it has a screw cap for easy accessibility. 

Montepulciano Wine Pairing

After tasting this wine I could see its versatility with a variety of dishes, but I chose to make a white pizza of shrimp scampi.  It’s been a long time since I’ve made a white pizza.  As a child, I grew up with my mom making pizzas on Friday nights, usually your typical cheese, but as I grew I got to appreciate a white pizza as well. Although, my two young boys looked at me funny when I took this one out of the oven and then proceeded to tell them it had shrimp on it.  They’ll learn.

It was rather simple to put together.  I cooked the shrimp first in oil, garlic, butter, and salt making sure there was enough use as the sauce in prepping the pizza.  I put the dough into the oven first for about 4-5 minutes before putting the toppings on.   I brushed the garlic butter sauce from cooking the shrimp on top of the pizza with some parsley and topped it with shrimp I chopped up along with mozzarella cheese.  I cooked it an additional 8-10 minutes and it came out perfect!  Plus, the Masciarelli Rosato pairing couldn’t have balanced any better with the flavors in the pizza.  It had a nicely matched body of the wine in comparison with the shrimp scampi pizza and complimentary flavors. 

If you’re looking for casual and easy preparation this Valentine’s Day without skimping on satisfaction this may be the pairing to try.

This month I'm joining the Wine Pairing Weekend group as we chat about rosé wines and suggested pairings.  Follow my fellow wine writer friends as they share a wide variety of pairings.

• A Dozen Rosés for Valentines and Galentines Part 1: 6 Old World Wines + Croque Monsieur and Part 2: 6 CA Wines + Monte Cristo Sandwiches by Wine Predator...Gwendolyn Alley
• Is Pink Wine the New Winter White? by My Full Wine Glass
• Kimchi Spaghetti with Black Girl Magic Rosé by Cooking Chat
• Marry Me Chicken and Cantina Zaccagnini Il Vino Dal Tralcetto Rose; A Perfect Pairing for your Valentine by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Pink Pét-Nats from Around the World with Some Loved Up Bites by Culinary Cam
• Please Be Vine, Rosé Bubbles! by The Quirky Cork
• Rose-shaped pasta and Rosé! by Crushed Grape Chronicles
• Salmon en Papillote with Coopers Hawk Katie Lee Biegel Rosé by Our Good Life

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*This wine was provided as a sample, but opinions are always my own.

 

Importer on the label: Vintus

Rosé isn't just for summertime!

For us New Englanders the cold weather has arrived and we're awaiting the snow days to arrive.  Some of us are excited about it and many aren't.  Of course it's more common for folks to get into the mindset of drinking rosé wines when the weather is warmer.  If you're lucky enough to have fantastic weather year round than you may always have rosé in mind as a choice for your beverage selections or wine pairings with meal.  Either way, I'd like to think the average wine consumer has gotten past the point of considering rosé wines as a pink, inexpensive wine, and has surpassed the thoughts of comparing it to white zinfandel.  I definitely hope we're past that point for the majority of wine drinkers out there.  If not, hopefully these suggestions below will get to open your eyes to the variety of rosé wines available to you throughout Italy and forget some of those sweet laden wines without much character. 

To start, you may wonder what exactly is a rosé wine and how does it get that pinkish hue?  Blending red and white juice from the grapes or an addition of food coloring?  Nope!  There are many shades of rosé and that is determined by the winemaker's choice of the length of time the skins macerate with the juice as well as the grape itself being used.  It could be a matter of hours or days.  The longer the maceration of the skins with the juice, the deeper the color.   

There are plenty of options to consider today when it comes to choosing a bottle of rosé from all the wine producing countries of the world whether it's Provence or Tavel in France, a rosado from the Navarra in Spain, the United Status, Germany, Australia or Portugal.  The list goes on my friends.  Italy tops the charts for rosé as there are many variations in styles from northern to southern Italy.  I'm generalizing here, but you'll find more softer, delicate. crisp rosé from northern Italy vs. fuller bodied, ripe, fruit forward rosé of southern Italy due to the more intense heat.

This is what makes Italy so unique.  There isn't just one region, except for Puglia, that stands out when discussing the rosé wines from Italy.   Many regions produce rosé in different styles from different grapes.  There are hundreds of native Italian grapes and so the challenge continues in understanding Italian wines.  Below is a list of just some rosé wines found from a variety of different regions in Italy, but of course you'll also see wine producers making rosé from other grapes as well.  This is just to give you an idea of some rosé produced throughout Italy.

Puglia ~ Some of the best rosé produced in Italy comes from Puglia, in particular from the area of Salento.  Rosé wines in Puglia may be produced from the Negro Amaro, Primitivo or Aglianico grapes.

Abruzzo ~ Rosé in Abruzzo is known as Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo and is produced from the Montepulciano grape.

Valle d'Aosta ~ Rosé in the Valle d'Aosta is made from the Premetta grapes.

Sicily ~ Rosé wines in Sicily can be made from the Frappato, Nerello Mascalese or Nerello Cappuccio or even Nero d'Avola grapes.

Alto Adige ~ A fuller style rose' produced in Alto Adige you may find from the Lagrein grape.

Veneto/Lombardia ~ Rosé from these two regions can be found around Lake Garda, but where near Lake Garda exactly determines the grapes.  It may be from the Marzemino or Corvina grapes, but most popular of all is the Bardolino Chiaretto.

Rosé is a very versatile wine, but what you pair it with depends on what country you are purchasing the wine from and whether it's light, crisp and dry or full-bodied with richer fruit.  Don't be afraid to pair it with many dishes as you may be surprised as to how well it compliments the dish, but also don't be afraid to ask the wine salesperson their recommendations based on the style you're purchasing. There are lots of options when it comes to rosé, which makes it part of the fun of experimenting with. 

Rosé wines aren't typically ones you'll want to hold onto either.  I'd recommend drinking them within a year of production.  The fresher the better.  It's not a wine you'll want to store that will get better with age typically.  So make sure to play around with some rosé and have fun!  Make sure it's slightly chilled beforehand, grab a glass and you're good to go.  Let me know what some of your favorites are.

Here's a prior list of some of my previous writings on rosé from around Italy.

• Lake Garda says Hooray for Rosé with Chiaretto
• Happy International Rosé Day with Perlino Prosecco Rosato DOC
• Penne Con I Broccoli & Salice Salento Rosé 
• Rosé from the Veneto with Pasqua
• Rosé from Northern to Southern Italy with the Rosautoctono Movement

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This article was originally published for my column, Uncorked Italy, in the former Bostoniano magazine.