TURN TO CHEERS! ON A30

from The Coast News, March 10th, 2023

Food &Wine

Every year there are over twenty thousand chimney / fireplace related house fires in the US alone. Losses to homes as a result of chimney fires, leaks, and wind damage exceeds one hundred million dollars annually in the US.

CHIMNEY SWEEPS, INC., one of San Diego’s leading chimney repair and maintenance companies, is here to protect you and your home from losses due to structural damage and chimney fires.

Family owned and operated and having been in business for over 30 years, Chimney Sweeps Inc. is a fully licensed and insured chimney contracting company (License # 976438) and they are certified with the National Fireplace Institute and have an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.

CHIMNEY SWEEPS, INC SERVING SAN DIEGO COUNTY FOR OVER 30 YEARS

For a limited time, readers of this paper will receive a special discount on our full chimney cleaning and safety inspection package with special attention to chimney water intrusion points in preparation for the rainy season.

Vittorio’s Italian Trattoria in San Diego’s Highland Village recently hosted Italy’s Frescobaldi Winery for its February wine dinner.

Owner Victor Magalhaes invited sommelier David Sheline and Italian wine specialist Marco Barat, both of Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits Signature division, to share Frescobaldi’s robust 700plus year winemaking history, starting with its Tenuta Castiglioni in 1308.

Making wines this long provides an opportunity to grow throughout Tuscany.

Today, the Frescobaldis own nine vineyards across Tuscany, including their original Tenuta Castiglioni, Gorgona Island at a penal institution where inmates make wine, Tenuta Calimaia in central Montepulciano, and Tenuta CastelGiocondo in southern Montalcino.

In 2020, the winemakers earned Gambero Rosso’s Winery of the Year award.

The first wine of the evening was the 2021 Pomino Blanco from Castello Pomino.

The Florentine mountains provide elevation resulting in brightness, higher acidity, and lower sugar for this chardonnay dominant blend with pinot blanco. The crispness paired well with the hamachi carpaccio topped with colorful wildflowers and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.

The second course was my favorite. Large ravioli were stuffed with duck confit and topped with a creamy mushroom sauce. This was matched up with the 2018 Perano Chianti Classico made from Sangiovese fruit, the most planted grape in Italy.

Chianti Classico Tenuta

Perano is produced in the hills of Gaiole in Chianti from vineyards 500 meters above sea level. The south/ south-west exposure and the amphitheater shape of the vineyards concentrate the heat.

The combination of altitude, exposure, configuration and slope of the vineyards produced purple color, intense fruit aromas, and solid structure. The third course showcased the

2018 Nipozzano Reserve

Vicchie from Northeast Florence, the foothills of the Apennine Alps.

This sangiovese blend is aged six months longer than most of the other labels, creating a zesty profile. This melded well with the zest in the wild boar sausage ragu and polenta plate.

The fourth course was grilled petite filet mignon, garlic mashed potatoes, and broccolini topped with a Gorgonzola cream sauce.

This was paired with the 2019 Tenuta Castiglioni, the birthplace of Frescobaldi. These wines were enjoyed by both the Papal court and the English court of Henry VIII. The Castiglioni is a Super Tuscan blended with cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, and sangiovese fruit.

The nose and palate had blackberries, blueberries, and plums. The nose also had hints of vanilla, cinnamon, and coffee. The back palate had an excellent finish with pleasant tannins. Discussing Castiglioni at our table led to a spirited discussion of what defines a Super Tuscan. There were several differing opinions. One included Super Tuscan representing blends of varietals.

Another was that it was a category to place wines that did not fit in the Disciplinare, which is the wine laws of Italy, and what defines types such as DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata, or Controlled Denomination of Origin) and DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita, or Controlled and Guaranteed Denomination of Origin).