Chianti Classico Cries out for Pasta!

Since things have settled down in my life (i.e., my daughter has had her wedding), it's time to get back to looking at wine!

Today, I discovered a store that has been on my radar for the last little while - Everything Wine.

In the past, when I've seen their ads, it has seemed that most of the product is pretty inexpensive and, I assumed, a lot of cheap-o jug wine. Granted, there were a few wines that were a little more expensive but I had, in my mind, decided that this was a No Frills version of a liquor store.

Then I cam across an ad yesterday in the newspaper where Everything Wine advertised their latest Bordeaux wines. I was intrigued.

After my wife and I stopped off at Bosa Foods for some pasta and a new, fancy decanter, we made our way to Everything Wine in North Vancouver. I entered the door and was very impressed! They have a large assortment of wines ranging from the cheap jug wines all the way to fancy vintage wines.  I did manage to pick up a couple of bottles of Bordeaux wines but will blog about those later.

Previously, while at Bosa, we bought some fresh pasta and needed something to go with it. I found, in the rather large Italian section of Everything Wine, a Cafaggio 2013 Single Estate Chianti Classico for a mere $26. Single estate means that the wine was made with grapes from only the winery and  bottled on the estate. Chianti wines, by the way, are made in the Chianti region with Sangiovese grapes. Chianti Classico wines are from a smaller region within Chianti where the wines are usually better quality then regular Chianti wines.

Back at home, I poured the wine into the decanter. We had bought the decanter at Bosa and it was a Trudeau Ova Carafe - very nice design and a good price - $29. After about 5 minutes, I decided that we needed to at least have a taste so I poured a couple of small glasses.

The colour was ruby and clear. There was red fruit on the nose including cherry and raspberry. When I tasted it, there were some tannins as well as black currant, cassis and definitely some cherries. Unfortunately, it tasted a bit thin - almost a bit watery - which was initially a disappointment.

Then, I remembered - in places like France and Italy, you are meant to drink the wine with food. Maybe some food would help this wine? I had a couple of olives (our fancy appetizer) and took a sip. What a difference! The wine complimented the olives perfectly.

After another half hour, we tried the pasta (mushroom ravioli with a tomato, basil and pancetta sauce) and, again, the wine was a glorious pairing with the food! The thinness or wateriness was now a refreshing accompaniment to the pasta and the light tannins paired well with the tomatoes in the sauce.

The decanter made a difference, too. It tasted even better after a half hour!

After trying the pasta with food, I would rate it like this:
Balance - it was actually beautifully balanced when served with food
Length - it was a tasty wine but the taste did not linger very long
Intensity - not that intense
Complexity - there were some great flavours and, the way it meshed with the food, was definitely complex.
Expressive - I think this is how Chianti Classico is meant to be drunk - with a tasty bowl of pasta!

Overall, a good to very good wine - Cin Cin!