Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/688647
98 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } JUNE/JULY 2016 While we nosed and sipped wines all day, our senses became accustomed to aromatics floating out of our glasses, but none arrested our nostrils or per - fumed our palates like Fernet Florio. The producer, Florio, from Marsala, Italy, relies on local ingredients to perfect its house style. You may recognize the word "fernet," often associated with a specific brand of amaro, but the bitter-dry Fernet Florio is but a distant cousin to other global versions. Fernet is not a brand but a category of amari, crafted from herbs and spices; a multi-layered liqueur that has gained universal status for its cura - tive value, from hangovers and stomach aches to slow libidos. Imagine handpicked flowers and The "Professors" of the CAC: Enrico Cerulli (Family Proprietor, Cerulli Spinozzi) Andrea Sartori (Family Proprietor of Sartori di Verona), Gabriele Pazzaglia (Cellar Master, Castello Banfi), Alberto Lazzarino (Directing Winemaker, Banfi Piemonte), Benedetta Poretti (Family Proprietor, Florio), Salvatore Geraci (Family Proprietor, Palari), Christian Scrinzi (Chief Winemaker, Bolla), Noelia Orts (Winemaker, Emliana). details to absorb, introduced with broad strokes (for example, within the modern winemaking areas of Veneto and Tuscany, ancient varietals like Vermentino are rediscovered every once in a while), followed with specifics (currently there are 4,000 hectares of Vermentino under vine throughout Italy), further nuanced through context ("Compared to Vermentino of Sardinia, which is complex but less ethereal, Vermentino from Maremma is typically fresh and fruity," said Gabriele Pazzaglia, Cellar Master, Castello Banfi, Montalcino), and refined to the personal ("I think of this Vermentino as Viognier with acid," said David Keck of Banfi's "La Pettegola"). As was also evidenced throughout the day, unscripted exchanges led to the kind of linguistic gymnastics that enhance wine professionals' perspectives. For instance, learning that Italy's indigenous Corvinone grape has balsamic notes that refine with aging and transform into the centers of great wines, leaning towards tobacco leaf, pipe tobacco and old furniture, was just as compelling as the ensuing discussion about the foundation of the descriptor "old furniture." (FYI: It's probably based on the lacquer applied during furniture-making.) And, even if appasimento wasn't a new concept to dive into, it was probably the first time this grape maturation process was introduced as a way to pro - vide "Veronacity" to international varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot—"That is, a great Verona style and flavor," said Christian Scrinzi, Bolla's Chief Winemaker in Piedmont,"well-structured, higher alcohol, but still soft and round." Finally, after explaining the strictness of Italy's DOCG and DOC classifications, Andrea Sartori, family proprietor of Sartori di Verona in Negrar, urged more attention be paid to IGT or Indicazione Geografica Tipica wines. Introduced in 1992 to recognize the great but non-traditional Super Tuscans, IGT wines are region-based and continue to break new ground. Sartori's Ferdi Bianco Veronese is 100-percent Garganega (and therefore non-DOC because it's not a blend) and redolent with stone fruit and honeydew melon; it displays crisp acidity and, because it undergoes apasamiento, there's even a little bit of tannin to pleasantly balance the fruitiness. "Our intention was to create a white amarone, maybe that was a little crazy," Sartori said of his wine from the Veneto. But it wasn't crazy, it was delicious. More than that, it was forward-thinking and com - pletely unexpected, and yet another crucial new lesson learned about the new direc- tions being taken in Italy's otherwise very traditional wine growing regions. SEMINAR: FERNET FINISH City: Houston by Meridith May / photos by Felix Sanchez Wines of the "New Frontiers in Italy's Traditional Wine Regions": La Pettegola, ASKA, Fonte alla Sevla Chianti Classico "Gran Selezion," Torr'Alta, Regolo, Creso and Ferdi. Enrico Cerulli (Family Proprietor of Cerulli Spinozzi) both charms and instructs the Houston CAC and the University of Houston.