For almost 100 years, the Zemmer family has been making wines in southwestern Alto Adige in the small town of Cortina. This is the last town of German speakers before reaching the Trentino border, and it is uniquely positioned on the valley floor rather than perched in the hillsides. The winery's website has a brilliant, interactive aerial view where visitors can take in the natural beauty of the Dolomites while observing where the Zemmer vineyards lie.
Read MoreAiming to work in lockstep with nature, the Lageder family pursues environmental responsibility with the same fervor that it pursues great winemaking. They farm biodynamically and work with their contract growers to try to transform partner vineyards into organically or biodynamically managed ecocenters. This means little if the wines don't deliver, but they do with every vintage.
Read MoreThe Alois Lageder winery has a plethora of positive attributes: biodynamic farming, viticultural and winemaking history in the family dating to 1823, classy packaging, reasonable pricing and - of course - good wine. Interestingly, while Chardonnay has been in Alto Adige since 1835, it didn't become popular there until about 150 years later. Tasting this, I have to wonder why it took so long!
Read MoreI love wines from Alto Adige. Lodged between the rest of Italy and Austria - with a sliver of its borders against Switzerland, the region’s producers craft wines with Italian exuberance and Austrian precision. Moreover, the dynamics of the Alpine duo of chilly temperatures and sunshine taste delicious in the glass.
Read MoreAlois Lageder 2015 Pinot Gris Porer: Defying the flavor profile of so many Pinot Grigios, this Alto Adige-derived, Porer single vineyard delivers concentrated flavors of yellow apple skin, golden raisins, freshly-baked baguette and cracked white pepper.
Read MorePeter Zemmer 2015 Pinot Nero Rolhütt: This bright, ruby red wine has a floral nose festooned with exotic spices. This crisp, cooler climate style of Pinot Nero (Noir) is best showcased at a table laid-out with lighter fare and offers brilliant value at just under a Jackson.
Read MorePanko-Crusted Veal Picatta: The idea of this pairing was to blend the wine’s subtlety with the delicacy of veal. It worked brilliantly!
Read MoreGermany is Kerner’s homeland, but in New York, we mostly see those that hail from Italy’s Alto Adige. They are often from Valle Isarco, a Kerner hotbed.
Read MoreMenu in hand, we quickly decided to order a white then open one of our reds. Then, diving deeper into the list a few more minutes, we abandoned the BYO idea. I hovered over the Italian whites not only because the cuisine was Italian but also because the options were equally delicious and cool. There was a Vitovska, a Greco di Tufo and a Garganega, but this Kerner called to me.
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