2022
Have you ever wondered what you would give as a gift that represented where you live, the city, state or country that you are from?
Before the first time we met at Local Guides Summit 17, Local Guides Connect Moderator @ErmesT and I decided to exchange bottles of wine from where we each live.
For me, great wines should always be shared and enjoyed with good food and great company. Living in the San Francisco Bay Area, I am fortunate to live within driving distance to world-renowned wine regions north of me, such as Napa Valley, Sonoma Valley, and Mendocino. And also Livermore Valley within the San Francisco Bay Area. Monterey County south of me.
I gave Ermes a bottle of Phantom blended red wine from Napa Valley and a Chardonnay, a white wine, from Sonoma Valley to bring back to Italy after the Summit.
Ermes lives in Northern Italy, near the Italian Alps, in the city of Treviso. Of the many things Treviso is famous for, it is known to be where Prosecco, Italian white wine, in particular, Italian sparkling wine is grown and made.
North of Treviso, is a Prosecco region called Valdobbiadene that produces the ideal climate to grow the grapes that make superior tasting Prosecco.
And within this Valdobbiadene region, there now is a designated Prosecco territory called "Superiore di Cartizze." One of the two wines I received from Ermes is a rare Prosecco that is not normally exported out of Italy, much less Europe, let alone outside of The Continent - Rivani Valdobbiadene Superiore di Cartizze.
According to Wikipedia:
The hill of Cartizze is a 1,000-foot-high vineyard of 107 hectares (260 acres) of vines, owned by 140 growers.The Prosecco from its grapes, of which comparatively little is produced, is widely considered to be of the highest quality, or even the "Grand Cru" of Prosecco. Accordingly, a hectare of Cartizze grape land was estimated to be worth in excess of one million US dollars in 2008, and its value was estimated to have increased to 1.5–2 million euros in 2015, the most for a vineyard in Italy.
The sparkling wine produced from Cartizze has recently been named by producers as Superiore di Cartizze, without mentioning Prosecco on the front label to further emphasize its territory.
I popped the cork to celebrate New Year's 2018 with an Italian bang thanks to Ermes! Knowing how rare Ermes' gift was, I knew I had to open and drink his Prosecco during a very special occasion to share with dear friends.
So what did Ermes' once-in-a-lifetime gift taste like? Not much alcohol. Refreshingly crisp to the taste. It smelled and tasted like delicious fresh summer fruit. Tree-ripen sweet peaches and apricots to be exact. You could hear tiny effervescent bubbles as I was pouring the bottle. We talked about how gorgeous Rivani’s pale yellow color looked in our crystal flute glasses.
It was unanimous! This Rivani was the best Prosecco we ever had. It was a wonderful way to kick off the New Year. Thanks Ermes for this delectable memorable treat!
See more photos: International Wine Exchange: Local Guides Style
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Wanna see Ermes and my 1st meet-up: My San Francisco: Being a Local Guide for Another Local Guide
#LocalGuides
#LGSummit17
OMG @KarenVChin,
it seems that 4 hands post is the new wave.
Wine, if used with moderation, is a wonderful medium for driving friendship. So, yes, we decided to exchange Wine.
It was not the first exchange of wine's bottles between US and Italy, as it seems that also President Obama came in Italy with some great bottles of Napa's wine (according to the Sommelier of the Italian Prime Minister, that we met during my Wine Meetup)
I arrived in San Francisco with 3 bottles of wines from Veneto area: Prosecco Superiore DOCG; Amarone della Valpolicella, and Cartizze Superiore
The first bottle lasted only a day, and was the protagonist of the first "4 moderators private meetup" on October 11 (during LGSummit17), in a secret place (my hotel's room). We were so happy to finally meet each other that we forget to take photos of that special moment, that will remain only in our memory and in our (few) words.
Fun Fact: do not ask me to take a photo of a bottle of wine: It seems that, in front of a bottle, the focus of my camera doesn't work. I will share a couple of photos in here, so please do not comment about this matter.
Photo 1) this is the only witness of the "4 moderators meetup"
Karen gave me two wonderful bottles: A Phantom Red Blend from Napa Valley and a Chardonnay from Sonoma Valley, to bring back to Italy.
Traveling with wine between US and Italy is not a problem, there is no quantity limit nor custom fees to pay. But of course, glass bottles needs to be handled with a lot of care. Most of my time, in packing my luggage, was spent to protect and seal the three bottles.
Once at home, the Chardonnay had a very short life: The bottle was opened in my first dinner at home. A selfie was sent to Karen (again, please do not comment)
The Phantom was saved for the kick-off of the Wine Meetup. @AlejandraMaria, from Spain, was with us in that moment, in which @KarenVChin was wit us, literally, in spirit.
I grew up on a farm, cultivating vines was part of my life. Now, wine is more culture an tradition than simply drinking alcohol.
Want to know more about vineyards in Italy? Read /September-is-the-month-of-the-Grape-Harvest/
Now is winter, so this is what you can see in the Prosecco area
What about you? What you would give as a gift?
