A lot goes into creating the perfect Italian dinner. The wine. The food. The wine. The servers. The wine. The ambiance. And did we mention the wine? It is an art affected by any number of factors. But when the stars (or the Duroc pork tenderloin and a juicy Super Tuscan) align just right, it can even make a Scotch-Irish girl like this one say “Magnifico!”
Tuesday night’s dinner at the Wyndham Cleveland’s Encore restaurant was the stuff of Tuscan dreams, with a menu prepared by sous chef Jim Barnhart and wines selected by long-time wine retailer-turned-wholesaler Mario Vitale of Vintage Wine Distributors. The Taste of Tuscany Dinner was the most recent in an ongoing series of all-inclusive wine dinners offered by the hotel for just $50. And at that price, the six-course/five-wine meal may just be the best deal in town.
“I want to start everything with bubbles,” said Vitale, who chose to begin the evening by pouring a bright, effervescent Canella Prosecco Di Conegliano from the Veneto region. So light and effortlessly cool, the wine felt like a Fellini film.
This article appears in Jun 15-21, 2011.