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We’re diving into the world of Vermentino! As spring unfolds, it’s the perfect time to explore this refreshing white wine that’s ready for its perfect pairing on your table! I'll catch you up on everything you need to know about this lesser know Italian white grape and then Michael and I turn traditional food and wine pairing on its head. Instead of picking a meal and then choosing a wine, we decided to go with the wine first – a concept we refer to as "wine first pairing".

Then join Michael and I in our kitchen as we try an exciting new spring pasta recipe and see how all the flavors come together.

We're talking about:

• What Vermentino is known for and what to expect in the glass
• Our delicious Sip Spotlight wine, 2023 Reeve Vermentino from Sonoma County and where to find it
• How the temperature of the wine in your glass really does make a difference

Links and Resources:

Check out Reeve Winery and plan you wine tasting visit! Follow them on IG

Until their new 2024 vintage is available in May, you can find the Reeve Vermintino at Bottle Barn and through the Vivino ap.

Here's the recipe for the delicious Pea, Pancetta and Broccolini Pasta

Be sure to top your pasta (and everything else) with our favorite red chili peppers from Burlap and Barrel. A collaboration with our good friend and James Beard finalist, Dan Richer.

Checkout the highlight bubble on Nikki's Instagram, to see the delicious pairing!

The wine that I make, Sollevato Sangiovese is available to be shipped to most US States. (Use the code PODLISTENER for 10% off.) It's a delicious, medium bodied, aromatic red wine that is perfect with pizza, pasta and your charcuterie spread!

You also NEED some delicious California Olive Oil from our awesome sponsor American Olive Farmer. Use code SipWithNikki for $10 off your order!

Please leave a RATING or a REVIEW (on your podcast listening platform), or thumbs up and subscribe (on YouTube!)

Questions? Comments? Guest requests? nikki@sipwithnikki.com

No, it's not dirty. I feel like it tastes more citrusy and it's got more texture now because it's warmed up a little.

Yeah, I totally agree. Big difference. There's your takeaway already. People try this at home with any white wine out of the fridge and then go back to it in 15 minutes.

Yeah. So lesson here is, Linda. Don't drink wine too hot or too cold. Gotta get right in the sling.

Linda.

I have no idea.

Hello and welcome to this week's Sip with Nikki. I'm Nikki Lamberti here in Sonoma County, California. If you are a regular listener, as always, I see you hats off. Welcome back. Cheers to you.

And if this is your first time joining, so glad you're here. We got a fun, fun one this week. We got a fun one every week.

But if you listened to last week's episode all about Viognier, hopefully all week you've been chanting Viognier and you signed up for the mailing list at Pride Mountain Vineyards so that you can get that when it releases on the 15th. I got such a great response to last week's episode highlighting a lesser known grape that I'm gonna keep that theme going this week.

And it starts with a V and it's a white wine, but it is not Viognier. It's Vermintino. So we're focusing in on an Italian white grape this week because it's springtime and it's warming up across the country.

It was almost 80 degrees here this week, and we need some beautiful wines on the table to pair, especially on our Sharon Pair Sundays with some beautiful veg that's coming out of everybody's gardens that are waking up. So this week I grabbed Michael and we are doing a sip spotlight with a beautiful Sonoma County Vermentino that I'm so excited to share with you.

And then we did what's called a wine first pairing. So a lot of times when I talk to people about pairing food and wine, everyone thinks about, okay, what are we gonna cook? What are we gonna eat?

And then what is a good wine that will complement that? But Michael and I sometimes like to turn that upside down, especially if there's a wine we have that we're excited to try.

We'll pick the wine first and then we'll say, okay, what do we think will be the right meal to compl this and find that beautiful moment of perfection when it comes to food and wine pairing? So that's what we did today. We started with the wine, and then I found A really fun and exciting brand new pasta recipe that I've never made before.

So I'll kick it off by giving you the ins and outs of the Vermentino grape, what you need to know about it. And finally, you'll hear Michael and I sit down after we've cooked this meal and try our sip.

Spotlight wine in this beautiful dish together and we'll see how it goes. Do they meet in the middle? High five. And bring out the best in each other? Does the wine overpower the food? Does the food overpower the wine?

You'll just have to listen to find out. So here we go with our wine first pairing of Vermentino and spring pea pancetta pasta.

So it's Saturday night and Michael and I feel like cooking, and we often feel like cooking. We actually really enj doing it together. There's usually wine involved before, during, and after. Great music on Dave Matthews, if he'll let me.

And so we were thinking about what to make tonight, and rather than start with the food and then decide what wine we wanted to have, we decided to do a wine first pairing. Went into our wine fridge and I saw a bottle of Reeve Vermentino. Now, Reeve is a winery not far from here in Sonoma county in the town of Healdsburg.

And we visited there for the first time a few months ago with some friends and had an awesome experience. Beautiful property. Highly recommend it if you're going to be in the area. They even had a pizza oven going during the tasting.

And y'all know how we feel about that pairing. So we really had a fantastic experience. And on that day we tried their Vermintino and we bought some. And then this wine resurfaced again.

A couple weeks ago we were in a brand new restaurant that just opened here in Kenwood. It's called Stella Restaurant. Same owners of the Glen Ellen Star if you're a local or if you have visited and eaten there.

But Stella is more of their Italian pasta focused menu. And we ordered the Rive Vermentino because I saw it on the list and was familiar with it.

And we were starting with some beautiful fresh appetizers and a Caesar salad. And they have a homemade mozzarella and burrata which we had.

And we wanted a beautiful white to start before we went into the pasta, which of course we brought Sollevato Sangiovese to go with that. And so we had this wine again recently. So today when I opened the wine fridge, I was like, oh, yeah, we have a bottle of this Rive Vermentino.

What should we cook to go with it?

So let's talk about what this grape is known for and what it's good with, and then I'll tell you where we landed and then you'll get to hear us create it and pair it together. So Vermentino is an Italian white grape and it's from the Italian Riviera region, the Liguria region, which is the Cinque Terre.

So if you've ever visited there, one of my most favorite stops ever on a Disney cruise, we went to the five fishing villages, Cinque Terre, and that is the Liguria region. And that's where this white grape, Vermentino comes from. It also grows on the island of Sardinia, Corsica, and also in southern France.

So think Riviera, right? One of my favorite regions or areas on the planet where all my favorite things collide. Italy and France and the ocean and oh my gosh.

And so because in that region there's obviously a lot of fresh fish and seafood, it is a natural pairing with those types of things because we say what grows together goes together. And I think that's a great example. But it's also known for having a very citrusy profile and a very soft mouthfeel. Soft, round mouthfeel.

Very different than the Viognier or Viognier, if you were listening to last week's episode, just a completely different white wine from a different neighboring region. A well known wine critic, Jeb Dunnock, gave the Reeve Vermentino 91 points and said it had a very citrus driven profile.

Great paired with fried fish or salads packed with fresh green herbs. So that got me thinking, especially because it's spring here and everything is sprouting and everybody's gardens are waking up. So veggies and herbs.

And I was like, ooh, okay, we gotta play to that. In whatever dish we decide to to prepare.

According to the Wine Bible by Karen McNeil, Vermentino is a terrific dry white that could be any Italian wine lover's nightly house wine. I like that no other dry white wine has flavor that quite compares to Vermentino.

It's a simple wine, to be sure, but the aromas and flavors mirror the dry, windswept island itself and are evocative of the wind, whipped dry brush and resinous herbs like wild rosemary, sage and dried lavender. I love that. I love when we talk about a particular grape from a particular place, then expressing the taste of that place in the glass.

So I went to my saved folder in Facebook, which is where I save a lot of recipes that I'll see when I'm scrolling. And we do go back and look and actually make them. And I came across this recipe once we landed on the wine and I was like, oh, this is it.

This is what we're doing. Doing. It's a recipe from Food and Wine magazine, also a favorite. And it's pasta with broccolini peas and pancetta.

And it is blended with just a little bit Italian white grape called Falangina. So this is a marriage of Vermentino and Falangina.

So fun to say those, but Felangina is from the Campania, the southern Italy region, and is also a fun wine on its own, but really interested to revisit it, knowing now that there's about 7% of that in this wine. At the time of this recording, it looks like the actual winery itself itself is sold out of the Vermentino.

But I did find it available to order on bottlebarn.com which is a great bottle shop around the corner from my house, but they ship across the country. And also Vivino, you guys have heard me talk about Vivino all the time.

That's the app where you can scan the label and learn about a bottle before you purchase it. You can keep track of what you've drank and you can actually purchase within the app.

And so Vivino also currently has the Reeve Vermintino, and in both places it's around 30, $34. Vivino right now actually has a discount code. Welcome 30.

So if it's your first time ordering from them, you can actually get 30% off the order, which is awesome. What we love about Reeve, another local Sonoma county producer. It's a husband and wife team, Noah and Kelly, and the property is stunning.

When we were there, during our tasting, there was actually a great Pyrenees like we used to have out in the field because they have some other small animals there and they actually have a beautiful four bedroom villa that you can rent on their property with a pool and it's gorgeous. So I'll put the link in the show notes, not only for you to set up a visit to Reeve if you're in the area, but also to check out renting their villa.

I think you could have, like, up to eight people in there, which would be a pretty awesome stay and Sonoma County.

All right, so now that you know a little bit about this, the people, and this wonderful place, it is time for Michael and I to pop the cork and go into our Sip Spotlight. Sip Spotlight. All right, let's try this. So we've just started food prepping for our pasta dish.

I cutting some broccolini florets, some leeks, and some chives and parsley, and then we're gonna cook down the pancetta. I tried to buy the specific pasta that this recipe calls for, which are known as wagon wheels, but I couldn't find them in the store.

It looks like those game pieces from Trivial Pursuit.

It does look like a Trivial Pursuit with the little pie pieces.

Yeah.

So we had this a couple weeks ago at Stello restaurant. It was delicious, but I'm excited to try it again today. It's very pale. Look at that color. Really pale.

So if we're comparing this to this was Viognier in the glass. The Viognier definitely has more density of viscosity. Color and viscosity. Don't you think?

Yeah.

This looks super light.

This is somewhere in between. I would like to say Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay.

As far as just how it looks.

Yes. Color wise. Yeah, because it's got a little. It's cold right now, so it's.

Yeah. Oh, but it smells good.

It's got a little bit more yellow tint to it, whereas Sauvignon Blanc is very clear. And Chardonnay is more yellow and or golden.

Do you know why?

Because of the barrels and steel.

Yes. And that actually adds a little bit of the darker color. So what do you smell on this?

It's cold right now, but it is cold.

We're breaking my own rule of you're supposed to drink white wine at 55 degrees is the ideal temperature. Where's the thermometer? Let's see. Yes, I'm putting a thermometer in the glass. She's 48. Yeah. She's a little chilly, but it's all right. We can do it.

It's gonna be fun to see as it opens up, and as it warms up, the different nose that comes forward. But the first thing I got when I picked it up was that beeswax note that I love.

I don't get that.

I know that's wine. What do you get?

I get more, like, berries.

Like, oh, my gosh. Yum.

Almost like a strawberry. I feel.

Really?

That's what I get.

Red berry notes on a white wine. Michael, you're amazing.

You know that, or I just don't know what I'm doing?

No, you know what you're doing. I'm getting a lot of citrus.

Yeah, I get that.

And I got a little bit of, like, pear on the finish.

Okay. I can recant. I'm gonna recant from strawberry to pear. You don't have to change from strawberry to pear. I get that. It's more pear. Ish.

Not strawberry or apple.

Like a green apple.

Yeah. Even just the second sip, having been open for five minutes now, it's lovely. Clean finish, bright acidity, but soft in the mouth. It's not sharp.

Doesn't have sharp acidity or sharp edges. What I do know from their website and the team at Reeve is that this goes through fermentation and aging in three different types of vessels.

Concrete, egg, stainless steel, and neutral barrels. And then blended together. So there's some concrete influence in here.

That's interesting. It's good. It's delicious. It's clean.

Clean, right. Clean is a. Is a word for it.

I just feel like it's harder for me to taste notes when it's colder. For me, you're more sensitive to stuff like that. Nose and taste buds.

Put your hands around the glass.

I don't want to get too warm too quickly because my hands are very warm.

Because you're hot.

Just tastes like, very clean.

It's just a crisp, clean white wine. Yeah. And sometimes you don't need to give it any more words than that. Right. But I definitely get citrus notes more.

Citrusy than, like, floral.

Yeah, it's not super floral. Like, viognier. It's more fruit on the nose than flowers.

We're gonna come back when it's warmed up a little and when we're ready to pair it with our pasta.

Yeah. Okay.

Okay. All right. So through the magic of editing, it's now about 15 minutes later, and this wine has had a chance to warm up and aerate in our glasses.

So now what do you think, Michael?

Definitely got more mouth feel.

Ooh, it's 56. More mouth feel.

Yeah. And the citrus notes are coming out more. I feel like it's more mid palate, but also on the outside.

Yes. There's just more everything. Smell more, taste more, feel more layers, longer finish.

All of that because of 7 degree and oxygen makes a big difference. Still delicious and really nice to sip on. While our pasta water is boiling, we've cooked down the pancetta, the leeks, the garlic.

We're about to start tossing it all together in the pan with some cream and ricotta and lemon juice and lemon zest and herbs.

What's the 7% grape falangino you got there? Falangino?

Yes. Okay, first you said Falange, which makes me think of Regina Falange from Friends. Isn't that Phoebe's character when she makes up her name? Felangina?

Would you still use the word clean for it? It's not as clean, though, because of the temperature.

Yeah, there's. Because there's more stuff going on with it now.

Yeah, I agree. It's not dirty.

No, it's not dirty. I feel like it tastes more citrusy and it's got more texture now because it's warmed up a little.

Yeah, I totally agree. Big difference. There's your takeaway already. People try this at home with any white wine out of the fridge and then go back to it in 15 minutes.

Yeah. So lesson here is, Linda. Don't drink wine too hot or too cold. Got to get right in the sling.

Who's Linda?

I have no idea.

Oh, it looks so good. Gosh. All right, so the pasta is done.

You're going to have to look at the highlight bubble on my Instagram Nikki Lamberti, and you can see what this looks like.

Good job. Way to pull this together.

Thanks. So we've got our pasta with peas, broccolini, pancetta, herbs, lemon juice, lemon zest, parmesan, and a little plop of ricotta on top, which I love.

That's very nostalgic for me. Cause when my parents would make macaroni and red sauce and meatballs on Sundays, I'd always finish it with a little dollop of ricotta on the top.

Like Sbarros. Like Sbarros, the big ziti.

Like the food court. All right, so I'm gonna taste this wine again. It's just a pretty wine. So great for warm weather. Today it was warm.

It was almost 70, almost 80.

All right, I'm taking a bite of my pasta.

It is really good with the wine.

Pasta's a little bit creamy. Not like Alfredo creamy, but there's a little creaminess to it. Between the bit of cream that went in there and then the pasta water.

And the starch, it's very fresh and springy with all the green vegetables.

Very green. Go try the wine again. Oh, yeah. Wow. After the bite with pasta, when you go back to the wine, the wine is even brighter and crisper.

And the citrusy notes, for me, get.

Amped up because you have, like, lemon zest in the pasta.

Yeah. This is an example of a pairing where similar things, Right.

Like and, like, pair together not only the weight and the body of the food and the wine, but also the literal notes of things like herbs and citrus are in both of them.

I like this pasta. Rooster head pasta.

It's like a little capo de gallo capo. The rooster. Yeah, it's the rooster crest. It's a half circle. It's not a wagon wheel. I tried.

That's right.

I hope you still wagon wheel me, even though I couldn't find it. That's yummy. That is definitely not like anything I've made before. And a very unique combination of flavors. Thanks.

Food and wine Facebook recipes you like with the ricotta on top? Yeah. We put some red chili flake in there too. Of course.

Our favorite from Burlap and Barrel collaboration with Dan, our friend, who is currently, as we're recording a James Beard semi finalist for his restaurant Pasta. Hope he gets it.

Congratulations, Dan.

My family will laugh and give me a hard time because I'm eating peas. And when we're in Sicily and there was peas and everything, they were teasing me like, oh, Nick, you're gonna eat it. Remember that?

No, I don't dislike peas, especially fresh spring peas like this in a pasta. I just didn't like a spoonful of boiled peas. Boiled peasants doing in their own juices. This is yummy. What would you change about it?

Nothing. It's good.

It's perfect for this time of year. It's a perfect spring dish. I see why it was in the Facebook feed today. Perfect with this. Mine. Dude, we nailed it. Paired perfectly.

Good job. Great wine pairing. A way to select the wine and then make the food. It's great.

It's delicious. Look, Mom, I'm eating peas. Mm. I am literally sitting here eating that pasta as a leftover for my lunch today while I'm editing this podcast for you.

And it reheated beautifully in the microwave, I added another little plop of ricotta cheese on the top, a drizzle of olive oil, and some red chili flakes. I'm going to put the link for the recipe in the show notes. Of course, I will also share with you the link to Reeve Winery here in Sonoma County.

Check out their website if you are planning a trip to Wine country and you better include the Sonoma side on that visit. Make sure you set up a tasting reservation to go see our friends at Reeve. Their entire portfolio of wines is fantastic, not just the Vermentino.

And as I mentioned earlier at the time of this recording, there are some bottles available on bottlebarn.com and also through the Vivino app, two of my favorite places to grab wines.

Hop on over to my Instagram ickylamberti and I'll make a highlight bubble that has pictures and video from our pairing meal so you can check it out and give me a follow while you're there if we're not already connected. And last but certainly not least, did you know that you can support the podcast, buy me a glass of wine or help cover some of our operating costs?

We call that being an angel and there's lots of you angels out there. And I'll put the link in the show notes if you'd like to join the Angel Club.

Whatever you do between now and our next time together, I hope that you sip well.

D.