Mother’s Day
is always a special day, especially for our family since we have mothers,
grandmothers and great grandmothers to celebrate with After all where would we be if it were
not for our moms? Carol’s mom, Grammy as we call her, is 96 and still going
strong was in attendance. Unfortunately
my mom, Nanny as she is known, and is 90 years young, was a bit under the weather and did not join us this
year. We missed her presence but the
grandkids called her and made her day.
My daughter Lisa and son-in-law Andy started a tradition a few years ago of hosting a Mother’s Day Brunch followed by dinner at their home in Florham Park, NJ. It has become a great tradition that Carol and I look forward to every year. We deviated last year from the tradition (can’t remember why) but we got back on track this year. Lisa and Andy are wonderful hosts and they do a great job in making the day a special one for family and a few special friends who attend.
My daughter Lisa and son-in-law Andy started a tradition a few years ago of hosting a Mother’s Day Brunch followed by dinner at their home in Florham Park, NJ. It has become a great tradition that Carol and I look forward to every year. We deviated last year from the tradition (can’t remember why) but we got back on track this year. Lisa and Andy are wonderful hosts and they do a great job in making the day a special one for family and a few special friends who attend.
Uovo in Purgatorio |
Zucchini & Tomato Pie |
Bacon, breakfast sausages, hash browns, & Gene's cornocoppia fruit salad accompany the eggs. This year my lovely wife Carol made a delicious Zucchini & Tomato Pie (sort of a quiche) to add to the offerings. It was delicious and you can bet it will become staple at future Mother's Day brunches.
To drink with this great brunch I
brought three white wines from Italy for us to enjoy. Everyone began with 2000 Bellavista Grand
Cuvée Pas Opere, a dry sparkling white made from 100% Chardonnay
grapes. This is a beautifully rich and full-bodied champagne-styled wine from Franciacorta, Italy. I love it by itself, while my ladies
prefer it as a Mimosa mixed with fresh orange juice. In either case it was delicious. Bellavista also makes a gorgeous Brut Rosé. I paid about $40 a bottle 5 years
ago. Probably more today and
unfortunately not easy to find, but if you can find some, I am sure you will enjoy the wine.
For those who did not want to stay with the Bellavista there was a wonderful 2010 Testalonga Bianco Vermentino Dolceacqua. Made by Antonio Perrino in Liguria from the Vermintino grape, it is a wine lover’s wine, i.e. is not a wine for everyone.. The wine sees extended skin contact, which imparts an almost funky, muted straw hue to the wine. On the palate it is peppery and complex and seems to evolve forever in the glass as you drink it. I find it to be a wine that is hard to stop drinking. $27 at Chambers Street Wines, NYC. From this same producer is Rossese Di Dolceacqua, a red wine made with the Rossese grape. Like the white it is peppery on the palate and reminds one of a Poulsard from the Jura. $30 and also at Chambers Street Wines.
The third white was the ever-present 2010 Ceretto Arneis Blanghe, Carol’s favorite wine. The 2010 vintage drinks beautifully. A little spritz on the first sip, the wine is pure, clean and delightful on the palate. A much better option in my opinion that Pinot Grigo. $20 and widely available.
For those who did not want to stay with the Bellavista there was a wonderful 2010 Testalonga Bianco Vermentino Dolceacqua. Made by Antonio Perrino in Liguria from the Vermintino grape, it is a wine lover’s wine, i.e. is not a wine for everyone.. The wine sees extended skin contact, which imparts an almost funky, muted straw hue to the wine. On the palate it is peppery and complex and seems to evolve forever in the glass as you drink it. I find it to be a wine that is hard to stop drinking. $27 at Chambers Street Wines, NYC. From this same producer is Rossese Di Dolceacqua, a red wine made with the Rossese grape. Like the white it is peppery on the palate and reminds one of a Poulsard from the Jura. $30 and also at Chambers Street Wines.
The third white was the ever-present 2010 Ceretto Arneis Blanghe, Carol’s favorite wine. The 2010 vintage drinks beautifully. A little spritz on the first sip, the wine is pure, clean and delightful on the palate. A much better option in my opinion that Pinot Grigo. $20 and widely available.
Brunch Wines |
Bivio Manicotti |
Pasta this good needs a great red
wine and fortunately we had two of them.
I brought a magnum of 1997 Teobaldo Cappellano Barolo Pie Rupestris
which I decanted for 6 hours. This was truly a classic old world Barolo with a nostalgic earthy bouquet,
soft tannins and gloriously pure fruit on the palate. The wine was round and
delicious with a lengthy and elegant finish. Definitely a wine with soul. My only lament is that it was my
last bottle and I have been unable to locate any more anywhere.
My good friend Gino brought along
another fabulous Barolo, this one a 2003 Francesco Rinaldi & Figli
Barolo Cannubio. Even though 2003 was a slightly lesser
vintage in Piedmonte, this bottle was superb and is a great example of what a great winemaker can do is lesser vintages. The wine was very
similar to the Cappellano with soft tannins and wonderful purity on the
palate. While it finished nicely,
it lacked the elegance of the Cappellano.
$58 at the Pluckemin Inn Wine Shop, Bedminster, NJ.
Happy Mother's Day to all you moms who may read this post. We love you.
Saluté
Mark
Happy Mother's Day to all you moms who may read this post. We love you.
Saluté
Mark