Italian Whites I

I've noticed so many types of Italian white wine lately, and I've tried some that are fantastic. Last Thursday I tried three wines, all for $16--a Falanghina, a Vernaccia, and a Greco. (I tasted a Greco in South Carolina a few months ago and loved it, so I'd been searching one out.) It's probably a better idea to try varietals next to each other--a Falanghina with a Falanghina--but my local wine shop only has one of each varietal. They were:

2009 Campi Flegrei Falanghina ($16)

Crisp, light, apple and white fruit, wide in the mouth, a slow finish. A touch of milky strength, but a good deal of honest fruit flavor that softens it out.


2009 Vernaccia di San Gimignano La Lastra ($16)

This is the famous Tuscan white. It's incredibly bright and lithe, quick on the tongue and full of hard lemon. Glinting, machine-like, steely and nervous. So thin the flavor blots out a little.


2009 Ocone Greco ($16)

The clear favorite of the three (Tracy agrees). More depth, more color, more layers. There is citrus and honey and something like a bark lengthiness to it. More character than the Vernaccia or Falanghina.

More Italian whites to come . . .