This was one of the most fun/animated tastings that we have ever done here with husband-wife team Gilda and Salvatore Martusciello ( GROTTA DEL SOLE , www.grottadelsole.it , Quarto (NA) Italia Pensicola Sorrentina ) working our customers and the floor : Gilda poured and spoke to everyone in English and Salvatore roamed the store taking pictures, studying our selection and helping customers when called upon by me! I have never seen someone take such an interest in the inner working of our store. Salvatore examined everything and took notes, commented, and with the pictures he took I am sure he has a pretty good record of how we are displayed and set-up here at Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits. I was impressed with both his interest, curiosity and attention to detail. Cheers to you Salvatore for that!
It was energized our tasting and evening and you can tell it in these pictures that I am downloading here on this blog page.
Our guest that showed up at the end of the evening with Peggy Downey of the Michael Downey Selections was Fabio Oberto ( of OBERTO Barolo which we have not yet worked with here in the store. He's the young blond in the striped pink and red and gray shirt . I will ask Brennan now to show me what there is available in Fabio's portfolio of Piemontese wines and see what we can include from it here at Cleveland Park.
We always sell and must have the red off-dry, slightly-sparkling Gragnano, $16.49 that they serve up on Macomb Street at the TWO AMYS restaurant three or so blocks away from us here. I've always believed that we sold it before the TWO AMY'S did but I might be wrong! I think Michael Downey showed this to me himself on one of his first calls to the store selling his " new " and " very exciting " line of carefully hand-picked Italian selections to " add to the equation " of wines out there and not duplicate them ( very much our own model of operating here at Cleveland Park on the retail level ).
They serve the Gragnano
and the Margherita pizza ( fresh mozzarella, basil and tomato sauce ) that one cannot fail to fall completely in love with immediately ; BOTH, actually ! The pizza and the red slightly-sparkling off-dry red Gragnano that froths up just like the head on a beer is a staple at the TWO AMY'S. Combine it with any of the various Naples thin-crusted pizzas - what a combo. No wonder that people come here constantly in search of it and are so delighted to find that we have it !
But GROTTA DEL SOLE ( www.grottadelsole.it ) is so much more than just the Gragnano! They make in other reds a fabulous dry Aglianico and many marvelous whites starting with the Coda del Volpe ( the Fox's Tail ) dry, mineral white, the Fallahnghina dry mineral white, the Grecco del Tufo ( an even bigger, more complex, thicker mineral and citrus gem, the Fiano dry steely mineral white, too - and more! There's also the sparkling wine : we have to buy more of that. We are currently out of it. I can't think of all of them here at home as I type this. Argh! Too many great whites to remember and they are all great food wines made from completely indigenous grapes.
BRAVO to these people for keeping their indigenous grape varieties alive and healthy and an inspiration that starts in liquid form and expands to the abstract in the mind and just goes on and on inspiring and including other elements. Metaphorical, fantastical, historical, of-the-very-instant-moment- AAAGGGHHHHHH! Love these versatile whites that hold their own with many of the foods we enjoy everyday here.
We here at Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits ( www.clevelandparkwine.com sales@clevelandparkwine.com 202-363-4265 ) Ask Mike Martin or me ( Tony Quinn ) for any information or place any orders with us ) carry a selection of the wines and are almost out so Brennan Downey will be sending me a " care-package " of them within the week I hope!
We'd like to get both Gilda and Salvatore back here to do another tasting soon. I've got to find my calendar to find out when they came : it was in May of 2007! Let's do it again soon Gilda and Salvatore ! And Fabio let's see what we can do with your wines, too.
Featured in these pictures are our fabulous customers that we love so much as well as Peggy and Brennan Downey, and me.
Cheers, TONY
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