Sommelier’s pick
Who: Brian Brossa, general manager/wine director at Enoteca Rossa in Bellaire
Background: Brossa’s love for wine started, ironically, with beer. In the early ’90s, after a long day of working construction, he and his dad would try a different brew each night. Some 300 beers later, Brossa had an extensive database of knowledge and, in 1995, he landed a job as a beer and wine buyer for Whole Foods in Houston.
“That’s when I fell in love with wine,” he recalls. “I found more and more things to love about it, between the regions and varietals, and the stories.” Later he became a wine rep for Glazer’s, and that’s how he met Michael May, who owns Enoteca Rossa and Candelari’s Pizzeria. Brossa and May hit it off and since 2009 have been working together. This summer Brossa launched “The Wine Circle,” tastings at 6:30 p.m. the first and third Tuesdays every month at the restaurant.
What: 2015 Selvapiana Chianti Rufina
Why: Rufina is one of the most famous sub-regions of Chianti in Tuscany, and for a fan of sangiovese, Brossa explains, Selvapiana is “the perfect producer, (providing) the robust taste that you desire in a Chianti. The wine is an elegant red that has bright cherry qualities that can be enjoyed on its own or paired nicely with food. The acid takes a back seat to the fruit and tannin components, and it goes well with everything from pizza to lasagna to lamb.” Made from grapes grown on 15- to 40-year-old vines that are both hand and machine harvested, this Chianti Rufina undergoes fermentation and maceration in stainless steel for 25 days, then is aged in large French-oak casks.
Price: $11 by the glass, $39 for a bottle at Enoteca Rossa, 4566 Bissonnet