Howto order drinks like an Italian.

Keep it regional when pairing wine and food

Ahigh-end Italian restaurant’s wine list a generation ago would have been crowned with so-called Super Tuscans: wines made in Tuscany but under plenty of French influence, torqued to tickle anglo palates. Most of the trend-following wine geeks nowadays prefer bottles that more closely reflect the grapes, techniques and traditions that are actually indigenous to Italy.

There’s no way even a dedicated oenophile could keep track of all these suddenly hip products, coaxed from the terraced hillsides of Valle d’Aosta, the volcanic soils of Sicily and the craggy rocks of Ischia. Max Stefanelli, wine director for the Terroni family of restaurants (it operates three properties in Toronto and one in Los Angeles), points out that some of the wines he carries are made in tiny quantities, a few hundred cases a year. As a result, a chat with the waiter for advice on ordering — always a wise move anyway — has become essential.

One clue for pairing wine is to choose one from the same part of Italy where the food was created. That’s what Italians do. “I always say the wine pairing in Italian restaurants is easiest,” says Stefanelli, who was a lawyer in Bologna in a former life. “It’s always regional.”

Notwithstanding that advice, Stefanelli recommends one well-known, can’t-miss fail-safe that’s certain to impress dinner companions, whether they admire flashy prices or subtle winemaking — since it offers both. Namely, Barolo and other wines made from the Nebbiolo grape in northwestern Italy, which may offer beguiling aromas of leather, rose, truffle and tar. All roads lead to Nebbiolo when it comes to loving Italian wines, Stefanelli says. “You go through a path in wine,” tasting different things and learning about them over the years. “And we all end up in the same place.”