Well, here we are again. We’ve kicked off the year with a new series of Shared Tastings, and I have to say—we started at full throttle.
It’s a Sunday afternoon in lockdown conditions, and outside it’s pouring rain. Nothing better than sharing wine and conversation with a few friends. As usual, ours are not overly technical tastings, but rather an excuse to enjoy a good bottle and talk freely about whatever comes to mind. Today, the conversation unfolds in front of the 17 degrees of “Dodecapolis,” Primitivo del Salento by Luca Attanasio.
From the very first connection, I can tell the group is buzzing—and indeed, it takes no time at all for things to take off.
About an hour spent together, moving from discussions on unconventional glassware to the “straight-from-the-bottle” drinking style of the explosive Andrea Delogu—caught in a rare break between her many TV, film, and publishing commitments—to the ever-entertaining “pretending to be a beginner” by Cesare Bocci and his guest Paolo Girelli. Then there’s the semi-pro approach of a devoted “red wine lover” like Massimo Romeo Piparo, unusually seated—perhaps taking a breather given his intense efforts to keep Teatro Sistina active at a time when everything else has come to a halt…
Bringing us back on track—every now and then, and with some effort—is Maurizio Valeriani, editor of Vinodabere.it. And then there’s me, Maurizio Gabriele, trying here and there to spark reactions within a truly entertaining group that has fully embraced the idea of “free-flowing conversation.”
It was great—I really enjoyed it. The spirit behind these gatherings is exactly what I had hoped for. There are plenty of occasions, and many people far more skilled than me, to talk about wine in a technical way. We, on the other hand, aim for a more enjoyable, more relaxed approach to wine—one made of accurate information, but easy to appreciate and share
Thanks Andrea, Cesare, Massimo, Luca, Maurizio for this great start to 2021.
See you next time!
