Wine pairings for Ragu di Salsiccia in Bianco
Rosato: MorisFarms Rosato Mandriolo
Rosso: Ampeleia Unlitro, Ampeleia Alicante, Ampeleia Kepos
This Sunday Pasta has many savory elements – saffron, bouillon, Parmigiano-Reggiano and sausage. It also has rosemary as a primary, aromatic engager. A pasta like this needs a refreshing and juicy wine – something that doesn’t contradict its ingredients (meaning no new oak) and lets the ingredients shine. I would stick to early-drinking and easy-drinking wines. Let the pasta be complex, not the beverage.
Tuscany offers many solutions, but some are more off the beaten track than others. For example, pretty much any Chianti or Chianti Classico would work for a red. For something a bit different, try a Sangiovese Rosato or any of Ampeleia’s fairly distinctive red wines.
Tuscany (and all of Italy for that matter) doesn’t make a lot of rosato, or rosé. MorisFarms, however, makes one that tastes of summer peaches and fresh picked raspberries. While that might not sound like it goes with this pasta, indeed, it does. It has light tannins (which work with the pasta better than a non-tannic white wine). Additionally, while it has some pleasant mineral notes of complexity, this is more about refreshment than taking lengthy tasting notes.
Keeping the same theme with red wines, the bottlings from Ampeleia provide verve on the palate while offering some lesser-known varieties for discovery. These wines are based on the local Alicante Nero, which is the same as the highly gulpable Grenache of France and Garnacha of Spain. The Unlitro is what you serve for a party. It’s one liter (un litro) and along with the majority of Grenache, you get Mourvèdre, Carignan and Alicante Bouschet. The Alicante is just that – 100%, made in a juicy Beaujolais-like style. The Kepos starts to get serious with more sulky Mourvèdre (40%) along with portions of Carignan and Alicante Bouschet, but it ends up with the perfect balance of complexity and levity to blend perfectly with this dish.
Check out our recipe for Ragu di Salsiccia in Bianco.
Cin cin!
Christy Canterbury, Master of Wine (MW)
Wine Editor
@canterburywine
