Italian Ripasso Wines From The Veneto

Italian Ripasso Wines From The Veneto – Episode #430

March 26, 2008

Gary Vaynerchuk tastes 3 Ripasso wines and gives his thoughts and MOTT had to “link up” a lot today. Gary seemed to get down to business today!

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Comments on this episode(122) Leave a comment ›

“My fun fact is that, if you want to find who owns a website (such as w…” by Steve Everist
“had the masi camposomething or other valpolicella, good rustyness. rus…” by Chris Lotz
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Wines tasted in this episode:

2005 Campagnola Le Bine Valpolicella Classico SuperioreValpolicella
2005 Accordini Ripasso ValpolicellaValpolicella
2005 Zenato Ripassa ValpolicellaValpolicella

Links mentioned in todays episode.

122 Responses

March 26, 2008

CindyW
I’m so excited — valpolicella ripasso is just about my favorite type of wine right now. Off to watch the episode.
March 26, 2008

dank
mmyes, good stuff and new stuff..

get off twitter and go outside Gary! it’s awesome weather
March 26, 2008

Michael Y
#3
March 26, 2008

Dominick Mack
LOVE the ‘05 Zenato!
March 26, 2008

Anthony L.
VERY COOL EPISODE!!!
March 26, 2008

GrapeStuff
top 10
March 26, 2008

wrc105
WOO HOOO Top Ten
March 26, 2008

Loweeel
Top 8!
March 26, 2008

crank
I’m in.
March 26, 2008

Sassodoro
Top 10? Wow!
March 26, 2008

il Cesare
Supposed to be Veneto not Venato
March 26, 2008

Lawrence Leichtman
The comment part was missing the first time I ran through this. Fun fact, wine is good for you. Too bad on these Ripassos. I have 3 in storage from 2004 and they were very good at the outset so I expect they will be better now. In fact, I think I will have one tonight.
March 26, 2008

MagnumGourmet
Top 20 – Woo Hoo!
March 26, 2008

Kev and Ams
QOTD: Fun fact, Peeps are delicious.
March 26, 2008

Derek
Great EP!!!

QOTD: All Brunello di Montalcino’s are made from 100% Sangiovese
March 26, 2008

waibeans
MORE FRIGGEN HO HO HO’s?!!!

GV you need help!!

top 20
March 26, 2008

Greg B
Big G, Nice one. You my friend are a Twiiter Mad Man.

QOTD: See above!
March 26, 2008

Dr T from N. Carolina
I wish I hadn’t already opened tonight’s wine. It would have been fun to have opened my bottle of Le Bine and tried it! Oh, well, there’s always the April 1st show

“T”
March 26, 2008

bigmay
Rocked it with this show. I don’t think I’ve ever had a Ripasso so I’ll need to change that. You’re spot on talking about a “pleasure scale.” Who cares about scores? If it doesn’t bring me pleasure, I don’t want it. Great advice on trying a new varietal every trip to the store as well.

QOTD: Fun fact – facetious is the only word in the English language that has all 5 vowels (A,E,I,O, and U) in it in alphabetical order (or so I’ve been told).
March 26, 2008

Matty B
Gary,

So funny..just had a Masi Ripasso a few weeks ago, as I was expanding my palate. Awesome wine and what a price point..like 14 bucks! Right on getting the word out there about these, cuz they definitely bring some serious thunder!
March 26, 2008

Marc Bienvenue
Ripasso and amarone are my favorite!! God’s juice for me!
March 26, 2008

Jaybird
Hey GV if you read these then follow me up on Twitter @Jaybird76

QOTD: My fun fact of the day was that I got stressed because it seems like no one wants to work anymore, and then “a glass of Cabernet saves the day”. So I would say sometimes it is never to early to have a wine that can smooth out the edges.
March 26, 2008

Scott EJ
Good to see you back, GV. You’re one busy wine-loving man.

FFOTD: 08′ is the Cubs year. Ok…it may not be a fact to most, but, it certainly is to me.
March 26, 2008

Eli2Tyree
Awesome ! top 20! Love amarone, but cant roll that high so I have been searching for value in similar wines. How about tasting two of my favorite similar wines like Allegrini’s la Grola or the palazzo della torre
March 26, 2008

Anthony L.
Forgot the QOTD: My fun fact has nothing to do with Wine. Did you know that Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both died on the same day…ready for this July 4th, 1826…spooky huh?
March 26, 2008

Marshall
I have no fun fact and I can’t think of anything cool to say so I won’t say anything. I just need to leave a comment to support the show. Later vanyiacs.
March 26, 2008

J-Pipes
QOTD: My whole life is full of fun facts… let’s see…
Well, I once told Academy Award winning actor Geoffrey Rush that when I drink red wine, I can’t feel my legs. He then promptly asked me out on a date.
It was a cute and magical moment in my life.
(by the way, this was about 7 years ago, before I really knew anything about wine… I have since felt my legs most of the time while consuming red wine.)
March 26, 2008

ShawnMichael
Impatiantly waiting for my next wine delivery. New Vayniac here.

QOTD: Santa GaryVee is giving away great gifts!
March 26, 2008

OmarG
Fun fact: Male Hippos shower each other with urine and feces when determining territories. Weeeeeeeeee!
March 26, 2008

Ryan D
QotD: Fun Facts of the Day: Richie Havens was chosen to open 1969’s Woodstock because other bands couldn’t get to the venue. Havens’ acoustic style and limited “stuff” [all he really needs is a guitar] made him able to be flown in by helicopter. The Grateful Dead consider Woodstock to be one of their worst shows ever. Their short set was plagued by problems including Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir getting shocked every time they touched their guitars.
March 26, 2008

Darmagi
Fun Fact: In Denmark (in Scandinavia) there are more than 23 commercial winegrowers. Thanks for a great show!
Regards from a danish wine-enthusiast in the northern part of Europe
March 26, 2008

laurie in VT
I haven’t much explored Italian wines and Ripassos not at all. My curiosity is piqued…
Fun fact: The B1B Lancer is the only bomber that can pull 3G combat maneuvers. This courtesy of Air and Space magazine and my 15-yr-old son. I learn something new every day.
[It trumped the comparatively mundane fact that horses each produce abt 50lbs of manure per day]. ; )
March 26, 2008

DC7
Hang out in Venice for a week and you’ll taste some great local wines.
March 26, 2008

Chris White
QOTD: Fun fact of the day, pairing good craft beer with the right food can make just as big of a difference as pairing great wine with the right foods.
March 26, 2008

Stevo Vino
FFOTD: Dallas Mav’s are going to bring the thunder and win it all this year.

(Please get well soon Dirk… please!)
March 26, 2008

Fangorn81
Server Not Found.

QOTD:

Fun Fact: Gandalf was also known by the names OlÃ³rin, Mithrandir, Greyhame, The White Rider, Stormcrow, IncÃ¡nus, TharkÃ»n, and Greybeard.
March 26, 2008

TheReuting
The Jets recently hired Bill Callihan as an assistant coach. Bill was the Head coach of the Nebraska Cornhuskers last year. The last two big Jet pick ups from the Huskers: Scott Frost 98-01 and Johnny Mitchel 92-95. Neither that successful overall. So fact of the day: when the Jets bring on a Huskers to the team it does not translate to a Super Bowl…bad news for next year.
March 26, 2008

mikeyrad
If you’re going to have a different varietal every night be sure to take some notes. When we go out to dinner we often order wines that we’ve never had. Problem is, we forget what they were.

QOTD: My fave piece of trivia. Tom Seaver’s first name is GEORGE.
March 26, 2008

Hall
QOTD: it take about 3,000 cows-worth of leather to supply the NFL with footballs every year.
March 26, 2008

Achilles Mike
Great show Gary! Fun Fact-some of the most interesting new World Rhone Blends are coming out of Paso Robles, CA–check out the Rhone Rangers.
March 26, 2008

Antonio TouriÃ±o
QOTD: Did you know that Panama has the Atlantic Ocean to the North and the Pacific Ocean to the South?
March 26, 2008

Orion
FFotD: It’s not nearly as hard as one would think to make your own wine. That said, it will take a while to make the wine interesting, rather than just drinkable. But there are kits out there with some pretty decent juice, and they’ll end up costing you 2-5 bucks a bottle, if you don’t factor in your time.
March 26, 2008

Andy & Edie
Here’s a fun fact… I (Andy) am a microbiologist. That’s not the fun fact, here goes… just like wines you can get to know different bacteria by the way they smell. Staph aureus (you may know this as MRSA since it’s been in the news) smells just like sweaty socks. Proteus mirabilis smells exactly like chocolate cake. Pseudomonas aeruginosa smells like very fruity grapes. Most importantly to this discussion however is that Klebsiella pneumoniae smells a lot like some Cabernet Sauvignons to me. Gary, you’ll have to go check out a microbiology lab sometime. I think you would get a real kick out of smelling the differences in bacteria since you like to smell and taste weird things all the time. Great episode Gary and thanks for all you do!
March 26, 2008

darryl
gary, you mentioned wanting to decant a wine and try it the next day. you should do that more often, i think it would be of value to all.
March 26, 2008

Sharon
Hi Gary!
QOTD: Office workers check their email an average of 30-40 times an hour. I dunno if that’s fun but it’s kinda interesting.
March 26, 2008

Hugh
While channel surfing last nite i discovered a cool way of getting out red wine stains-a 50/50 mix of Dawn liquid soap and hydrogen peroxide…apparently you HAVE to use Dawn….not Palmolive or Joy, etc..

How about trying that on the Thunder Show!!! Heck I’d even drive the 90 miles and test it out with ya!!!!
March 26, 2008

Bobby Bo
Been hitting the Ripasso for years, one of my favs, and always consistent. Hard to find in the South though.
March 26, 2008

mike m
Frankly,since you don’t ship to my state I seldom watch anymore unless you are tasting something I own or am curious about.Just being honest
March 26, 2008

D
I have had several different ripassos before. Started on Zenato 2003, great wine. Hot year 2003, so pretty sweet. But apparently Zenato has became this national brand, the quality has been going down. I think there are much better ripassos out there right now, around the same price range.
March 26, 2008

Tyler
fun fact

Dallas Cowboys are going to be super bowl champs next season
March 26, 2008

Neil
FFOTD: It takes the energy from 50 leaves to produce one apple.
March 26, 2008

SS Chris
Fun Fact: That’s the first episode in WLTV history where all the wines received the same score (not including the few episodes where Gary tastes only one wine)!!

Also….when you do the gesture for “and a little bit of me”…you have gone to exclusively using the thumb and index finger to signify the “little bit”. In the past you used to sometime use your pinky & index finger….way more street cred w/ the latter. Waddup w/ dat????
March 26, 2008

Orion Slayer
Corvina sounds like a great grape. Something else to look forward to in the never ending variety of the wine world.

FFOTD: There are more than 100 wineries in a 40 mile radius of my home in Sacramento, CA. Lucky me!
March 26, 2008

manonthemoon
QOTD: If you consumed the entire liver of a polar bear you would succumb to iron poisoning
March 26, 2008

DaveyDonut
Ahhh I love Ripasso. I have a case of the 2003 Zenato Ripassa, and it has definitely smoothed out a bit over the last couple years. Last time I had one was two months ago and it was very good (90 points).

Emmit’s video on youtube is great! Looks like a lot of fun… I may need to do something like that here in Portland.

David
March 26, 2008

ev
I have heard in the past that Masi made a ripasso (invented the method) and Zenato soon after came out with one. Masi didn’t like Zenato using their term, ripasso, and a lawsuit ensued. So, Zenato changed the name to ripassa. So, what’s the diff between ripasso and ripassa??
March 26, 2008

ev
Oh, I bought a box (case) of 2000 Zenato ripassa and have about half left. Wow, it keeps getting better.
March 26, 2008

Johnnyutah
QOTD: Bertrand Russell, one of the most distinguished philosophers of the 20th century, was arrested at age 80(!) for civil disobedience (protesting the Vietnam War).

Love them I-talian wines!
March 26, 2008

Thanks to our Vets!
Too many lurkers!!!! Cut me a break. Only 53 comments on tonights episode, but you’ve already given away 1000 wristbands??? Gary, show some special love to the commenters (especially those from PA who can’t buy your wine!!!)!
March 26, 2008

JordanW
QOTD: Remote Viewing (Wikipedia it) really works. In fact it works VERY well.
March 26, 2008

drift
A wine suggestion for anyone who reads these comments. Firriato ribeca 2004 from sicily. 50 bones and worth every penny. Tre Bicchieri. I give it 95pts. Bought it from wines from italy website.
March 26, 2008

phermented1
Should have tried Cesari’s Bosan Ripasso- killer juice.
QOTD: The phylloxera epidemic in Europe was caused by then cured by native American vines.
March 26, 2008

chenrys
We’ll have to try Ripasso soon.

QOTD: Chuck Norris’ name is really Carlos.
March 26, 2008

ChiChefBrandon
FFOTD: The pressure inside a bottle of Champagne is approximately 90 lbs per square inch, which is almost 3 times the pressure in automobile tires.

BTW great show. You learn something new everyday! Never had a wine from Veneto, or a ripasso for that matter. But I will now. And im gonna share it with all my friends.
March 26, 2008

portland guy
Interesting episode of so-so Italian wines.

QOTD — Fun fact. GV’s recommendations on inexpensive Italian wines are actually all losers — sort of like the Jets.
March 26, 2008

Wana
Big Ups Gary,

I’ve been a lurker… now I’m exposing myself. Love your show. When I worked in the wine grape growing industry in California in the 1980’s we had a promotion based around “The best kind of wine is the kind you like”. This seems to fit your mantra of “trust your palate”. Cheers to you and viva la vin!

Wana
March 26, 2008

brorjace
The different varietal challange is good, but it also helps to get to know a varietal and know what variation exists within it. I don’t disagree though.

Baseball time fun fact: The cardinals are going to be worse than they were last year (sub .500).
March 26, 2008

Ben F
Gary great idea the GVP score.. it make perfect sense!!!
QOTD my fun fact from me is i found out that i like Rose’ today… tased 2 from Provance and one from Vento.. all 3 were very good…
March 26, 2008

SoCal
QOTD: Fun Fact 90% of all sodas have citrus in them
March 26, 2008

KyleLikesTies
QoTD: I was curious about the sniffysniff.com question … So, I had a look … It’s owned by Belgium Domains (http://www.belgiumdomains.com/) … So you can probably buy it from them!
March 26, 2008

spmyke
QOTD: ‘Jedi’ is an official religion in Australia. It has over 70,000 followers.
March 26, 2008

mark
where were u yesterday..u need to tell us when you’re not going to broadcast a new show !!
March 26, 2008

Oklahoma Michael
FUN FACT?? Really? Fine! George Costanza is not really an Architect named Art VanDelay. Ps. Pinot grigio kinda means “grey pinecone” in French and really kind of sucks. That was two for the price of one
March 26, 2008

Tim Halberg
my fun fact is that it SUCKS being sick, because when I process weddings I LOVE to drink wine while working on the pictures. But, when I’m sick, I just feel crappier when I drink.

I really need to get better, just so I can take a sippy sip of my wine!
March 26, 2008

Antony
Hull City are currently third in the Britith Football Championship (formerly The Football League Second Division and still one league below the top league which is called The Premiership.) This is their highest ever league position!
March 26, 2008

Lurker-Len
GVP scale….like that! Very interesting episode but I don’t think Ripassos wines did anything for you…no thunder…average and given these so-so Italians wines maybe take it up a notch to Amarones…there’s an experience…especially when it goes from tasting like a dessert wine to an absolutely great tasting Amarone with a hint of being a dessert wine. Would like to see you compare some high end wines to maybe a lesser or inexpensive wine to see your thoughts are…example Ornellaia or Masseto vs. Petolo Galatrona…this might not be a good comparison…all wines would be consider high end but that all I can come up with..

QOTD: Fun fact — watching your show…bringing the thunder…experiencing things I wouldn’t have taken notice of…and the best of all another Jet fan waiting for next year.
March 26, 2008

Little Jonny H
A ripping show GV! I would love to be rolling deep enough to try amarone, but its good to know where I can look to find fairly similar flavor profiles for a third the price. It’s on my list!

QOTD: Did you know… a pig’s orgasm lasts for 30 minutes! I’ve never felt such envy before
March 26, 2008

David Dadekian
QOTD: Fun fact? Styx was the first band to have four consecutive platinum albums. Maybe I should confirm that, but it popped up in LastFM and seemed fun.

I want to also voice a slight displeasure at having been in meetings all evening and not getting back to a computer until 8:30 p.m. and finding that all 1000 Santa items are gone. Ah well, c’est la vie.
March 26, 2008

BobbyTiger
El Salvador is playing some itzy-bitzy country in soccer tonight in DC. Todays factoid will be that El Salvador will win (again) by the score of 12 – 0.
March 26, 2008

Brad -73-
hot cocoa with mushrooms……..mmmmmmm

fun fact of the day:
and it’s a fact about me
7-20-73
day i was born
day Bruce Lee died.
March 26, 2008

GKepps
totally bummed i was too late for santa’s gift.
QOTD: I’ll give you a few football fun facts.
Up until 1912, a touchdown was only worth 5 points.
A home team is required to have 36 footballs on hand for each game.
The most concussions suffered by an NFL player over a career is 13, by Al Toon (of the Jets)
GV- you’re usually “expressive” not “expressionary”, but I like the GVisms.
March 26, 2008

Rhonda
QOTD: Useless fun fact, the length of your foot is equal to the length of your forearm. Go ahead and stick your foot up to your arm, I sure did when someone told me that!
March 26, 2008

Withnail
Labels were out of focus all day. MOTT: pick it up!!

Last 2 garyv.com 120’s have been AWESOME.
March 26, 2008

laposte
I have enjoyed many Ripassos, while wishing I could afford more Amarones.
QOTD: Cows only have teeth on their bottom jaw…no wonder they’re all vegans
March 26, 2008

Senator
FFOTD: your comments link is broken for me! I had to manually enter the URL.
March 26, 2008

DannInNH
QOTD: A very, very special Happy 64th Birthday Shout Out from the best damn wine guy around because of the efforts of a very special daughter !!
Thanks Gary…
March 26, 2008

Social Project Brian
Fun fact of the day: 77% of people eat the ears first, on a chocolate Easter bunny.

Another fun fact: If a woodchuck could chuck wood, he would chuck about 700 pounds of wood.
March 26, 2008

ZJK
Show was entertaining as always!

FFOTD: The band name “Led Zeppelin” came about after Keith Moon (The Who’s drummer) flirted with the idea of Jimmy Page’s new group. He said, “It would probably go over like a lead zeppelin.” The remark stuck with Page, therefore, Led Zeppelin.
March 26, 2008

Sev
Cool show, you rock GV. Glad to have you back, you too Mott.

QOTD: The term “proof” for alcohol comes from back in the day in Scotland when traders would test the alcohol content of a spirit but putting a flame to it. If it lit, it was proof of the quality of the spirit.
March 26, 2008

tarheel17
QOTD = Fun Fact: Everyone I know was head over heels for the Zenato. I tried it and thought it was OK. It’s great to hear your review of it, and to compare the myriad palates. That’s what wine is all about….
March 26, 2008

cma82
Gary,

Stop telling everyone about my value wine.

Thanks

I was a fan of the 04′ Zenato, haven’t tried the ‘05.

QOTD: Sauternes is delicious
March 26, 2008

Chris
My fun fact- Or not fun fact, is that when you try to buy a wine in MA and your underage sister accompanies you into the store, they will not sell to you.
March 26, 2008

T. Holland
Bought my first ever Barbera today. Have to save it until my wife has the baby. Thanks for encouraging me to get out of my comfort zone GV.

FFOTD: Sports- Physiologists claim that rowing a 2,000 meter race (which takes 6-7 minutes), is equal to playing back-to-back basketball games.

Movies- Tatooine, the planet that Luke Skywalker was from, is actually a real place in Tunisia. George Lucas decided to keep the real name of the place they filmed.
March 26, 2008

Ernest_G
FFOTD: Nintendo, before it was selling video games and consoles, use to be into trading cards prior to the ’70’s.
March 26, 2008

Scott
“On a pleasure scale– sounds like a porno…”

Best WLTV line of all time.

Fun Fact: GaryVaynerchuk.com is going to be as popular or more popular than WLTV if you keep up the pace you’re on there. I don’t care what the comments say on Digg, the 120’s have been amazing.
March 26, 2008

Grape King
Awesome!!! I’ve been waiting for this for quite some time Gary!! I wrote you an email months ago, and I wasn’t disappointed with this episode. Nice work!

QOTD- Cacao, the main ingredient of chocolate is the most pest-ridden tree in the jungle. The average chocolate bar contains 11 insect legs.
March 27, 2008

Social Brian
Gary, I was inspired enough by today’s episode to pick up a bottle of 2004 Cecilia Beretta Valpolicella Superiore Ripasso on the way home. Looking forward to trying it!
March 27, 2008

Carlitos
Man, I can’t believe your pronunciation is getting even worse and worse by the day! Just slow down and say at least each consonant in the right order. It’s not a competition to see who says a name or varietal faster! You can’t pretend to have an educational angle if you mingle that up every time.

You are almost loosing me!
March 27, 2008

Kristen
Thanks for a new ep GV. I had a particularly craptastic day today and watching your show really helped lighten my mood. And I have to say, I had the Zenato and I liked it, but I had decanted it. Unfortunately I don’t have my notes, so I can’t quite elaborate. However, I haven’t had those other wines, so it would be good to compare.

FFOTD: Stephen Colbert is completely deaf in his right ear.
March 27, 2008

EvanR
Great episode!

FFOTD: Gary Vaynerchuk twitters more per day than the rest of the twitter users combined. It’s ok though, because christmas also comes in march!
March 27, 2008

PSPatrick
I really loved the 2001 Zenato Ripassa, it was one of my favourite wines. I bought some bottles of the 2004 and 2005 vintages a couple of weeks ago. I am a little curious now, looks like I should try a bottle next weekend…
March 27, 2008

Chris S
I love your fun fact enough to say that that is my fun fact of the day. I agree with it 100% and that is what my girlfriend and I have been doing for the past few weeks. It’s definitely made a difference.
March 27, 2008

salvatore
Wow ! Great show……

I’ve been experimenting with Ripasso for about 6 months now.
Because I love Amarone…but I’m a cheap bastard.
I’m trying to get in that same happy place for less $$$$.

I was introduced to a great Ripasso; Cesari Mara, by the wine manager @ Yankee Spirits in Sturbridge,Ma. It’s nearly as good as a moderately priced Amarone; with similar flavor characteristics.
March 27, 2008

italianwinelover
Awesome ep! Never even thought about trying whites before, went into a local winery, tried their chardonnay, loved it and bought it. Great advise to try something new and thats exactly what I’m doing!!!

Love the Ripasso…stumbled on them about a year ago-nice way to try Amarone for us cheapies. I do like the Zenato and have not tried the others…you’ve peaked my taste buds!

If at first you don’t succeed….try another bottle!
March 27, 2008

pawncop
Good episode. Nice wines to look for, and I have found a store that has an extensive (at least to me) selection.

Useless triva – the name KU Klux Klan is supposedly from cocking a Colt Single Action revolver.
March 27, 2008

Kelly
Thanks a bunch for featuring these “poor man’s Amarones”. Don’t let anybody say that you don’t respond to requests.
March 27, 2008

Eric Gardner
Great Job. Love learning new stuff. Keep it up. Trust your TV instincts and don’t listen to anyone about how to do the show. It’s just like trusting your own palate when you taste wine.
March 27, 2008

Robin C
QOTD: Sir Isaac Newton, discoverer of the principles of gravity, also
invented the cat door.
March 27, 2008

gregtrop
I have never had an Amarone, because I have a problem paying that much without having tried it. I’ll definitely try a Ripasso to find out if they are worth it.

QOTD: Stout and Port beer are the same. In the old days they used to write “port” on the stout kegs when they were ready to be transported and it stuck.
March 27, 2008

Dave from VA
QOTD: When one of the National Institutes of Health is reviewing a grant proposal worth over a million dollars (on average) that is 25 pages long and has taken a researcher months (average) to prepare, they typically only spend about ten minutes deciding whether or not to grant the funding. There are just that many people trying to do research, and so few dollars to go around…
March 27, 2008

Taylor
Great show, nothing new. I havent had a Valpolicella yet, but because I love my “Pal” I will seek one out in the near future.
QOTD I know this is a little late, but fun fact “It is a violation of city code to sell chicks or ducklings to a minor within 1 week of the Easter holiday.” – Baltimore, Maryland
March 27, 2008

Bookman
QOTD; March 27, 1939; The University of Oregon defeats The Ohio State University, to win the first ever NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. And it’s been March Madness ever since!

Good show, as usual. I tend to shy away from the Italian/French wines, mainly because I have a “need to know” where, if I can’t identify the vitner, the varietal, region, etc., I won’t buy it, because it stems from my need to categorize things in my head.

If you have time one episode, and are doing an Italian or French region, can you quickly break it down for us? For example; The likes of Louis LaTour makes a wide variety of products, but is it all the same appelation? What’s the main differences?

Thanks!
March 27, 2008

alco holland
Ron-den-knee-a? sounds like you got Spain on the brain there Boss. Good show lovethe ripassa
March 27, 2008

ScottyWed
Always have fun watching your show. Can’t wait for my April 1st Secret pack.

Fun Fact: Ben Franklin said “Beer is living proof that God loves us and want’s us to be happy.” I guess he didn’t drink much wine…
March 27, 2008

DenverDarlin'
Yes, I’ve had a Valpolicella Ripasso. Thanks for the show. It was great to have a comparison of three in a row.
March 27, 2008

TennLee
QOTD: History, in general, only informs us of what bad government is. (tj)
April 17, 2008

msb2ncsu
Sorry, a bit behind on my video podcasts…

Thought it was interesting that the guy next to me at work (who has probably consumed 5 bottles of wine in his live) has had the Zenato Ripassa and I have had the Accordini at a local restaurant. The Zenato is responsible for him trying things other than North Carolina varietals (muscadine/scuppernong) and fruit-based wines (like apple-raspberry stuff). He now looks forward to having a new wine with steak or pasta.
July 18, 2008

sam
I was having my first Ripassa (I quess they re-named it) while watching this show, as a re-run, I guess. It so happened, coincidently, I am drinking the 2006 Zenato from Valpolicella. I very much enjoyed it. Dry yet fruity. Dark cherries, leather, even some cinnamon…tannins and all and all…a good wine rolling at 27 bones here in Quebec. Good stuff…
July 19, 2008

Oakmon's BF
Iâ€™m having my first ripasso as I rewatch this episode. Itâ€™s a 2005 Villa Maffei Valpolicella Ripasso. I got some cinnamon on the nose. It bites my tongue on the finish which I really like. It liked it. Itâ€™s serious stuff.
January 9, 2009

Dessert Wine Nerd
Gary A and W out of a plastic bottle is a no-no. The only good A and W is out of a tap at one of their fast food places. And if you want a damn good root beer, check out Henry Weinhards. That is pretty much the only one I will drink ( besides Virgils ). Good stuff the way rootbeer should be (sasafrass in it and whatnot). QOTD: ( fun fact, actually ) Im a British comedy FREAK. I love love LOVE it. I own many complete sets ( Monty Python, Blackadder, Bottom, etc). Its just a type of humor thats so different from ours and to me is just better. Basically, I find it less predictable than ours (ours being American).
February 3, 2009

Chris Lotz
had the masi camposomething or other valpolicella, good rustyness. rusty and rustic. qotd at the end of teen wolf, when the crowd is cheering in the stands, my friends dad exposed himself on camera in the back ground
February 20, 2009

Steve Everist
My fun fact is that, if you want to find who owns a website (such as http://www.sniffysniff.com) you can go to register.com and they’ll give you the information.

I love Amarone, but I’m glad that Ripasso is there for the common man!