Didn’t I mention Chef and I love spicy food? Spicy food to us is like our soul food. We can’t live without it. Sliced Beef in Chili Oil and Mapo Tofu are dishes that Chef cooks regularly and we won’t get tired of it. People think pairing spicy food is challenging and I totally agree. But once you get the essence of the dishes (the sauce, spices being used in the dishes), you will be able to figure out what kind of wine could work with the dishes. This Lacrima is a perfect example for this specific pairing.

Food:

• Sliced Beef in Chili Oil

— — —

• Mapo Tofu

• Stir-Fried Jalapeño and Kabocha Squash

Wine of my Choice: 

• Velenosi Vini Querciantica Lacrima di Morro DOC Marche Italy 🇮🇹 2018

The Grape: Lacrima (Lacrima di Morro d’Alba)

Lacrima, an indigenous Italian red grape variety. It can be found in Campania, Marche, Toscana, Umbria, and Puglia. It is believed that Lacrima is native to Marche, and mostly being grown in the village of Morro d’Alba, in the province of Ancona. Lacrima almost became extinct during the 20th century, but thanks to a few passionate producers’ efforts, especially Stefano Mancinelli and the establishment of Lacrima de Morro DOC in 1985, Lacrima was able to survive after phylloxera and gain visibility in the market. 

Lacrima means “tear” in Italian. It refers to the tear shape of berries. Furthermore, due to its delicate skin, the berry exudes small drop of juice on the grape and vine when it is fully ripe. That’s how Lacrima gets its name. 

Although it is a thin-skinned grape, Lacrima gives deep-hue ruby color with striking purple highlight. Lacrima is known for its remarkable aromatic and perfumed notes, displaying lavender, red rose, dark berries, black cherry and some baking spices. It is medium bodied, with refreshing acidity and balanced tannins. There is a local saying about Lacrima: “It’s feminine to the nose but masculine to the mouth.” Sweet passito style of Lacrima is also made in the region.

The Producer: Velenosi

Following their dream, Angela and Ercole Velenosi founded the Velenosi winery in Ascoli Piceno, Marche, with only 9 hectares in 1984. Started with having no background in wine, but after 36 years of hard work, the Velenosi winery has grown and became one of the largest family owned wineries in Marche, producing 2.5 million bottles per year and export their wine to 52 countries all over the world. 

In the past few years, Velenosi begin to expand their domain and started to produce Montelpuciano in Abruzzo. Over the years, Velenosi has started to practice organic environmentally sustainable farming.  

“Wine is an art capable of making your dream” is what Angela and Ercole Velenosi believe and their philosophy of running the business. What they have learned from wine is to be patient, waiting for the time necessary to develop and obtain the appropriate flavor. Furthermore, a continuous care and research that have been put into the business are reflected in the wine. The mission is to preserve the land and the traditional method of wine making.

Made with 100 % Lacrima de Morro, Lacrima Querciantica is fragrant and seductive. Notes of red rose, purple tulip, violet and Iris jump out from the glass and couple with ripe strawberry, red cherry, licorice, cinnamon and nutmeg. Medium bodied with silky tannins and bright acidity, this Lacrima pairs very well with the spicy Sliced Beef in Chili Oil and Mapo Tofu.  The aroma of the Sichuan peppercorn matches the floral notes of the Lacrima. The intensity of the fruit flavors and velvety tannins calms down the spiciness of the two dishes.

When it comes to wine pairing, my theory is to follow the basic rules but be creative. Don’t limit yourself, just go try different combinations and explore. 

Find out more about Velenosi Vini

Special thanks to Velenosi Vini, Vias Imports and Tiziana Forni for their generous support.

一酒兩餐搭：Lacrima di Morro 的餐酒搭配

「一酒兩餐搭」的單元回來囉！

我跟大廚都愛吃辣，每隔幾天不吃辣，全身就覺得不對勁。這幾天，大廚分別做了幾道他拿手的川菜，再搭配上我精心挑選的義大利酒來做餐酒搭配。口腹之慾滿足了，更再次證實義大利葡萄酒真的是搭配中菜的好夥伴！

餐點：

• 水煮牛

— — —

• 麻婆豆腐

• 小椒炒南瓜絲

餐酒：

• Velenosi Vini Querciantica Lacrima di Morro DOC Marche Italy 🇮🇹 2018

葡萄品種：拉奎馬（Lacrima de Morro)

這瓶來自 Velenosi 酒莊產的葡萄酒是採用馬給（Marche） 當地原生紅葡萄品種拉奎馬（Lacrima） 釀製而成的。拉奎馬大多種植於 Ancona 省分的 Morro d’Alba 村莊附近。這種葡萄在20 世紀時幾乎快要絕種，幸好有一群致力於恢復當地原生葡萄品種的酒農們的努力及Lacrima de Morro DOC 的設立（1985），拉奎馬才得以在葡萄根瘤蚜蟲肆虐後幸存，並漸漸地市場上嶄露頭角。

拉奎馬名字的由來，在我看來挺有詩意的。Lacrima 在義大利文裡是指眼淚的意思。一來是說這種葡萄的形狀像淚珠一樣，二來，由於它的皮很薄，易破，當拉奎馬葡萄成熟時，葡萄的汁液很容易就流到葡萄埂上及沾滿雙手。像葡萄流了眼淚一般。

拉奎馬雖然是屬於薄皮型的葡萄品種，卻能釀出顏色非常深沉且帶著藍紫色的葡萄酒。香氣芬芳濃郁，散發出近乎香水般的紅玫瑰、紫羅蘭、黑色莓果、黑櫻桃、及烘培時會使用的香料氣味是 Lacrima 最大的特色。 有著中等的酒體，扎實的結構，清脆的酸度，及平衡的單寧。當地的酒農戲稱拉奎馬聞起來女人味十足，芳香而美妙，喝起來卻有著男性陽剛的特質，個性十足。

酒莊：Velenosi

Velenosi 酒莊是由Angela and Ercole Velenosi 兩夫婦於1984 年在義大利的Marche 創立的。在沒有任何釀酒或種植葡萄的相關背景下，因為嚮往過著釀酒的生活便毅然決然地買下在Ascoli Piceno 9英畝的土地後，開始了Velonosi的葡萄酒的王國。短短的36年間，Velenosi 從一個小小的酒莊發展成為在Marche region 中最大的家族經營企業之一。一年的生產量約為兩百五十萬瓶葡萄酒。所產的葡萄酒外銷至五十二個國家。除了在March region 釀製葡萄酒之外，也開始在鄰近的產區Abruzzo增設釀酒廠，企圖跨大其企業版圖。由於近年來環保意識抬頭，Velenosi 酒莊也逐步地將葡萄的耕種方式轉為有機耕作，並對環境的傷害減到最低。

Angela and Ercole Velenosi 經營酒莊的哲學是盡可能地保存當地傳統的釀酒方，培育原生葡萄品種及盡全力的展現當地的風土。他們相信「葡萄酒是能讓是你實現夢想的一種藝術」。

這瓶使用100% 拉奎馬葡萄釀製而成的紅葡萄酒，聞起來香氣逼人而魅力十足。陣陣的紅玫瑰、紫色鬱金香、紫羅蘭及鳶尾花自杯中毫不掩飾的綻放盛開 ;  甜蜜蜜的草莓、紅櫻桃、甘草、肉桂、及肉豆蔻是娓娓道來而層層遞進。中等的酒體，絲滑般的單寧，豐沛的果韻及脆爽的酸度，搭配香辣椒麻的水煮牛與麻婆豆腐有如比翼鳥般，雙宿雙飛，同心同調。最令我驚喜的是，四川花椒的香氣與拉奎馬的花香竟不謀而和，完全相容。在口中延展的甜美果味、細緻的單寧則安撫了被辣椒及花椒挑起的躁動味蕾。萬萬沒想到，這義大利的原生種葡萄拉奎馬竟能降伏被侍酒師們視為既棘手且具挑戰性的四川料理。你說，葡萄酒餐酒搭配的世界是不是很有趣？誰會想到義大利酒也能與川菜激盪出火花，演出了一場完美的餐酒搭配。

想知道關於更多Velenosi 酒莊，中文網站按這裡。