Considered to be one of the noble black grapes of Italy, Aglianico is often overshadowed by its younger sister, Sangiovese.
Introduced to Italy by the Greeks as Hellenica, which translates as angelic, Aglianico is Italy's oldest grape.
In the right vintage, the fruit and structure of an Aglianico can be just as age-worthy and powerful as a good Barolo. Fortunately for us New York shoppers, few people know and understand the value of this wine, so the prices are still low and there are many great deals to be found.
Aglianico should have a deep ruby and garnet color with a tinge of orange around the edges. Old world in style, a good Aglianico will be balanced with mushroom earthiness and berry fruit followed by deep tannins. Great with pasta or meat, these are perfect wines to combat the winter cold.
not to sound like a classicist geek or anything, but i dont think hellenica translates to angelic
i think it translates to greek (as in the greek name for greece hellas and the period hellenic and the book by Xenophon)
either way, you can be certain, ill be keeping a hairy eyeball out for this wine
it sounds delish!
Max, the cozy Roman restaurant on Ave B at 4th Street specializes in Aglianico, and has a terrific list. Not cheap, though, but the food is value priced. Go to in the mid-afternoon to avoid crowds and definitely try the Spaghetti "Chitarra."
Sorry for the restaurant talk on a cooking site.
Emerson,
Thanks for the tip! By the way, the "Max" you speak of is still alive and well over at ApartmentTherapy.com, but The Kitchen is the work of other contributors... particularly Jenny on wine. Welcome!
"Max" is the name of the restaurant, I think.
Of Course!!! Max!! The restaurant in the E. Village. I thought Emerson was a fan of Max's from Apartment Therapy. Thanks for the correction.
It's my fault for not closing the apositive with a comma. Thanks for clarifying, Medina. And nice meeting you, Sara.