It’s time to play Sommelier Jeopardy!  
‘I’ll take obscure Italian white wine grapes for $500, please, John.’ 
‘This rare grape is native to the Veneto and most often used to make Passito wines in the small appellation of Breganze near Vicenza.’ 
‘What is Vespaiolo?’ 
Correct!!! 
And for all of you playing at home: Vespaiolo is deeply-colored cultivar often harvested late or dried over the winter to become the prized Torcolato dessert wine. When vinified dry, it can be  paired with another local grape, Friulano, to make Breganze Bianco DOC, an extremely local white you’re more likely to find in a wine bar in Verona than here in Dublin.  But when grown in the right, mineral-rich volcanic soils and handled by the right hands, Vespaiola can also make an extremely interesting, downright delicious varietal white that marries fruit and mineral like few other wines. The ‘vespa’ in Vespaiolo refers to the wasps (vespa in Italian) that like to swarm around these vines due to the grape’s ability to absorb a lot of sugar and ripen far into the fall.  In this case, the Vespaiolo is organically grown by Mirco and Gloria Gottardi at Contra Soarda, just outside the town of Bassano del Grappa.  They are committed to making Vespaiolo a household name and ferment it cool and slow in stainless and bottle it fresh to preserve its totally unique rich-but-flinty character. The fruit is copious and leans towards the tropical- blood orange, dried pineapple and dry honey but there are also very enticing floral, mint and lemongrass notes. Full on the palate, it finishes with amazing petrichor mineral and a citrus-y zip.  The perfect wine, we think, for a platter of smoked meats and cheeses, a bowl of cacio e pepe pasta or richer poultry and pork dishes.  One of my colleagues put it this way- it’s as close to one of the complex whites from Friuli as one is likely to get in the Veneto. Take that Soave!  It’s a very fine deal.  
 
Wine Enthusiast: Fermented in steel, this 100% Vespaiola is vibrant and fresh, opening with aromas of Meyer lemon, tangelo, pineapple and honeysuckle, with subtle lime leaf accents. The palate is bright, with a texture of mixed citrus oils leading to flavors of lemon, pear and tart apricot, finishing with a wet-gravel minerality. 91 points