By cork
Remember in the summer of 2014, during FIFA World Cup, how good it felt to root for a foreign country from American soil? That’s what it’s like to drink an UVAGGIO, a winery focused solely on making eclectic and contemporary Italian wines located in Lodi, California, of all places. Their Moscato Secco is certainly one of the most unusual, and distinct, Italianate wines made on American soil that you’ll ever find. Moscato has been flying off the shelves as of late, particularly popular with the club-hopping Millennial crowd wanting to have a sparkly sweet pick-me-up before heading over to see DJs Tiesto or Steve Aoki at Hakkasan. Now, Uvaggio’s “Secco” (meaning dry) is nothing like that too-often sickly sweet stuff. Dry tends to have a negative connotation, as in dry skin or the dry desert, but think of this “dry” in a positive light—like possessing a dry wit, or a Ferrari that’s come out of the car wash without a single water spot because it’s been perfectly dried. This wine is muscular, trim like a slim-fit Canali suit. But it’s also immensely floral and aromatic—beautiful on the nose, a mélange of peach, cantaloupe and grapefruit—and generous in the mid-palate with soft tropical fruit notes and hints of jasmine and ginger. This Moscato’s sweetness comes in gentle waves and is entirely more palatable for sophisticated meals or an elegant night out. But back to summer of 2014 and World Cup soccer. Remember that positive feeling of global brotherhood we all shared? Experience it all over again—because drinking Uvaggio in America, we’re all Italians now. –J.M.
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