Alto Adige Press Summary November 2014

Alto Adige Wines press coverage during the month of November 2014 garnered a total of 29,648,814 media impressions and 51 total articles. Of these articles, 1 was featured on broadcast television, 31 were published online, and 19 were published in print publications. Highlights include Wine & Spirits magazine, in which J. Hofstätter is noted for having received six "Winery of the Year" awards in the past 27 years. Celebrity Chef, Marcus Samuelsson included 2012 J. Hofstätter Meczan Pinot Nero as a recommendation for pairing with Moroccan-Spiced Turkey in his Food & Wine Thanksgiving feature. Hayley Hamilton Cogill, an attendee of the press trip to Alto Adige in September 2014, published several articles in D Magazine which include recommendations for Tieffenbruner Pinot Grigio, Abbazia di Novacella Lagrein, and J. Hofstätter Pinot Nero. Hayley was also featured on a morning television segment which reached 1,000,000 households during which she recommended Abbazia di Novacella Grüner Veltliner as a food-friendly wine to pair wish autumn dishes such as pumpkin soup. Brian Freedman, who also attended the press trip, included 2012 Cantina Terlano Quarz as a top bottle to collect in his Philadelphia Style magazine article which ran in print and online Other top mentions include Details magazine in which Roger Morris recommends Elena Walch Gewürztraminer as a wine to pair with Thanksgiving dinner, and Fine Cooking magazine in which 2012 Muri-Gries Lagrein and 2012 Elena Walch Lagrein are suggested for pairing with linguine and cauliflower.

Date: 11/1/2014 Print Audience: 253,259 Online Audience: 690,960 Page Count: 1/1 Fine Cooking

Date: 11/1/2014 Print Audience: 89,306 Online Audience: 64,415 Page Count: 1/1 Wine & Spirits

Date: 11/1/2014 Print Audience: 89,306 Online Audience: 64,415 Page Count: 1/1 Wine & Spirits

Date: 11/1/2014 Print Audience: 89,306 Online Audience: 64,415 Page Count: 1/2 Wine & Spirits

Date: 11/1/2014 Print Audience: 89,306 Online Audience: 64,415 Page Count: 2/2 Wine & Spirits

Date: 11/1/2014 Print Audience: 944,191 Online Audience: 4,240,863 Page Count: 1/2 Food & Wine

Date: 11/1/2014 Print Audience: 944,191 Online Audience: 4,240,863 Page Count: 2/2 Food & Wine

Date: 11/4/2014 Online Audience: 611,361 Page Count: 1/1

Paste Magazine

The time of year is fast approaching when you are going to be called on to appease some oenophile on your gift-list, or

show up to a Thanksgiving gathering or other holiday celebration with a suitably debonair host-token, or impress that

“Person You Want To Impress” with the gift of high-class tipsiness. Following are a handful of my picks for the Wine

Person in your life or Wine-Oriented Occasion you just can’t show up to with a six-pack of Coronas. I’ve divided this list

into sections that ought to give you a well-vetted idea or two for just about any circumstances.

A few of the wines I’m going to talk about fall into more than one category and will show up accordingly. Some of them

apply to more than one category but I won’t mention them four times. Just deal with it, man—this is a Choose Your

Own Adventure kind of thing. The point is, there is something for everyone and you can use this list as a starting point

with reasonable confidence that you’ll score a hit.

First things first: Thanksgiving is going to be here faster than you want it to.

So, someone knocked herself (or himself) out creating a give-thanks feast, and you want to bring something that

suitably conveys your gratitude. And pumpkin pie just isn’t your strong suit (my mother has now managed to delight the

troops with a pumpkin pie to which she absentmindedly forgot to add sugar. We delegate dessert now). A great wine is

always in style, always appreciated, and generally benefits from an absence of sugar so let’s survey the landscape

here.

For many, the generally acknowledged Emperor of the Thanksgiving table is Pinot Noir; for others it is Zinfandel; for

some, it is simply unthinkable to pair a red wine with a white meat if you are a traditional sort. (I have not yet found the

right pairing for Tofurkey; please feel free to ring in with suggestions.) We have happily stepped away from the pairing

strictures of past generations and the reigning attitude among all but the snobbiest wine snobs is “if it tastes good to

you, it tastes good to you.” That said, I personally don’t recommend a Malbec or a Gewurtztraminer with the usual

Thanksgiving subjects.

So, following are a handful of special occasion worthy wines I happen to think are pretty awesome and imminently

suitable playmates for a Thanksgiving meal.

Cantina Terlan 2010 “Quarz” Sauvignon Blanc

Around $50.00. This will not be the perfect wine for every single iteration of Thanksgiving dinner, but it’s a pretty perfect

wine. This heavily-laureled white from Alto Adige has a beautiful straw yellow color, and a rather exotic nose that leans

toward lemongrass and mint and, I think, tea, and the rich, rounded minerality that characterizes the whites of this

region. Palate: rich, slightly woodsy, with exotic florals and hints of elderflower and apricot. Long finish. Gorgeous.

Date: 11/6/2014 Online Audience: 850,894 Page Count: 1/1

Details Online

No wine matches perfectly with every imaginable food, but a few are versatile

enough to make it from apps to dessert with nary a raised eyebrow—party-

planning heaven. And yes, this means you can eat turkey, goose, salmon, or

vegetarian casserole, with or without sauces and sides, and not worry about

tannins or oak obliterating your palate. Below are six wines structured around

different types of meals.

European Gewurztraminer

Provenance: Alsace in eastern France and Alto Adige in northeast Italy

Why it's so versatile: Most wines provide either a match or a contrasting

balance to foods, but a peppery Gewurztraminer can actually add

complementary elements to flavors.

An ideal Thanksgiving pairing: Cape Cod-style clambake with lobster

claws, clams, and mussels served with spicy rice and finished with

gingerbread loaf cake with a light nut sauce.

Date: 11/6/2014 Online Audience: 58,794 Page Count: 1/2

SideDish

Warm and comforting, robust yet refined, fresh and flavorful describes both authentic Italian cuisine, as well

as some of the finest Italian wines from the country. As temperatures cool a hearty Italian wine can be the

ideal wine to open any night, with the bonus being the food friendly wines are great with a wide array of

flavors, so consider one of these wines to pair with your favorite Italian inspired, or truly American, dish. A

few selections were sent for editorial consideration.

Date: 11/6/2014 Online Audience: 58,794 Page Count: 2/2

SideDish

I had the incredible opportunity recently to visit one of the most beautiful places in the world, the Alto Adige

region. With vineyards climbing to upwards of 7000 and 8000 feet above sea level, growing cool weather

white varieties like Müller-Thurgau, Gruner Veltliner and their beloved Pinot Blanc and Pinot Grigio the

whites of the region prove that great wine can be produced in even the most challenging circumstances.

Tieffenbruner Pinot Grigio is one such wine that shows the delicate nuances of a variety that can often be

over-processed in other parts of the country. Mineral and herbal notes fill the steely fresh wine, leading into

ripe stone fruit notes of white peach with just the right balance of citrus. $15 at Pogo’s.

Müller-Thurgau is traditionally thought to be a wine of Germany, but the Alto Adige proves that their cool

Northwestern Italian climate and high elevations are perfect conditions for the variety. Producer Alois

Lageder, one of the oldest wineries in the region dating back to 1823, produces a honey, white flower,

sweet spice and stone fruit filled Müller-Thurgau, that balances freshness with elegance for a perfect wine to

sip on its own or with creamy pasta. $15 at Pogo’s.

White wines aren’t the only thing grown in Alto Adige, at lower elevations, where red fruit can ripen fresh

and vibrant Pinot Noir, light and fruit Schiava, and earthy Lagrein grow, often trained on pergolas to ensure

maximum exposure to sunlight, creating juicy, fruit filled wines with bright acidity. The Lagrein variety has

been grown in the region for generations, often by villagers in vines on their property for personal

consumption. Abbazia di Novacella, an active Augustinian Canons Regular monastery of Neustift that dates

back to the 12th Century, maintains itself economically through the cultivation and sales of agricultural

products. Their Abbazia di Novacella Lagrein is bold and concentrated, layered with blackberry, black

cherry, balsamic, and earthy, wild flower notes. An interesting wine showing the broad range of flavors

available in the region. $28 at Spec’s.

Date: 11/19/2014 Online Audience: 4,290 Page Count: 1/2

Dallas Uncorked

You know you are making a turkey, and probably have your side dishes set (or at least the recipes

in mind,) but what to pair with all those delicious flavors? Today on The Broadcast we walked

through a handful of ideal wines for pairing next week. I will have a full assortment of recipe ideas

up tomorrow as well, if you are still trying to figure out if you should go with butternut squash soup

or a roasted root vegetable salad, Brussels sprouts with bacon or balsamic, and mashed potatoes

or polenta. With that in mind, put these wines on your shopping list.

Date: 11/19/2014 Print Audience: 4,290 Page Count: 2/2

Dallas Uncorked

Date: 11/19/2014 Online Audience: 685,455 Page Count: 1/2

Snooth

It took me thirteen hours to get to Italy, and twenty-

three hours to return to New York City. Sometimes the

things I do to explore new wines make no sense from

30,000 feet. But once on the ground, the wines and

the people almost always enrapture me and

immediately make the journey worth my time.

Asked to judge two competitions – one on indigenous

varieties of Alto Adige and one on Lagrein – about six

months ago, I was seduced by the chance to learn

more about this region. Alto Adige makes a large

percentage of the highest quality wines in Italy though

it makes a relatively small percentage of Italy’s overall

production.

Does this seem surprising? Just flip open a map and

look closely at Bolzano’s geo-positioning. It’s smacked

up against Austria , and this region is part of the former

Austro-Hungarian Empire, which disintegrated only

100 years ago this year.

Aromatic varieties (mostly white) from this region can make one swoon, but so do the top reds.

Here are some of my favorite off-the-beaten path Northern Italian red grape varieties to impress

your guests, and yourself, this holiday season.

Lagrein

Lagrein is a black grape variety grown in the northern regions of Trentino, in the Trentino DOC, and

Alto Adige, in the South Tyrol/Südtirol DOC. It’s an inky colored grape, generous in extract and

packed with ripe cherry fruit. Its non-fruit aromas range from earthy to gamey to downright funky.

Blaringly bold at every facet, it shows off its rough-hewn tannins and high-frequency acidity with

pride. The two play off each other and give the wines a pleasantly bitter edge.

Date: 11/19/2014 Online Audience: 685,455 Page Count: 2/2

Snooth

Five to try:

Kellerei Andrian Lagrein Rubeno

Kellerei Nals Margreid Lagrein

Tiefenbrunner Lagrein Turmhof

Niedermayr Lagrein Gries

Riserva

St Michael – Eppan Lagrein

Riserva

Vernatsch

Vernatsch is almost Alto Adige’s

Pinot Noir. It is fairly light in color,

fine in aroma and chiseled in

acidity. As are most of the wines in

this region, it is also known by

another name. In this case, it is

Schiava.

Two to try:

Kellerei Nals Margreid Vernatsch

Gumphof Vernatsch

Date: 11/20/2014 Online Audience: 58,794 Page Count: 1/1

SideDish

Date: 11/25/2014 Online Audience: 58,794 Page Count: 1/1

SideDish

Thanksgiving is this week, which means Christmas isn’t far away and New Year’s Eve is right

behind. Whether you are cooking a big bird, a crown roast, a pile of short ribs, or a perfect beef

tenderloin, a great bottle of wine should be on the table to accompany your dinner party. Last week

I posted on a full list of food friendly Pinot Noir options, ideal for Thanksgiving. Here are a few more

options to make your holiday complete. A few selections were sent for editorial consideration.

Food friendly Italian wines shine anytime a hearty meal is involved, and when family comes

together in celebration. Barbera and Dolcetto from Piemonte are two wonderful, food friendly Italian

varieties, and a Chianti Classico always represents Italy’s favorite variety of Sangiovese well,

however there are many more Italian options to consider when pairing with the bold flavors or a

holiday meal. From Alto Adige the favorite red varieties of the region include Lagrein and Schiava.

The Schiava variety in particular is a perfect go to for Thanksgiving, as the subtle yet juicy and

balanced flavors of the grape will meld nicely with the bold flavors of the meal.

Date: 11/25/2014 Print Audience: 51,949 Online Audience: 26,845 Page Count: 1/1 Philadelphia

Style Magazine