Whiling Away the Time with Marenco Brachetto d'Acqui Pineto #ItalianFWT

Make every day a celebration of life, health and love.  Pour that wine, toast to those you love and can't be with and find good in what is becoming our new normal....

And while we are at it let's toast to all the other countries in the world affected so horrendously by this virus.  We are visiting Italy today with our Italian Food Wine Travel group.  And our thoughts and prayers are with them as they struggle to get through this devastating time.


So we are now on day 937 of the Stay Home/Stay Safe directive.  No? It's only been a couple of weeks?  It feels much, much longer.

Isn't it funny how you can be so content to stay home in your pj's and chill out until you are told that you have to?  I'm not complaining, just making observations.

We have been keeping ourselves pretty busy.  There is always stuff to be done around the house and this blog keeps me busy. We get out as often as we can for hikes and walks.  I've been reading and cooking and I even pulled out my quilting stuff.

I am very cognizant that many others have it much, much worse than I and other countries have suffered much more than ours.  I pray that we all take this threat very seriously and stay quarantined as much as possible so that this virus can be contained.

On the day I opened this wine, we had just come back from a walk.  Frank started spaghetti for dinner but we were all pretty hungry so I made some small snack plates to hold us over.  After the plates were made I remembered that Cindy of Grape Experiences had invited us to join her in celebrating Brachetto d'Acqui this month. You can learn more in her invitation post.

I had ordered up a half bottle after researching and learning that Brachetto d'Acqui was a sweet sparkling wine.  I'm not a huge fan of either of these styles of wine so I was happy when I found a half bottle available from Marenco Winery in Piedmont, Italy.

I opened the bottle and it poured a beautiful ruby with tiny bubbles rising to the surface continuously.  Ripe fruit on the nose and tickles from the bubbles.  I took a sip.  VERY sweet, almost Moscato sweet with a touch of port finish.

I tried it with the strawberry, it was okay.   I tried it with the Gouda cheese....a no go!!  I tried it with the Multi Grain 6 seed crackers.  Oh my.....what a successful pairing that turned out to be.  The nuttiness of the crackers toned down the sweetness of the wine for a very pleasant experience.

I poured a glass for Frank.  His response to his first sip?  "For a dessert wine, this is one of the better I have had".  After tasting with the same items from his plate, Frank agreed that the crackers paired the best.

Marenco is a run by the granddaughters of the founder, Michele, who planted a vineyard in the heart of the Bagnario Valley.  His dream was continued by his son Giuseppe who built his winery in the center of the village so to be near to the train station.  This enabled him to get his wines directly to his customers.

Giuseppe's love and dedication to his craft was passed down to his daughters who run the winery today with the motto "Quality not profit, is the company's priority".  information found at wine.com

We will be joining together for twitter chat tomorrow morning at 11 AM ET following #ItalianFWT.  Chances are you are going to be stuck at home, so please consider joining us as we discuss the following wines:

• Susannah at Avvinare explores Brachetto d’Acqui – A Treat from Piedmont.
• Nicole at Somm's Table pairs Marenco Pineto Brachetto d’Acqui and Simple Strawberry Treat.
• Lynn at Savor the Harvest is ready to Brighten Up Lockdown with Brachetto d’Acqui Sparkling Wine.
• Jennifer at Vino Travels is enjoying Brachetto: The Sweet Red Bubbly of Piedmont.
• Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla pairs Stracotto di Manzo al Vino Rosso + Brachetto d’Acqui.
• Gwendolyn at Wine Predator matches Brachetto d’Acqui and Grandma’s Biscotti with Cherries Poached in Red Wine and Marscapone.
• Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm is Whiling Away the Time with Marenco Brachetto d’Acqui Pineto.
• Jeff Burrows at Food Wine Click! finds Piemonte Brachetto: Sweet, Fizzy and Red!
• Terri at Our Good Life spends An Afternoon of Wine Learning: Brachetto d’Acqui.
• Linda at My Full Wine Glass is Bingeing on Brachetto, Biscotti, Berries and a Chocolate Bunny.
• Marcia at Joy of Wine is exploring Brachetto: The Sweetie of Piemonte.
• Cindy at Grape Experiences plans to Bring Joy to the Table with Brachetto d’Acqui and Budino al Cioccolato (Chocolate Pudding Italian Style).