What is best wine to serve at a formal italian dinner?

Question

I am having a formal italian dinner party for a girlfriend's birthday with lasagna, spinach mancotti, and chicken parmesan as the available entrees to choose from. What is the best wine to serve with this meal?

Answer 1

serve a nice red with pastas or red meats... Yellow Tail Shiraz, or Kendall Jackson Merlot

Answer 2

Wine For Italian Dinner

Answer 3

Being they are all cheesey dishes, a Chianti is the a traditional selection and probably most fitting for an "Italian" theme. They have significantly less of that over-powerful tannic paint fume quality that French and California wines have. That said, there are many different regions within Chianti that all produce wine (areas like "classico" "rufina" "colli pisane"), so you'll still be facing a lot of choices.

I'd recommend a 'Chianti Colli Senesi', and a good label is called "Geografico" which usually is not over $12 a bottle. If you'd rather spend less money, then look for red wines from a label called "Luna di Luna." Any of their reds are fine. If you want to spend more then seek out a "Vino Nobile di Montepulciano" from Tuscany, but DO NOT confuse that with the common table wine "montepulciano d'abruzzo" as they are very different. Even some wine stores don't know the difference.

You may also encounter some people who just insist on having a white, so you may have a pino grigio handy.

Answer 4

The classic Italian wine is a Chianti, but you can also opt for Barolo, Barbaresco, Sangiovese or Valpolicella for reds. As for a white, you could try a Soave, Pinot Grigio, or an Orvieto. All are good. Maybe get a bottle of each and do a tasting or a flight (a sample of each wine in small wine glasses or elegant looking shot glasses.) And for dessert, serve a Prosecco which is a sparkling wine.

Answer 5

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
What is best wine to serve at a formal italian dinner?
I am having a formal italian dinner party for a girlfriend's birthday with lasagna, spinach mancotti, and chicken parmesan as the available entrees to choose from. What is the best wine to serve with this meal?

Answer 6

I wouldn't call that a formal Italian Dinner.

A formal Italian Dinner is:
Aniti-pasti
Try Prosciutto (San Daniele is a little sweeter than Parma) with Melon

Primo Plato
A pasta. Try Gnocchi con Gorgonzola (Must be a mountain gorgonzola like Columbo)

Intermezzo
Lemon Sherbet

Secondi
Osso Bucco Milanese

Insalata
Arugula with Pinoilli

Dolci
Fresh Figs with Cheese and an expresso

For wines.
The Anti-Pasti a Champagne or Bonarda

Primo Plato
A California Chard would go good.

Secondi
A nice Barolo

Answer 7

From the sounds of the menu, you want red wine.
The classic combo with red sauce italian dishes is chianti. Get a good bottle, something that says "chianti classico" on the label, or even better, ask the wine store clerk about a good "super tuscan" (it won't say super tuscan on the label, and these will probably cost a little more).
I wouldn't serve a white with your dinner, but perhaps as an apertif, a pinot grigio would be nice, and if there is some die hard white drinker, they can have the last glass from the pinot grigio.

Answer 8

As a person who bartends, and does a service bar for an Italian restaurant, and has large Italian family dinners every Sunday , and of course my personal opinion:

For red wine: Since you have chosen the foods you have, colorful, all with their own life, you may want to go with something a bit fruity, I would suggest a Lodi Zinfandel, try and get something bottled around 2004-2006 ( I know it is not traditional but once in a while you have to color outside the lines). If you do not want to go this route check out a hybrid Wine like a Cabarnet-Merlot, (definitely Yellow-tail, fair price and delicious) always a hit with Red drinkers, and no need to please everyone because you already have the best of both worlds

For White Wine: (And I always get yelled at for this but trust me it will please the palate) May I suggest something like a Dry Riesling. However since you are not serving fish White, may not go over so well, however it would work with the Spinach Manicotti quite well, but any white will go with that.

And of course you can always grab a bottle of White Zinfandel for the go betweens, and you really need not pay more than 8 dollars for a terrific bottle.

Hope this was helpful. Enjoy the delicious meal, the company, and I hope your friends appreciatte your hard work.

La Salude!!!

P.S. DHC names two excellent brands.

Answer 9

a nice chanti from italy like Ruffino would be perfect. Or also try a Sangiovese from Luna Vineyards or Silverado Vineyards from Napa Valley.

Italian wine for an italian meal.

Answer 10

Listen to Harry K. His picks matched mine consistently. Please for the love of your friends stay away from Yellow Tail, Kendall Jackson and other "jug wine". It makes for a much less interesting conversation. For the same price and sometimes better, you can find things that far outpace those brands. And remember half the fun of the wine is in the choosing. There will usually be a person wherever you buy that will happily tell you stories about what you are getting. Just be sure to tell them your budget so they can give you the biggest bang for your buck.

Answer 11

Guys,
Yellowtail wines are extremely ordinary wines that we mass produce here in Australia. Possibly akin to Julio and Gallo or Beringer. They are not rated too highly here, unless they're the reserve range. Seriously, they are rubbish!! Souped up sugar water really.