The Tre Bicchieri Vinid’ Italia is a annual wine tasting featuring an all Italian wine portfolio. Last week was the New York stop and Flawless Crowns was invited. Hosted at the Metropolitan Pavillion, this event was definitely a moment as the wine was flowing with enough appetizers to feed a small village.

The Tre Bicchieri is now considered the most important North American presentation of premium Italian wines as over 100 different wine brands were represented. All attendees were gifted to a complimentary wine glass for sampling.

As a big fan of Prosecco, we naturally made our sparkling rounds first. One of the more impressive selections was the Bellavista Franciacorta Gran Cuvée 2005. This was a very well balanced and rich sparkling wine with an impressive nutty nose.

Next was the Monsupello Nature Metodo Classico. This sparkler was very soft but full of dry fruit flavor with a crisp finish.

After the first hour of the Tre Bicchieri we decided to clean our palettes with some much need food. To our pleasant surprise there were multiple food stations offering a variety of hard and soft cheeses, breads, fruit. crackers, olives, cured meats, and more.

The crowd was a great mix of individuals that shared a passion for Italian wines. It was a humbling experience to intermingle with some of the elite in the wine industry.

Another grower that caught our attention in the sparkling wine category was Ferghettina Franciacorta. Their Extra Brut 2005 was a very lively use of Chardonnay and Pinot grapes. It paired with my Pecorino Romano cheese beautifully.

In my opinion the best in show the the sparkling wines was the house of Berlucchi Franciacorta. We sampled different wines from the Berlucchi Cuvée ’61 and each of them were complex and rich.

Our experience with the Berlucchi Cuvée ’61 Brut was fresh and crisp, with hints of citrus and tropical fruit. The Berlucchi Cuvée ’61 Rosé was amazing to the say the least. Sweet fruit flavors that didn’t overpower you because a fine balance of dryness and power. Really an astonishing Rosè!

After touring all the sparkling wine houses we decided to preview some still red wines. Out of several still wines Podere Sapaio 2008 was truly a moment. This red wine was full of dark cherry flavors with a dry finish that left your palette wanting more. So much we had several servings!

Unfortunately we couldn’t savor every bottle in the house but it was reassured to us that Italy is a country takes great pride in their wines. I look forward to attending the Tre Bicchieri Vinid’ Italia Italian wine tasting in 2012. Cheers!