Chicken liver crostini and Rosso di Montalcino

One of the most striking things about my trip to Tuscany last week was the reminder of how good young red wines are with Tuscan food - right the way through the meal, not just with the main course.

It was certainly true of the first lunch we had when we arrived which was co-hosted by the Bolgheri winery Poggio al Tesoro and San Polo in Montalcino, both owned by the Allegrini family.

I expected Poggio al Tesoro’s fragrant Solosole Vermentino to match the crostini that were handed round at the beginning of the meal - and it did - but not quite as well as the elegant 2014 San Polo Rosso di Montalcino which sailed effortlessly through the tomato, mushroom and (most challenging of all) chicken liver toppings. It also paired really well with a creamy dish of fettucine, zucchini, pancetta and robiola cheese - as did the 2008 vintage of the Solosole which I was also tempted to make my match of the week.

This would apply equally well to youthful chiantis or any other young sangioveses. It’s the acidity that makes them work so well - and the fact that, like white wines, they’re served at cellar temperature.

The San Polo Rosso di Montalcino costs £16.99 from slurp.co.uk and £18.95 at Eton Vintners.

I travelled to Tuscany with Liberty Wines

New season's olive oil and vino novo

Last week I went on a flying visit to Tuscany to take part in the olive oil harvest and had the rare treat of being able to sample oil that has just been pressed. As you can see from the picture, it’s an incredible colour - literally deep olive green and has the most fantastic grassy flavour.

The family who make the oil - the LoFranco family of Fattoria La Vialla - throw a weekly feast for the visiting pickers during which the oil is liberally poured on everything from toasted bread to pasta to grilled meat (rabbit with fennel in this instance).

To go with it they pour a wine called Vino Novo, the wine from the new harvest which is only drunk during this period. Unlike Beaujolais Nouveau it’s not subject to carbonic maceration but simply siphoned direct from the tank. It was made from Merlot and wasn’t much more than 12% I would guess - deliciously light and gulpable with a bright fruit character that balanced beautifully with the slight bitterness of the oil. I can’t think of another wine that would have suited it better.

Tuscan-style sausages and beans with Montepulciano

It’s been so busy the last few weeks that good pairings have been coming thick and fast but this was a great match I enjoyed at an offbeat new occasional restaurant which was launched by food and wine writer Marc Millon in Topsham, Devon the other day. (He’s also contributed a couple of pieces to this site including this wonderful piece about Bagna Cauda)

The deal is simple and great value: you get a couple of courses for £12.50 (£10 for Marc's Club Vino wine club members), wine and cheese extra. The main course was some fantastic fennel-flavoured Gloucester Old Spot pork sausages that Marc had had made to his own recipe by a local producer Jason Wise of Ark. They were served with rich mealy beans cooked with garlic, sage and tomato.

The accompanying vivid, fruity Montepulciano Rosso Madregale IGT Terre di Chieti was perfect for both the dish and the occasion. Quaffable but with sufficient personality to stand up to the punchy flavours. (Beans are in fact incredibly wine-friendly)

Marc’s philosophy is that you shouldn’t just buy wine but soak up the culture around it. To quote his website “Vino [his wine club] is for those of us who want to go beyond just drinking wine, to enhance our enjoyment, understanding and appreciation of wine by learning about the people and places where great, genuine wines come from, how wines are made, the cycle of the vineyard year, the gastronomy and culture of a region.” Amen to that!

Topsham by the way is a pretty, unspoilt little town on the estuary of the River Exe just south-east of Exeter and well worth a visit in its own right. (I was a student at Exeter rather longer ago than I care to remember and it has hardly changed) We stayed at the Globe Hotel which is a proper, welcoming old-fashioned pub.

For more information about Marc’s wines visit the Vino website. The Montepulciano sells for £6.60 a bottle or £5.70 a bottle by the case if you're a Club Vino member.

Tuscan bean soup and Sangiovese

Last week I was on an assignment in Tuscany for a couple of days. It was pretty hot but that didn’t discourage the Tuscans from serving the kind of food they enjoy all the year round - namely substantial bean and chickpea soups.

They’re particularly good because they make them from scratch from the best quality pulses which gives them a rich, sweet, mealy texture that is a quite marvellous foil for the local wines, which are almost all based on Sangiovese. Chianti is the best known of them but we tried others such as Montecucco and Morellino di Scansano. They all share the typically high acidity of inexpensive Italian reds which makes them taste slightly thin on their own by modern standards but absolutely perfect with lighter dishes such as soup and pasta.

More on this tomorrow!