Italianity – Discover the Soul of Italian Wines with Jessica Dupuy

There are wine tastings, and then there are evenings that remind you why wine is worth obsessing over in the first place.

On Friday, September 11, the Pennsylvania Wine Society will virtually welcome wine writer, educator, and certified sommelier Jessica Dupuy for Italianity: Discover the Soul of Italian Wines, an evening built around one of the most fascinating wine countries in the world and the culture that makes its wines so distinctive.  The event begins at 7 p.m. at the Hilton Harrisburg.

Jessica is a Wine & Spirits columnist for Texas Monthly and Forbes.com, with work also appearing in Food & Wine, Decanter, Wine Enthusiast, Imbibe, GuildSomm, SevenFifty Daily, Southern Living and National Geographic Traveler. She holds the WSET Diploma and is a Certified Sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers.

She is also one of the hosts of Another Bottle Down, which happens to be my favorite wine podcast. The show explores the stories, people, places and ideas behind wine and spirits without making the subject feel like homework, which is exactly what great wine education should do.

And this particular event has a wonderful connection to the podcast.

Jessica recently devoted an episode of Another Bottle Down to Italianity, the book she co-authored with Master of Wine Andrea Lonardi. That book, and the idea behind it, helped inspire the wines we selected for this tasting.

Rather than treating Italy as one enormous wine region, Italianity explores the identities, traditions and sense of place that make Italian wine so endlessly varied.

You can listen to the episode here.

That philosophy will be very much in the glass on September 11.  We will travel from the volcanic soils of Mount Etna to the alpine vineyards of Alto Adige, through Piedmont and into Tuscany, with eight wines representing dramatically different expressions of Italy:

• 2020 Tenuta di Fessina Erse Etna Bianco
• 2025 Antinori Guado al Tasso Vermentino
• 2025 Elena Walch Pinot Grigio
• 2024 Abbazia di Novacella Schiava Alto Adige
• 2022 Travaglini Gattinara
• 2021 Planeta Etna Rosso
• 2020 G.D. Vajra Albe Barolo
• 2019 Col d’Orcia Brunello di Montalcino

It is a lineup that moves well beyond the familiar idea of “Italian wine.” We’ll taste volcanic whites and reds from Sicily, an alpine Schiava from Alto Adige, two very different expressions of Nebbiolo through Gattinara and Barolo, and finish in Tuscany with Brunello di Montalcino.

And because Italian wine makes considerably more sense when food is involved, the Hilton Harrisburg culinary team will pair the wines with an Italian-inspired menu throughout the evening.

• Small Charcuterie Board
  Prosciutto, Soppressata, Truffle Salami, Manchego, Prima Donna cheeses, and chef’s accompaniments
• Pasta Course
  Cavatappi with Wild Boar Bolognese finished with Parmigiano Reggiano
• Dessert
  Peach Panna Cotta with Raspberry Gel and Milk Crumb

Please e-mail the Treasurer with any food allergy concerns.

There is one more rather excellent perk: everyone attending will receive an autographed copy of Italianity to take home. So the evening doesn’t really end when the final bottle does. You’ll have the book that inspired the tasting as a reference for whatever region, grape or bottle sends you down your next Italian wine rabbit hole.

If you’ve ever looked at an Italian wine list and thought, I know enough to know that I don’t know nearly enough, this is your event.

If you already love Italian wine, even better.

Eight wines. One of the country’s most engaging wine writers. Dinner. An autographed book. And a guided trip through Italy without the airfare.

This is our final call before the event. Come taste Italy with us.  Salute!

 Reservation deadline is a week prior to the event—Friday, September 4^th in order to secure the books.   Don’t need extra books per household?  Contact the Treasurer for options.

Traveling to attend?  Contact the Hilton Harrisburg here for room reservations.

Purchase event reservations on the Shoppe Page of this website.

        Members—$200

        Patrons—$195

        Nonmembers—$220