Limoncello!

90% drink wine in Italy? Impossible.

You obviously have a lot to learn about marriage! I have been married 22 years. My husband drinks beer and I drink wine. Don't be stupid! Worry about the bigger disagreements that inevitably will come along in marriage. Who are you to tell your fiance how his taste buds should feel? Does he tell you what to eat and drink? Mine would never do that to me!

I'd like to share an incident similar to this.I was in Melbourne visiting my uncle who loves his wine ( his cellar is full up with it and the cobwebs betrayed their age).He, in his enthusiasm was eager to introduce to his reluctant nephew ( i'm a beer drinker too) into the art of wine appreciation.I was driven to various wineries around the countryside.I enjoyed every bit of it,except for the sniffing and the sipping part(sorry! i'm being crude/candid,no offence meant to the aficinados).I was, in other words asked to acquire taste,which I guess,put me off.
Later that evening we ended up dining in a fine restaurant where he decide to put me to test. A bottle of his fav red was poured,the swirl ,the sniff and then the sip followed by interrogation.I clearly had failed the test.My expression said it all.He quietly ordered my fav scotch (25 year Macullan)& the eve unfolded.
Moral of the the story?
Do your own thing & let others do theirs!

I conduct wine tastings part-time and am often faced with the issue of beer drinking men who won't touch wine.

I start them on a Pinot Grigio, well chilled. There is rarely a protest to Pinot Grigio. It hardly has any flavor or bouquet. Then I move to a blend, pinot gris with other more fragrant and fruity wines, also well chilled.

Ask a good wine merchant in your neighborhood for recommendations. Get some decent quality, say $20 to $30 a bottle. It will be cheaper in Italy.

Also, try a riesling "Kabinet" or maybe "Spätlese" though these are German whites. Again, well chilled.

Hi H,

>I start them on a Pinot Grigio, well chilled. .... It hardly has any flavor or bouquet. <

Of course not. It's too bloody cold!

Italy is the largest wine producer in the world and covers a fantastic range so not sure how it all tastes like church wine which tends to be sweetish if i rememeber.

My advice would be to buy a few bottles before you leave.

Try
An Amorone, and a similar priced Salice Salentino and if both these taste like church wine then buy him beer

One nice thing about beer is that for a few dollars you can taste the best the world has to offer -- for my money, British real ales and Belgian Trappist ales. Not true for wine, unfortunately.

I think a good way to introduce someoine to wine is with an apt food pairing. One way to do this is too agree with him when he points out that beer is better with Mexican, Indian, Chinese and other spicy cuisines, as well as pizza. I know there are people who push wine for all these foods -- gewurtraminers and sauvignon blancs, mainly -- but a good quaff of beer (generally a lager with food) should quickly settle the dispute.

Back to the subject. If you were to pick out a nice cabernet to go with a good cut of beef -- don't economize! -- or perhaps a pinot noir accompanying an artfully roasted chicken, you might make a convert.

Keeping in mind of course, that European wines are not categorized by the grape variety....

Kerouac --

Quite right. I'm assuming mnannie is from the US and figured she'd start him off over here.

And then how would she know what to order in Italy?

Well, she says she enjoys wine. I assume she knows what to order with what food. My suggestions were just to get her husband started.

By the way -- your namesake swilled gallon jugs of California plonk until his liver gave out and he died puking blood into the toilet. Hope your taste in wine is better, and your consumption more moderate.

Actually, some Italian wines are labeled by grape variety. As in Dolcetto. Wines in Italy can be labled four ways:

1. by grape variety, ie, Pinot Grigio
2. by place name, ie, Orvieto Classico
3. by grape variety and place name, ie, Moscato d"Asti
4. by fanciful name, ie Tignanello; Serena, etc

Kerouac,

You obviously think I am stupid for saying that lots of people drink things other than wine in Italy, because I mention coffee as the choice of some. The original post does not mention "restaurants" - they do have bars ande cafes as well in Italy, and people frequently enjoy a bottle of wine in them, or a coffee, a beer, or whatever they want. My point was simply that in my opinion, people should drink what they enjoy.

Carolena

Oh fishee - bite your tongue Bud light !?! Pabst Blue Ribbon !?! These are not beers. I am actually not entirely sure what they are, but they are definitely not beer - LOL.

I think many women believe it is there responsibility to correct all their husband's "faults" once they get married. If they tried to do it beforehand, the wedding bells might not ring.

Nonetheless, in my trips to Italy I have seen several people add water to their wine which will definitely soften the taste.

Just don't give him some dry, "pinched cheek" wine that makes him thirsty.

A beer, a gelalto,a beautiful woman and Rome, what more could a man (or woman)ask for. For Gods sake, kick your shoes off and enjoy life...............

Why force the poor man to drink wine if he doesnt like it?

Let him have his beer and you have the wine, live and let live

Funny thread with good information.

To my mind there are two issues here: 1) beverages available in Italy & 2) your style in marriage with your new husband

Not a good idea to say "I would like my husband to enjoy..." when it is something he doesn't want to do!! Who cares if he drinks wine or not?
;-)suze