<a target="_blank" href="http://locandaverdenyc.com/">Locanda Verde</a> 

377 Greenwich St,

New York, NY
10013-2338

Tel: (212) 925-3797

This was my first dinner at Locanda Verde, Andrew
Carmellini’s new restaurant in Tribeca. Even on a Monday night, the place was
jam-packed. Once I tasted the food, it was easy to see why. Carmellini offers
up generous doses of rustic, home-style cooking at reasonable prices in a
casual, fun setting. What’s not to like? The crostini and pastas are
particularly of note, so Locanda Verde is not the place for those on a
carb-restricted diet. The lamb sliders, gigantone with Sunday night ragu,
pappardelle with lamb Bolognese and the dry-aged ribeye are all dishes I would
eat again in a heartbeat.

Wine Director Josh Nadel has put together one of the most
adventurous and compelling Italian wine lists in New York, with plenty of
typically hard-to-find wines that will please even the most demanding of
palates. We mostly drank wines from our own cellars, but I found no shortage of
superb, interesting wines on the list.

A flight of wines from Bruno
Giacosa was the highlight on this night, even with two subpar Barolos
thrown in. My favorite wine was the 1971
Barolo Collina Rionda, the last bottle from a perfect parcel I bought a few
years ago. It was fresh, vibrant, powerful and totally seductive in a style
that recalled the legendary 1978. What a great bottle! Not far behind was
Giacosa’s elusive 1961 Barbaresco
Riserva, by far his hardest wine to find today. This was a beautiful
example, with layers of perfumed red fruit and fabulous overall balance. The Barolo Riserva Bussia, Giacosa’s most
feminine, delicate wine from the monumental 1978 harvest, impressed for its silky tannins and graceful
personality. It was a beauty. The 1979
Barolo Riserva Bussia had tons of fruit, but it was the victim of less than
perfect provenance, as was the 1970
Barolo Collina Rionda.

I have given up on buying older Monfortinos, as finding
well-stored bottles from the 1950s and 1960s is a futile and costly exercise
that almost always leads to disappointment. I was gently chided for bringing
the 1982 Monfortino, and while it
was by far the youngest wine in this flight, it was also the most sound! The 1961 was very beautiful in a Burgundian
way. The 1945, 1952 and 1955 were all
undrinkable, only because of the abuse they had received at some point during
their lives. It is truly heartbreaking to consider how poorly these wines must
have been treated. 

Two wines from Gaja
were beautiful. The 1967 Barbaresco Sorì
San Lorenzo – in its first vintage – was immensely pleasing. Crushed
berries, dried flowers and spices were just some of the nuances that emerged
from this rich Barbaresco. Some rough edges remained, but the 1967 clearly
foreshadowed the direction Angelo Gaja would take with his wines in the 1970s
and 1980s. This was a perfect bottle. I consider the 1971 to be one of the greatest Sorì
San Lorenzos ever made. This bottle was a revelation because it was
delicious notwithstanding having been mistreated somewhere along the way. When
it is on, the 1971 Sorì San Lorenzos is an utterly profound, breathtaking wine
of the very highest level. On this night it was merely outstanding. 

These three Champagnes were delicious. The 1949 Ruinart was in great shape and
wonderfully expressive. The 1959 Clos
des Goisses conquered the palate and the intellect with generous, expansive
fruit and its muscular personality. The Goisses continued to grow in the glass,
showing more and more depth with each taste. It was jaw-droppingly beautiful.
The 1961 Cristal was also fabulous.
Its signature finesse and understatement were in full evidence from the get-go.
This beautiful, sublime Champagne provided the perfect finish to a great night
of food and wine.&nbsp;

Food:

Blue Crab with jalapeno and tomato crostini

Mozzarella crostino with eggplant &amp; pesto on prosciutto
bread

Finocchiona salumi with giardiniera

Steak Tartare Piedmontese with hazelnuts, truffles and
crispy guanciale

Lamb meatball sliders with caprino and cucumber

Spaghetti with rock shrimp, toasted garlic and bottarga

Gigantone with Sunday night ragu and provolone piccante

Pappardelle with lamb Bolognese, ricotta and mint

28 day dry-aged ribeye with roasted vegetables

Wines:

<table>
 <tbody><tr>
 <td>
 1967
 </td>
 <td>
 Gaja Barbaresco Sorì San Lorenzo
 </td>
 <td>
 93
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1971
 </td>
 <td>
 Gaja Barbaresco Sorì San Lorenzo
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1945
 </td>
 <td>
 &nbsp;Giacomo Conterno
 Barolo Riserva Monfortino
 </td>
 <td>
 ?
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1952
 </td>
 <td>
 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Monfortino
 </td>
 <td>
 ?
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1955
 </td>
 <td>
 &nbsp;Giacomo Conterno
 Barolo Riserva Monfortino
 </td>
 <td>
 ?
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1961
 </td>
 <td>
 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Monfortino
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1982
 </td>
 <td>
 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Monfortino
 </td>
 <td>
 97
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1961
 </td>
 <td>
 &nbsp;Bruno Giacosa
 Barbaresco Riserva Speciale 
 </td>
 <td>
 95
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1970
 </td>
 <td>
 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Collina Rionda
 </td>
 <td>
 ?
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1971
 </td>
 <td>
 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Collina Rionda
 </td>
 <td>
 97
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1978
 </td>
 <td>
 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Bussia
 </td>
 <td>
 96
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1979
 </td>
 <td>
 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Bussia
 </td>
 <td>
 ?
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1949
 </td>
 <td>
 Ruinart
 </td>
 <td>
 91
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1959
 </td>
 <td>
 Phillipponnat Clos des Goisses
 </td>
 <td>
 96
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1961
 </td>
 <td>
 &nbsp;Roederer Cristal
 </td>
 <td>
 93
 </td>
 </tr>
</tbody></table>

&nbsp;[Photo and credit:&nbsp;Locanda Verde, New York]--Antonio Galloni

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