Wines From Abruzzo In Central Italy

Wines From Abruzzo In Central Italy Guest: Dave Abbot Mascerelli Wine

Great wines to explore for Easter:

Whites: Trebbiano and Pecorino

Reds: Montepulciano (3 styles) And A Merlot

Masciarelli is the leading Estate of Abruzzo.
The Abruzzo region today is on the cutting edge of grape growing and winemaking in all of Italy. We will talk about the special set of climates and soils that makes Abruzzo unique. We will talk about the grape varieties that have evolved in Abruzzo for over a thousand years. And we will talk about Gianni Masciarelli, the curious skeptic, biological savant, and energy management genius who took Abruzzo from a sleepy wine backwater to the cutting edge.

About Dave:
Dave Abbott began his wine career in 1985 with the Big Y Wine superstore in Northampton, Massachusetts just in time to taste all of the 1982 Classed Growth Bordeaux, and most of the to 1983 Burgundy Premier and Grand Crus. This is when he became vitally interested in the geography, geology, topography, climate, agriculture, history, culture, wine traditions and culinary traditions of the European wine lands. Dave has been liberally overeducated at Dartmouth (BA English 1972), University of Michigan (MA English Language and Literature 1977), and University of Massachusetts (PhD/ABD 19th and 20th Century Novel leaving in 1985). A teacher at heart, Dave has long been fascinated by all the factors that make every wine unique. A salesman by trade, Dave has worked for Consumer Programming Services selling encyclopedias door-to-door in the West Virginia coal fields, as Sales Associate and Italian and German Brands Manager for Big Y Wines, as the founder of Wine Diamonds wine brokerage, for MRR Traders as Western Mass Wholesaler's Rep, and since 1998 for Masciarelli Wine Company as Western Mass Rep, and later as a Regional Sales Manager. In 2007 Dave became Regional Sales Manager for the imports division of Masciarelli Wine Company serving North Carolina, Virginia, Washington DC, Maryland and Delaware later adding Ohio, Illinois, Colorado, Montana, Washington, Oregon and Northern California. In 2012 Dave also became Masciarelli's Wine Educator, and Sales Trainer for both the Massachusetts and Florida divisions.. Since 2015 Dave has handled Regional Sales Manager duties for Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Marylnd, DC, Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio and Illinois. Since 2012 he has been National Brand Manager for Valori, Castello di Cacchiano, La Caplana, and the Masciarelli Estate in Abruzo. Summer 2015 marked Dave's 25th trip to Italy.

Today my business involves making connections with 9 distributors, traveling to 13 states, doing ride-alongs with 85 sales people a year teaching them about the things that make our wines so very special, calling on 1000 retailers and restaurants projecting the voice, character, style and passion of the Masciarelli Wine company and the wine families we represent. Always fascinated by the intricacies of Italian wine, Dave aspires to be the World's Best Italian Wine Salesman.
Favorite Quotes
When your done learning, your done.--John Wooden
The harder I work, the luckier I get.—Anonymous