Review: An innovative red and a good read

 The Prisoner Wine Company produces super premium wines by carefully sourcing their grapes. And in The Mamma Mia! Diet, an Italian biochemistry professor and a pharmacist, researcher and food writer explain why the Mediterranean diet is so good for us and how to eat it.

Not all wineries grow their own grapes. In fact, many makers of modestly priced wines work with multiple growers, combining the same varieties of grapes from many sources to produce their wines—with an eye on price and availability as well as the final product. Napa Valley-based The Prisoner Wine Company takes a different approach.

Much like chef-driven restaurants, they carefully source their grapes from vineyards and appellations across California, choosing each vineyard or region for specific varietals for each of the wines they produce—more than 100 vineyards in all. According to Chrissy Wittman, Director of Winemaking at The Prisoner, “Ultimately, all of the wines and their related vineyards have their own personality, and we work hard to let each one express itself in the best way.”

The high-end winemaker—the six wines they currently produce range from $32 to $100 a bottle—focuses on innovative blends. To achieve this, they start by collaborating with growers “dedicated to cultivating unique varieties,” Wittman says. After that, “it’s up to the grapes to do their thing. It’s our job to provide the best environment for them to do so, whether it’s during fermentation, barrel aging or preparing for bottling.”

We were asked to sample their 2015 Cuttings, a red made of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, with the remaining 20% being a blend of Petite Sirah, Syrah and Zinfandel. Cuttings brings New World winemaking style to an Old World varietal. The big tannic structure of a classic Cabernet is tempered by the richness of the Petite Sirah and Syrah, and the light spiciness of the Zinfandel. The result is definitely modern style, softer and fruitier than Old World reds. It took Best in Class at the recent 2018 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition.

We had the Cuttings both with food and on its own. It complemented the meal rather than taking over. We served it with beef, but it would pair deliciously with a roasted chicken, duck breasts or even salmon. On its own, it was equally refined—soft and delicious, without shouting “look at me, look at me!” Very drinkable right now, we think it will only improve if cellared for a couple of years.

Cuttings Cabernet Sauvignon 2015, $55. Available at many wine sellers and on The Prisoners website.

A healthy read: The Mamma Mia! Diet—the Mediterranean diet gets an Italian accent

The Mediterranean diet has been called the healthiest diet in the world. It is based on abundant consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and olive oil, and modest consumption of fish and poultry—lean sources of protein—and wine. Red meats are eaten in very small amounts.

Published this month, The Mamma Mia! Diet—The Secret Italian Way to Good Health explores Italy’s regional take on the Mediterranean diet. The Italian-born authors—Paola Lovisetti Scamihorn, a pharmacist, researcher and food writer, and Paola Palestini, a biochemistry professor at the Medical School of the University Milano-Bicocca—bring solid science and a passion for healthy eating to the project.

In the first half of the book, they delve into the benefits of their take on the Mediterranean diet, devoting whole chapters to the various components—fruits and vegetables, carbohydrates, fats, protein, salt, and beverages, including wine. They explain why each component is important to healthy eating and offer helpful dos and don’ts. They also offer tips for success, including smart shopping, meal planning, getting healthy sleep and increasing metabolism.

The second half of The Mamma Mia! Diet is devoted to recipes. Broken out into breakfast, starters, lunch, dinner and dessert, the recipes are very approachable. They feel doable, with mostly fresh, easily acquired ingredients. They also offer occasional surprises to keep the palate interested—Codfish with Ginger and Pine Nuts, for instance, Lemon and Rosemary Sorbet, and a hearty Hunters Chicken Stew.

Part of the promise of this book is weight loss—diet is part of the title, after all. But just as important, we think, is the healthy approach to eating and living it provides.

The Mamma Mia! Diet—The Secret Italian Way to Good Health, $15.99 paperback. Available at booksellers everywhere and online. Find a seller on the Penguin Random House website.