Italy has many wines which, although famous, utterly fail to make the wine lover’s heart skip a beat. It isn’t a mystery, really, as in spite of their fame these wines are often routinely disappointing. I have come to think that it may be because of their fame that, over time, they have become so mediocre. I am going to defend the indefensible, but I don’t believe that a wine can be famous for hundreds of years while being dull and dilute at the same time.
I nurture this thought for Soave, Lugana, Gambellara, the long-suffering Verdicchio di Castelli di...