Day #8 at the Festival was to begin my tour of the Mediterranean…and some of Florida’s signature unpredictable weather.

Having just come from the Far East, my figurative arrival at the sparkling blue-green waters of the Mediterranean Sea was by way of the shores of Turkey.

Their booth featured three genuine imports, two whites and a red by Kavaklidere.

Not having any previous familiarity with Turkish wine, I let the food guide my choice.  In this case I opted for the Manti, a Spiced Beef Ravioli with Yogurt and Paprika Butter.

It was a zesty morsel of ground beef in a noodle blanket.  The yogurt sauce was buttery, creamy and tangy.  To go with it, Disney’s Sommeliers had recommended the Selection Beyaz White.

The Beyaz is a blend of Narince and Sémillon.  It’s dry, citrusy character made a perfect partner to the lively tang of the yogurt sauce, not unlike a Sauvignon Blanc would.  That makes sense.  Sémillon is the traditional blending partner of Sauvignon Blanc in white Bordeaux.  This was one of my favorite pairings.  Surprising, unusual, and right.

Working my way west, I encountered Greece.  In addition to their food and wine booth, they had another dedicated just to the bottled produce of their ancient vines.

The Greeks shared their wine culture with the Romans and the conquering Romans, in turn, instilled vines and their own drinking ways into the whole of Europe.  From Europe to the New World.  None of that, I would discover, meant that modern Greek wine would be recognizable to a native Californian.  A couple of thousand years of clonal cultivation will do that.

The Boutari Naoussa was a full-bodied red made with 100% xinomavro.  Don’t feel bad.  I never heard of it, either.  The wine was described as having “good acidity.”  I found it tart to the near point of face-making.

It came paired with a savory spinach and cheese Spanakopitta.  The pastry was nice.  And while I’ll admit that it does sound very Greek for a wine to have the “very intense aroma of olive, cedar, tomato juice, spices and mint,” I personally consider most of those things to be off-notes in vino.  Not even a hint of berry?  Really?

I had room for one more taste before dinner.  Carrying my Mediterranean tour ever westward, I went from Dionysus to Bacchus and landed on the coast of Italy.

Home to another permanent pavillion in the World Showcase at Epcot, Italy® comes with its own piazza.  You get a tower, marble columns, and stone arches!

And it wouldn’t be Rome® without a fountain, right?  Good ol’ Neptune helps keep up appearances.

For the Festival, Italy’s booth served up the classics.

There was Insalata Caprese, Lasagne, and Cannoli.  These came paired respectively with Pinot Grigio, Chianti, and Moscato di Asti.

What I wanted was the Pizza.  I survived the lion’s share of my school life on little else than beer and pizza.  Many a pie has gone the way of this here gut, but standing there pondering that menu with rumpled dollars in hand, it suddenly occurred to me that I’ve never once had a slice with wine.

In this case, it was more of a square.  Make that one brick of spongy, deep-dish Fennel Sausage, Bell Pepper, San Marzano Tomatoes and Mozzarella to go, please.  To drink, there was Cecchi Chianti Classico.  Lively acidity followed by bright red fruits and a bit of earthiness.  That and a spicy tomato base, a timeless combination.  The older me says, “Who needs beer?”

You haven’t finished the Mediterranean until you’ve put Gibraltar in your rear view mirror, but that would have to wait another day.  I needed what was left of my appetite for the upcoming Dinner #8…

-inspector vino