By Stephen Meuse, Globe Correspondent April 28, 2004

At the West Concord wine shop Vintages: Adventures in Wine, enthusiasm for Soave and its mainstay grape, the undervalued garganega (gar-GAN-uh-ga), runs high. Co-owner Eric Broege just returned from the Veneto and observes that while production in Soave is still mainly directed to mass-market plonk, some wonderful wines are being made in the hilly Classico sector. “New wave” Soave is a hot item at Vintages, but customers often need to be encouraged to try it.

“Once they do,” Broege says, “they like it that there’s a distinct character to the wine, that it’s flavorful, that it has weight. Soaves have a rounder complexion, and their minerality gives grip and intensity.”

(Excerpt from article)