Our Facebook Italian Food, Wine & Travel group’s topic this month focused on comforting braises and stews, and the best Italian wines to pair with them. Here’s my take on the subject.

I’ll be the first to admit it — my title isn’t exactly modest. But I can’t contain my enthusiasm for this short rib recipe, nor for the wine, the fabulous Montepulciano d’Abruzzo (not to be confused with Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, another awesome Italian red wine that’s made in Tuscany from Sangiovese, not from Montepulciano as in Abruzzo).

Let’s start with the recipe. I have posted other short rib recipes before — a favorite being a variation one by Chef Laurent Tourendel of BLT Steak fame. And while his is my go-to for short ribs, it’s requires a lot of time, taking at least 6 hours from start to serve.

Last Saturday night, by the time Joel and I decided what we would have (ie., what I would cook) for dinner, it was already 5:30. He quickly ran out to the butcher to get the meat while I began the mise en place: gathering herbs, chopping vegetables, measuring liquids. I’m proud to say that the dish was in the oven at 6:38 on the dot.

I know, most of you are already eating dinner by that time, and what I haven’t even told you yet (and you’re probably already thinking it) is that braising short ribs requires a slow, low-temperature braise of at least — yikes! — 3 hours. And then there’s the 45 minute reducing of the sauce when the ribs are done cooking, an absolute necessity if you want a thick, rich, and delicious sauce, which I assume you do.

At one point, I was ready to give up and I said to Joel, should we have the ribs tomorrow night? After all, they taste even better the next day when the flavors are allowed to mingle all night long. But we had it in our minds that we would dine on short ribs that very night, and he was already dreaming about the leftover short rib sandwich, soft roll and all, for lunch the next day.

So, still using the BLT Steak recipe, I figured out a way to shave off two hours of cooking time, and we sat down to dinner at 10:30 (better than 12:30!). But a little crazy, right? Well, at least it reminded us of the old days, when we were young and carefree, and wouldn’t think of making a dinner reservation before 9 or 10 PM!

Besides, while the ribs were slowly cooking, I had time to not only work out and take a shower, but to taste and evaluate three different Montepulciano d’Abruzzo wines I was serving with dinner — yup, that’s how we roll here: more bottles than people at the table!

And what made this wine tasting more interesting was that one of the wines had been aged in oak barrels, another in concrete vats, and the third in clay amphorae. Don’t miss my notes (below the recipe) on these red wines that offer a very different take on the same grape variety.

“Quick” 4-Hour Short Ribs Recipe

Serves 4

Ribs:

1/4 cup olive oil

4 - 5 lbs bone-in beef short ribs

salt & freshly ground pepper

2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 celery stalks, trimmed and cut into 1” pieces

2 medium-sized onions, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

6 large cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped

3 tablespoons tomato paste

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 sprigs rosemary

8 sprigs thyme

8 large sage leaves

4 cups dry, full-bodied red wine, such as Montepulciano d’Abruzzo

1 cup ruby port (a good substitute is sweet PX Sherry)

6 cups low-sodium beef broth

2 tablespoons lemon zest or thinly sliced lemon peel, optional

4 rosemary sprigs for garnish

Instructions

1) Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Season the short ribs with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add as many ribs as will fit comfortably in the pot without crowding and brown them on all sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer the ribs to a plate. Repeat with the remaining ribs.

2) Remove all but 3 tablespoons of fat from the pan. Add carrots, celery, onion, and garlic to the pan. Cook, stirring often, until golden brown, about 5-8 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook, stirring, for one minute. Add flour and stir until blended. Add rosemary, thyme, sage, wine and port. Bring to a boil and cook 5 to 10 minues.

3) Return the ribs to the pot. Add the beef broth. Make sure the liquid covers the meat by at least one inch. If not, add water. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Cover the pot loosely with foil and place in the oven. Bake for 3 hours or until the meat is tender when pierced with a fork. I like to take a peek into the pot about 10-15 minutes after I put it into the oven (and periodically after that) to make sure it is slowly, gently simmering and not boiling.

4) Remove ribs from pot. Strain cooking liquid through a sieve into a clean large pot and discard solids. Bring liquid to a boil and cook uncovered over medium-high heat until sauce is thick, rich and glossy, about 45 minutes. Check frequently by stirring to make sure the sauce on the bottom of the pan is not burning. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Return ribs to pot and reheat, about 5 minutes.

5) Transfer ribs and sauce to a serving dish, sprinkle with lemon zest if desired, a sprig of rosemary and serve immediately. Serve with mashed potatoes to soak up the delicious sauce, and a chilled cucumber dill salad as a cool, crunchy foil to the warm, soft meat.

Tip: For even more intense flavors, make the short ribs one or two days prior, reheating before serving.

Montepulciano (a Grape) d’Abruzzo (from Abruzzo)

Abruzzo is a winemaking region located on the Adriatic coast along the central-eastern side of Italy. There are 200 private wineries and 34 cooperatives within the region, with 36,000 hectares of vineyards. Abruzzo produces 3.8 million hectoliters of wine, 80% of which is the red wine known as Montepulciano d’Abruzzo.

As the greenest region in Europe, Abruzzo is full of national reserves and parks. These natural habitats serve as a barrier for the vineyards, protecting them from disease, pollution, and inclement weather.

Beautiful Abruzzo. Photo: @agricolacirella on Instagram. — **Beautiful Abruzzo.** *Photo: @agricolacirella on Instagram.*

The Montepulciano grape is Italy’s second most widely grown grape after Sangiovese. It can be found in many regions, but its home is in Abruzzo. Montepulciano is a grape that delivers a lot of color, tannin and alcohol to a wine. Typically, the grape offers both black and red fruits, minerals and spices, along with hints of tar and animal-like notes. There are many different styles of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, ranging from the easy drinking kind to have with pizza, to the ones meant to be aged and enjoyed with fine cuisine.

As you will see from the three wines below, Montepulciano can age terrifically in all kinds of containers, whether it’s wood barrels, clay amphorae or concrete tanks.

Types of Aging Vessels

Nowadays, red wines are typically fermented in stainless steel and aged for at least a year in wood barrels, but increasingly, winemakers are returning to the days of yore with the use of concrete tanks (used since the Roman times) and clay amphorae (as done in Georgia for thousands of years). But unlike in ancient times, winemakers today have the knowledge, ability and desire to experiment with various ways to age their wines.

Three Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Wines to Pair With Short Ribs

Il Feuduccio, Santa Maria d’Orni Feuduccio Montepulciano d’Abruzzo 2017. (SRP $25) Il Feuduccio ages in used French oak barrels of varying sizes. When a wine is aged in wood (typically oak), notes of vanilla and woody spices are imparted to the wine, along with tannins. With time, the effects diminish and after a few years of use, new oak becomes “neutral,” and no longer imparts much flavor or tannin to wine.

Since Il Feuduccio ages in used barrels, the effects of the the wood aging are less apparent, and I found only a hint of oak and vanilla notes. The wine is dark and brooding, rich and intense, with strong tannins and notes of tar and dried figs and a great, enlivening acidity that balances out its fruit and tannins. This wine is a beautiful example of a wood-aged Montepulciano, and was really enjoyable with the hearty short rib dish.

Cirelli Montepulciano d’Abruzzo 2018. (SRP $30)The winery consists of 22 hectares of certified organic vineyards about eight miles from the sea. Winemaker Francesco Cirelli is one of the only producers to use clay amphora, made in a town near Florence that is famous for its terra cotta. Cirelli’s amphorae are 800 liters and fitted with steel tops to limit the impact of oxygen on his wine in order to showcase the primary fruit from the grapes.

Clay amphorae has been used for fermentation and storing of wine for millennia. Amphorae aging’s slight breathability allows a slow, micro-oxidation of the wine, along with necessary evaporation, thereby creating concentrated wines.

In Sevenfifty.com, wine writer Peter Weltman says that “terra-cotta pots offer unique interactive properties with wine—they pull out acidity, allow oxygen exchange, and provide superior insulation, among other benefits—that are different from those of stainless steel, wood barrels, or concrete.”

Interestingly, the Cirelli wine is lighter in color and body than most other Montepulcianos, with medium tannins and an earthiness that is reminiscent of a barnyard. There are fruity boysenberry, plum and prune notes along with mushroomy and licorice-like flavors. The wine, like the others I tasted had a great zingy acidity. This is an elegant example of the Montepulciano grape, whose earthiness paired well with the meaty short ribs.

Ciavolich Fosso Cancelli Montepulciano d’Abruzzo 2015. (SRP $50)The Ciavolich family, originally from Bulgaria, were wool merchants who fled to Italy in the 1500s. Since 2004, the estate has been run by Chiara Ciavolich and her husband Gianluca. Unusual in the region, they ferment and age their wines without temperature control, and use concrete tanks that look similar to an egg. Only 3,000 bottles of the Fosso Cancelli is made each year, with each bottle labeled with its number (mine was 1993).

As an aging vessel, cement brings less airflow to the wine than oak barrels. The use of cement helps preserve the wine’s color and softens its tannins. The egg-like shape of the tank forces more of the cap (grape solids that rise during fermentation) to remain submerged, helping to bring a richness of body and fruit flavor, as well as color to the wine.

As would be expected, the Fosso Cancelli displays more texture than a typical Montepulciano; it is a dark-fruited wine with a strong vein of minerality, especially its notes of iron, and with strong tannins and a refreshing acidity to balance out all the strong elements. This wine was my favorite of the three and went particularly well with the short ribs, but would also go great with cheese and pasta dishes.