Gregg and Brent with some of the old vine Zinfandel plantings that make up the backbone of the Pizza Red blend.
Osteria IL Centro proprietors Gregg Johnson and Brent Wittrock have such a deep passion for wine that they decided to partner with one of their favorite California wineries to produce an exclusive bottle for OIC’s sister restaurant, Minsky’s Pizza. The project started with the two traveling to Sonoma County to visit Trentadue Winery, where they worked with winemaker Miro Tcholakov to craft a wine that would pair perfectly with Minsky’s award-winning Gourmet pizzas – Pizza Red.
Trentadue Winery handles every step of the winemaking process, from growing and harvesting the grapes in their Alexander Valley vineyards to fermenting, aging, and blending exceptional California wine expressions. The Trentadue family knows the terroir of this valley well having grown grapes there for 55 years – in fact, some of the vines date all the way back to 1886 when the land was used to breed and improve fruit trees for sale around the western US. To preserve and elevate the quality of the wine produced at Trentadue – and to be better stewards of the land – the winery follows only sustainable agriculture practices. The resulting wines demonstrate their practices work well.
Pizza Red
Pizza Red
Johnson and Wittrock focused their efforts at Trentadue Winery on creating a red wine blend that would pair deliciously with a gourmet pizza – or most any Italian food. Pizza Red is a fruit-forward Rhône-style red blend of predominately old vine Zinfandel with Petit Sirah, Carignane, and Merlot. It’s youthful and bright with a wide variety of flavors working together to make this wine approachable, yet complex. Notes of black cherry, blueberry, cola, and ripe plums are grounded by ones of vanilla, cocoa, oak, and toast, followed by a long, memorable finish.
While enthusiasts for this wine were formerly only able to enjoy a glass or bottle of Pizza Red when dining at Minsky’s or Osteria IL Centro, there’s now a new way to conveniently bring a bottle of Pizza Red home – thanks to a collaboration with locally-owned and perennial Best of Kansas City award winner, Mike’s Wine and Spirits!
