Fernando Beteta: The Roving Oenophile

Discovering wine outside of the U.S. is a culinary adventure with cost-saving results.

Guatemalan-born, European-educated; spent portions of his career in Switzerland, Paris, Rome, Sardinia, Florence and Thailand; former wine director of NoMI at Park Hyatt Chicago. It’s clear Fernando Betata knows a thing or two about wines of the world. The master sommelier gave TCW a preview of the next hot global wine regions to watch.

Greece
“People’s perception of Greek wine is only with Greek food, in Greek restaurants, but there are definitely maverick, high-quality wine makers there who have studied abroad and are making very good wine,” reports Fernando. From southern regions, such as the island of Santorini, look for whites that will serve as “summertime substations for pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc.” And from northern Greece, look for reds that will replace your pinot noirs. The secret to these wines’ quality and attractive price range? The Mediterranean climate. “What people don’t know about Greece is there’s a lot of mountains, so it creates all these different climates,” Fernando explains. “You have an abundance of sunlight but grapes with natural acidity. So instead of becoming alcoholic and sweet and overpowering, they have some character. They go fantastic with food.”

Portugal
Expect Portugal to join its Western Europe neighbors as a popular wine destination. “Portugal has a hot climate compared to the rest of Europe,” Fernando explains. “It’s full of sunshine, (so they grow) thick, dark-skinned varietals that can compare to syrah, cabernet sauvignon.” The climate allows for a comfortable price range for these complex reds. “For $11, $12, you’ll get wines that are rich, bold and concentrated,” he says. “In order to get wines with that much concentration in a cooler climate or even California, you have really low yield, which makes it more expensive.” For reds, look for esgana cao, (which Fernando notes means “ dog strangler”). Arinto, a bright, aromatic wine, takes center stage for emerging Portugal white wines.

Southern France
“Southern France has been neglected,” Fernando laments, noting that France’s region system puts the spotlight on recognizable names like Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne, often sidelining less-known regions. Southern France is home to the vins de pays, meaning table or land wine, which gives winemakers freedom to try varying techniques rather than being held to the classic rules. In addition, cheaper land and a Mediterranean-influenced climate results in another perfect marriage of quality and price. “You can find great wines from Mas de Daumas Gassac, which Robert Parker calls the ‘le fête of Southern France,’” he says. “I find a lot of wines from France in the $15 and under range.”

Southern Italy
Southern Italy, like southern France, is also suffering from younger sibling syndrome, says Fernando. “Again, people think of barolo and brunello in Tuscany, but Sicily and Calabria,  produce just beautiful wines with a lot of history,” he notes. Though the Mediterranean and southern European influence creates some similarities with Greek wine, the Italians put their own spin on varietals like nero d’avola (Sicily) aglianico and primitivo. “There’s great volcanic soil in Sicily; Naples is naturally a great place to grow grapes,” Fernando explains. “There’s a lot of power to them, tannins, something that could pair well with food.”

Where to Shop
Master Sommelier Fernando Betata shares his top Chicago haunts for finding old favorites and new gems.
Whole Foods “They have a great program; I do find obscure wines there. For people who want a supermarket, Whole Foods would be my pick.” 


Wine Discount Center “They really know what they’re doing there. They take on those deals that other places don’t know about or wouldn’t recognize, and then discount it at three times (less than) what you would pay.
Wine Styles “I used to work for Wine Styles and they always had fun wines. They focus on value wines that are under $12.”