Italian wines from Piedmont make for great food pairings

It must be nice being a Master of Wine like Barbara Philip.

She just got back from a trip to one of the most exciting food and wine regions in the world: Piedmont, Italy.

She stayed near Alba "Where the air smells like white truffles and chocolate," she said and was able to taste many of the classic ingredients with regional wines.

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Philip told On The CoasthostStephen Quinnthatthere are a few things that make the region very special and unique for wine, even though it's at the same latitude as Bordeaux.

"It's very different, and it's much more of a continental type of a climate, when you think of Bordeaux, it's more maritime, heavily influenced by the Atlantic," she said. "Here, we're really mountainous, and the fog is a huge deal."

Here are some of her picks for great Piedmont wines, and some food pairing suggestionsto go with them.

Batasiolo Langhe Rosso. Piedmont, Italy. 2013. $14.99

"Classic Piedmontese varieties of Nebbiolo, Barbera and Dolcetto make up this medium bodied blend. Try it with wild boar sausage and Taleggio cheese for appetizers."

Azelia Dolcetto "Bricco dell Oriolo." Piedmont, Italy. 2013. $22.99

"Wild strawberries and other red fruits make this a pure, pretty Dolcetto. It would be a beautiful match with a pasta course of agnolotti in sage butter."

Paolo Conterno Barbera d'Alba. Piedmont, Italy. 2012. $23.49

"Barbera is the ultimate lunchtime wine with its juicy structure and red fruit. Think about it paired with tajarin [narrow handmade noodles] and porcinis."

Cantina del Pino Barberesco. Piedmont, Italy. 2010. $43.99

"Along with Barolo, Barbaresco is the top expression of Nebbiolo. The wine has an exotic perfume of dried flowers, black pepper and anise and firm tannins that are meant to go alongside marinated, braised beef."

To hear the full story, listen tothe auidio labelled:On The Coast's Master of Wine has picks from Piedmont, Italy