THE WINE LIST

Loading up wine lists with Italian wine is a creative way to find reasonably priced products--especially when dealing in a market in which most of the good stuff from France is too expensive. And, of course, Italian wine matches beautifully with Italian food.

But a list heavy with Italian obscurities can leave most Americans feeling the way they did years ago when faced with an army of Pommards, Pomerols and Pouillys during the French (Wine List) Revolution of the 1960s. It’s the feeling you get when you read the list at Remi.

For instance, most of us know that Soave is a light, crisp white wine--a few of us even know it comes from Italy’s Veneto region--but what is Capitel Foscarino? Chianti we all know is red; so is the wine called Montepulciano D’Abruzzo. But what’s the difference between them?

Wines on the Remi list are grouped by region. The regions appear in their Italian spellings--even California, so one group of reds is listed as “Vini Rossi Californiani.”

Those who encounter more than their share of ItalianSpeak wine lists might want to take Burton Anderson’s “Pocket Guide to Italian Wines” (Simon & Schuster: $8.95) along to dinner.

Scan through the Tre Venezie section of the Remi list (corresponding to Anderson’s Veneto section), and you’ll see that Anselmi Capitel Foscarino is a Soave. But it is a much richer version than you’re likely find in a supermarket. And the 1987 version sells at Remi for $25--not a bad price.

The book also shows that Pigato di Albenga is a richly flavored white wine best consumed within a year or two after the harvest. At Remi, the 1988 from Pippo Pirodi is listed for $30.

Likewise, the 1985 Montepulciano D’Abruzzo Vecchio from Dino Illuminati ($28), is a rich wine from Abruzzi that can be consumed fairly young. This, despite the word vecchio (“old” in Italian). The fleshiness of this wine goes well with tomato-based sauces. And Illuminati is one of the better producers of Montepulciano D’Abruzzo.

(Incidentally, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is a Tuscan wine made in the style of Chianti, and is no relation to Montepulciano D’Abruzzo. See how confusing this can get?) The list also contains a few high-image wines, such as 1982 Biondi-Santi Brunello di Montalcino, a wine I feel will be too coarse to drink for a decade or more. The price at Remi is $130.

Another high-ticket wine listed here is 1985 Barolo Bricco Rocche from Ceretto; at $150 a bottle it is roughly five times its wholesale price. A few other wines also seem to be priced far too high.

But the rest of this wine list is commendable. It contains a number of good “Californiani Cabernet Sauvignoni” of repute. Among them, the 1987 Silverado at $25, 1986 St. Clement at $27 and 1986 Caymus Napa Valley Cuvee at $25.

In the white list, two sleepers are the 1988 Fisher Chardonnay at $20 and 1988 Raymond Napa Valley at $24. And there are four Sauvignon Blancs priced $17 or less.

A center table display of 37 grappas (including six New World offerings) is most impressive. There are also 10 Cognacs, including my two favorites, Delamain and Hine.