Some history about Italian wine (vino) in the Chicago area...

During the 1900’s in Chicago, many Italians from different regions managed to arrive in the Windy City and as I already stated in my previous post, they also brought their traditions, cuisine and also their local types of drinks, including wine. By operating their own legitimate businesses such as restaurants and grocery stores, other ethnic groups such as the French also served their own traditional wines. But when many Neapolitan and Sicilian immigrants began opening their joints around the North, West and South sides of the city, the whole situation literally changed.

By that time, almost three million Italians left Italy for the United States, and four-fifths of them were from Italy's southern regions such as Abruzzo, Campania, Molise, Calabria and Sicily. Many Italian ships began carrying mainly wheat flour and olive oil, but later they also transported wine and all kinds of fruit, including lemons and grapes.

The Italians opened up shops around the Near North Side, especially along Rush Street and Cambridge Avenue, and from there they sold imported Italian wine around the local saloons, restaurants and other liquor shops. In those days, many Italian wine merchants mainly imported Sicilian type of red wine with fruity smell and strong scent of blackberries and usually with dry and slightly sour taste. This type of wine is still mainly produced in southern part of Sicily, mostly because the grapes and wine like hot and relatively dry climates. But even though they imported already made product which was placed in a bottle and sent on a ship, still the interesting thing was that most of the time the Italians imported only the special type of grape and produced the wine in the basement of their shops.

The Sicilian types of grape which I’m talking about are used for making wine, according to the newest research, are used for over 3000 years and later at the beginning of the 20th century the winemakers still used the ancient method of winemaking. For example one of the most popular types of grapes which were and are still used today, is known as Grillo, which is a traditional Sicilian grape and besides making wine, it also can be used for making aperitifs and also for refreshing the plate with variety of Italian cuisines. Story goes that when the Grillo grapes are gently pressed then the juice, which later ferment at cold temperatures, provides a wonderful smell like fresh-cut grass mixed with grapefruit.

The next type of grapes which are also used since those days are known as Nero d’Avola which in fact is used for the making of the Mediterranean’s most regal red wines, and also Catarratto, which same as Grillo, is a type of grape often used for making white wines with a delicate bouquet of white flowers, aromas of ripe citrus, melon and other herbal flavours. In addition, these types of grapes or wine were also not widely known outside of Italy for a very long time until it reached the U.S.

The Neapolitan restaurant owners were often known for serving one quite famous and tasty type of red wine known as Ciro, named after the same region in southern Italy, and on the side, there was usually one slice of Neapolitan pasteria or Pitta, which is a traditional flatbread with a crunchy crust and soft inside, usually stuffed with peppers, tomatoes and herbs, or maybe with sausage and cheese.

In the wine business, the Italians had only one competition around the U.S. and that was the quite expensive French wine which was already placed on the market before the Italian wine, but obviously had a tough time in getting sold around the Italian parts of the city. This means that the wine produced in the southern part of Italy such as the Campania area and the Sicilian type, were easily reachable for all ethnic groups.

In no time, many Italian wine makers relocated all the way to California mostly because of the moderately hot days and clear nights, a similar climate to southern Italy, which is perfect for growing the needed types of grapes and for producing their wine. The Italians with deep pockets also began buying thousand hectares on the west coast. From this point on many Chicago businessmen also began investing in the importation of California products in their own city and even on the east coast.

Salut'




Grillo grapes



Nero d’Avola grapes



Catarratto grapes