Valentina - Sevenoaks

I really like to go to this restaurant. They serve good basic Italian food which is unpretentious. Although it is part of a small family run chain it is certainly a step up the gastronomic ladder. The restaurant is also a delicatessen which you pass through on your way to eat. They have a wide selection of Italian wines including some of the top names. I always buy a bottle after dining. Valentina is worth visiting just for their wine.


The Saturday before last my wife and I joined some friends for lunch. On the wine list they have house selected wines from Vigneti Iucci which is a family run winery in the Lazio or Latium region of Italy just south of Rome. The Lazio region is famous for its dry white Frascati which is not normally a favourite of mine.

Vigneti Iucci is situated in la Creta which is not far from the famous monastery of Monte Cassino; the scene of a bloody battle during the second world war.

We chose Vigneti Iucci Sant'Elia red. This wine is made from a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah grapes. It is a well rounded wine with a taste of cherries and red fruits and some spice from the Syrah. There was also a slight taste of tobacco.

It went perfectly with the speciality dish of the restaurant, Capella Romana, which is meatballs in tomato sauce covered by a serving of tagliatelle and Italian ham baked in the oven. The Capella Romana was full of flavour and the wine was a perfect accompaniment. It was an excellent combination.

The wine was so good that we ordered another bottle and it was a good job I was not driving. This is not top quality wine but it is perfect for drinking with such a hearty dish. It certainly helped the conversation flow which is what drinking a good bottle of wine with friends is all about.

There are plenty of wine fairs in Italy to go and sample some wine and this interview gives you a feeling for what they are all about. The wine we drank is in the background.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTncEqFSRio

The staff at Valentina are informal and friendly and are intent on giving you good service. My wife and her friend ordered a dish which was not to their liking. The manager replaced this dish with another without question or complaint. This is how it should be. It should be normal that a manager looks after his customers. This is quite often not the case in British restaurants.

We could not leave without buying some wine and bread from the delicatessen. I went away with a bottle of Mannara Syrah and Sangiovese 2011 red from Sicily and a bottle of Vigneti Iucci white.

We drank the Mannara at home on the Sunday with some roast duck. This is another good quality wine for everyday drinking. The wine held up well with the oiliness of the duck. It had a taste of  fresh red fruits with some spice from the Syrah. It went down well with French cheeses afterwards. The wine is drinking well now but I am sure you can keep it and it will develop more over the next couple of years.

We have not tasted the white wine yet but more of that later. I promised the manager a tasting note.

Valentina is well recommended if you want to pass a convivial afternoon dining with friends and then finding a great Italian wine to take home afterwards.