REDS
2023 Marco Porello Langhe Nebbiolo
Langhe Nebbiolo is a DOC that allows for a slightly softer, more forward style of Nebbiolo than monumental Barolo. Think violet and wild strawberry, and a gentler tannic structure that doesn’t demand years of aging to tame. In fact, this is immensely drinkable.
2022 Cabutto Langhe Nebbiolo
Cabutto are an excellent Barolo producer, and they make an exquisitely attractive Langhe Nebbiolo to boot. Think cherry, rose petal and raspberry. There’s enough structure here for this to be mistaken for Barolo.
2023 Ferraris Ruche Vigna del Parroco
Vigna del Parroco means the ‘parish priest’s vineyard’. The priest in question made his own communion wine, and noted that one section of his vines always produced superior grapes. What he didn’t know was that those vines were a different variety, the rare and headily-scented Ruche. Ferraris source grapes from that vineyard to produce this benchmark Ruche bottling. Nebbiolo-like notes of dried rose and cherry are interwoven with liquorice and sweet spice.
2021 Fratelli Alessandria Barbera Priora
Late-ripening, high-acid, low-tannin Barbera can flourish in some tough spots where Nebbiolo would wilt. It can also take oak quite well, and can acquire a claret-like weight as it ages. The Priora from Fratelli Alessandria is rich and heady, full of leather, spice and chocolate.
2020 Antoniotti Bramaterra
Father and son team Odilio and Mattia Antoniotti make wine in the tiny, subalpine DOC of Bramaterra, just as their family have done since the 1860s. The local tradition is to blend Nebbiolo with other varieties. Croatina brings a little extra flesh, Vespolina brings perfume, and Uva Rara helps soften the northern Nebbiolo tannins.
2020 Serio & Battista Borgogno Barolo
Classic, complex Barolo from a producer with plum holdings in the heart of the region. Think cherry and rose petal, leather and herb, and pair this with ossobuco or oxtail or roast duck.
2019 Bruna Grimaldi Barolo Camilla
Camilla is a Barolo blended from fruit across five villages and diverse soils (limestone, sandstone, clay, and marl). It is elegant and balanced, and marked by the structure of the 2019 vintage. ‘I guessed it would be that way,’ says winemaker Simone Fiorino. ‘The grapes came to the winery with very thick skins. The wine was slow to develop in the cellar. That’s a good sign for the future’.