and more:
• Super Piemonte Blends
• Barbera, Dolcetto, & Freisa
• Erbaluce, Gavi, & Chardonnay

A Note from Sergio

This week, as the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino fast approaches, I’m revisiting the wide range of Piemonte’s wines—the wines to which Americans will be treated if they travel to the games.

The Piemontese are obsessively devoted to their regional wines; they’re so loyal—so convinced of the superior quality of their own wines—that they often refuse to consider the value of a wine from a different locale. Like most Italians, the Piemontese regard their wines as their pride and joy; unlike most Italians, they probably won’t ever keep a bottle of wine from Toscana, Umbria, or Lombardia in their cellars; you won’t find a Brunello di Montalcino or a Montepulciano in one of their restaurants. Then again, why should you? Piemontese wines are complex and spectacular, both in scope and quality.

The intricate, extraordinary tastes of many of Piemonte’s wines are connected to its intricate, extraordinary grapes, varietals that are famously finicky and difficult to farm correctly. Dolcetto is an early-ripening varietal, prone to over-ripeness. Erbaluce grows on the base of the Alps in cold air and can easily become too tart and acidic. Nebbiolo is a late-ripening varietal, prone to under-ripeness. But when these grapes are cared for correctly, they can result in exceptional wines—Dolcetto makes a deep, structured red; Erbaluce becomes an herbaceous, crisp white; and in Barbarescos and Barolos, Nebbiolo realizes its potential to be the best translator of terroir in the world.

And the Piemontese know how to care for their grapes. The adept producers have been making wines for millennia, simultaneously learning from their ancestors and introducing innovations to the world of wine. Early on, they were the people who recognized the distinct quality of different vineyards, establishing Italy’s first cru in Dolcetto di Dogliani. Long before the rest of the country began paying attention to the importance of aging, vintners in Barolo were making exceptional wines that developed with time.

Of course, despite the level of expertise that goes into their production, Piemontese wines aren’t for everyone. Whereas Tuscan wines are easy to understand, enjoyable, and inviting, Piemontese wines are less sweet, less rich, tighter, and less generous. They won’t give you a hit of immediate pleasure. They take time to evolve. But most true wine lovers who are willing to allow themselves to adjust—those who are willing to drink Piemontese wines several times before judging them—will soon comprehend that they are some of the world’s best wines, especially when paired with food.

My offers today run the gamut of the area—from lean Erbaluce to rich Gavi, from gentle Dolcetto to stern Barbera. By drinking these wines, any wine lover, whether attending the Olympics or not, can explore the depth of Italy’s finest region.

My best,
Sergio Esposito

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Barolo

Barolo, Italy’s most esteemed wine, is a mystical drink capable of displaying new layers of depth and personality with each sip. For the budding enthusiast, Barolo can be overwhelming and difficult to comprehend; to begin to understand the wine, one should experience its unique flavor profile several times. This highly structured red displays elegance, depth, and a wealth of singular tastes and aromas that allow for few comparisons. Today, we’re introducing Barolo the proper way: by selecting bottles of quality and drinkability, and providing a quick guide to this complex wine.

Until the early 1970s, Barolo was for the most part a non-cru wine, made from an ideal blend of Nebbiolo grapes from different sites: the soft, fragrant la Morra; the graceful, earthy Barolo; the bold, rich Castiglione Falletto; the deep, powerful Serralunga; and the structured, concentrated Monforte. Due to the refined efforts of Angelo Gaja, Renato Ratti, and Bruno Ceretto, among others, single-vineyard designations are now a commonly accepted practice.

Today, eleven communes make up the Barolo DOCG, a prized area on the Langhe Hills of Piemonte, south of the Olympic Alps of Torino. The five key zones outlined on the linked map—la Morra, Barolo, Castiglione Falletto, Serralunga d'Alba, and Monforte d'Alba—contribute 87% of the wine made in Barolo. Soil type divides the communes in two: to the west is the Tortonian soil of the Central Valley, which tends to create more approachable, soft, fragrant, and elegant wines; to the east is the Serralunga Valley, made of Helvetian soil, which generally creates long-lived, powerfully concentrated wines. Each commune is further differentiated from its neighbors by its distinct microclimate.

Oddero 2001 Barolo $34.95
Josetta Saffirio 2000 Barolo $39.05
Guido Porro 1999 Barolo Lazzairasco $46.58
Virna 1999 Barolo Cannubi Boschis $53.72
Conterno Fantino 2000 Barolo Sori Ginestra $69.92
Rinaldi 2000 Barolo Cannubi Ravera $69.95

Barolo Starter Kit (1 of each): 314.17*
Includes detailed 11"x17" map of the Barolo zone.
*Free delivery in Manhattan

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Barbaresco

If Barolo is the king of wines, Barbaresco is the queen. Barbaresco, which is also commonly referred to as Barolo’s little brother, is Italy’s third most collected wine.

The Barbaresco DOCG sits ten miles northeast of Barolo in the hills of the Langhe. This small area, which is broken up into three subzones around the villages of Barbaresco, Neive, and Treiso, existed in complete obscurity until Bruno Giacosa and Giovanni Gaja (producer Angelo Gaja’s father) began to market the high quality wines they made from the native Nebbiolo. But it wasn’t until Angelo Gaja introduced single-vineyard efforts and canvassed the globe promoting his wines in the 1960s that Barbaresco began to emerge from the shadows and took its rightful place in cellars alongside the grands crus of Bordeaux, the cult wines of California, and its big brother Barolo.

Barbaresco tends to be slightly finer, less tannic, and more elegant and approachable than Barolo for a variety of reasons: its grapes grow in a cooler climate and ripen for a shorter period, and it has a lower alcohol level requirement (12.5% compared to Barolo's 13%) and less stringent aging requirements (Barbaresco ages for at least two years with at least one in barrel, while Barolo ages for at least three years with at least two in barrel). In contrast to the Helvetian soil found in the Barolo communes of Monforte and Serralunga, Barbaresco’s soil is a calcareous marl of the Tortonian epoch that tends to yield softer, more aromatic wines, particularly in the Barbaresco subzone, home to Ceretto's Bricco Asili and Marchesi di Gresy. Though wines from Neive can be a little more tannic and powerful (as exemplified by Giacosa’s creations), a producer’s style can mask the characteristics of the area—Gaja’s Barbarescos, for example, reveal rich fruit and more concentration than Giacosa’s or Produttori di Barbaresco’s classic, leaner wines, while La Spinetta's efforts reveal a more hedonistic side of Nebbiolo.

Oddero 2001 Barbaresco $29.95
Orlando Abrigo 2000 Barbaresco Montersino $56.10
Alfredo Roagna 1989 Barbaresco $84.95
Bruno Giacosa 1995 Barbaresco Asili $109.00
La Spinetta 2001 Barbaresco Valeirano $114.95
Bruno Giacosa 1999 Barbaresco S. Stefano di Neive $116.48

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Super Piemonte Blends

Super Piemonte blends—Conterno Fantino’s Monprà, Clerico’s Arte, Rocche dei Manzoni’s Bricco Manzoni, and Aldo Conterno’s Quartetto among them—are Piemonte’s answer to Toscana’s Super Tuscan movement. While many Super Tuscans are now untouchable, Super Piemonte blends remain approachable and reasonably priced.

The Super Piemonte term was initially assigned to high quality wines that were made within established Piemontese wine zones using either varietals or techniques (or both) that did not comply with the zone’s regulations. Because the category is understood to include excellent and innovative drinks, some stylistically non-traditional wines that do comply with regulations are now also being sold as Super Piemonte blends. These blends are often technically classified as Langhe Rosso DOC, Monferrato Rosso DOC, or Piemonte DOC, zones that act as umbrella appellations for wines that don’t follow the rigid regulations of established DOCGs like Barolo and Barbaresco. A further extension of the Super Piemonte category encompasses wines that break all rules and are therefore simply labeled Vino da Tavola or IGT.

Super Piemonte blends are perhaps most commonly classified as Langhe Rosso DOC, a zone that includes all the winegrowing municipalities of the Cuneo province. Langhe Rosso also refers to the Langhe Hills—home to Barolo and Barbaresco, located along the Tanaro River—and allows producers within this province to experiment outside the limitations set by the local consorzi. The Langhe Rosso label doesn’t necessarily imply that the wine is made mainly from the Nebbiolo grape—in fact, wines in this rubric are often mixtures of Barbera, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Nero, and Merlot grapes. Certain producers, generally of the modern school, believe that these additional grapes can soften or add fruit to the more angular Nebbiolo, as is the case with Valentino’s pioneering Bricco Manzoni and the rare 1990 Monprà offered below. Others believe that blending imbues a drink with more personality—especially in off vintages for Nebbiolo, as Gaja shows in his legendary trio of Sorì Tildin, Costa Russi, and Sorì San Lorenzo, all of which include a small percentage of Barbera along with Nebbiolo from the Barbaresco zone.

Rocche dei Manzoni 1998 ‘Bricco Manzoni’ $30.94
(Nebbiolo, Barbera)
Clerico 2001 ‘Arte’ $39.00
(Nebbiolo, Barbera, Cabernet Sauvignon)
Voerzio 2000 ‘Vignaserra’ $44.80
(Nebbiolo, Barbera, Cabernet Sauvignon)
Gaja 2000 Sito Moresco $59.95
(Nebbiolo, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon)
Conterno Fantino 1990 Monprà $69.00
(Nebbiolo, Barbera)
Gaja 1998 Conteisa $129.95
(Nebbiolo, Barbera)
Aldo Conterno 2001 Il Favot $58.00
(Nebbiolo—please note that this wine is classified Langhe Nebbiolo)

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Barbera, Dolcetto, & Freisa

Barbera
Barbera is widely considered the perfect pizza wine. Its jarring acidity, high alcohol, low tannin, and lush fruit make it an ideal accompaniment to food, adept at cutting through tomato sauce or the perfect complement to a t-bone.

Barbera, a drink often produced by Barolo and Barbaresco houses as a secondary, younger-drinking choice, is made from its eponymous grape. Though Piemonte is known for Nebbiolo, Barbera is actually the most planted grape in the region.

In Piemonte, five DOC zones produce the most noteworthy Barberas. The two most important of these are Barbera d’Alba and Barbera d’Asti, both of which require 100% Barbera—the Monferrato, Colli Toronesi, and Rubino di Cantavenna may produce blended wines.

In the early 1980s, Giacomo Bologna, the owner of the Braida estate, single-handedly raised the bar for Barberas when he released his Bricco dell’Uccellone. Bologna selected grapes from the best vineyard and aged them in new French barriques; the result of this endeavor—winemakers’ realization that oak aging can soften the sharp acidity and add a dose of much-needed tannic structure to Barbera—launched a revolution. To gain an appreciation of the range this grape offers, experience the varied styles of the wines below.

Rocche dei Manzoni di Valentino '01 Barbera La Cresta $25.50
Clerico 2003 Barbera d’Alba $29.50
Bovio 2000 Barbera Parussi $33.00
Bovio 1999 Barbera Regiaveja $36.83
Accornero 2001 Bricco Battista $40.59
Giacomo Conterno '03 Barbera Cascina Francia $72.60 (1.5L)

Dolcetto
Like Barbera, Dolcetto is often made by Barolo and Barbaresco producers as a secondary, younger-drinking choice. Because of its simplicity, low acidity, early ripening ability, and easy-going character, Piemonte’s “little sweet one” has often been misrepresented as the Beaujolais of Italy. Compared to Beaujolais, however, Dolcetto tends to be deeper, more concentrated, and more structured. Over the last seven years, as people around the world have become more interested in Dolcetto, it has acquired a new reputation as fat, dark, and powerful.

This indigenous grape claims seven of its own varietal DOCs, which sprawl intermittently across the south and southeast parts of the region. The vine’s high sensitivity to soil type generates subtle differences that distinguish the wines of each zone.

Cavallotto 2004 Dolcetto d’Alba $14.85
Rocche dei Manzoni di Valentino '04 Dolcetto Matinera $17.00
Clerico 2004 Dolcetto Visadi $18.95
Pira 1998 Dolcetto Bricco Botti $24.75

Freisa
Another approachable Piemontese wine is the local Freisa. Freisa wines offer generous berry aromas and flavors, and the name of the grape may indeed derive from the French fraise or strawberry. While less frivolous than the sweet frizzante wines the market favors, still Freisa wines can be a dry, light, lively depiction of the varietal.

Recently, producers throughout Freisa’s numerous production zones—the most important areas of which are Chieri, Alba, and the Monferrato's Asti and Casale—have been successfully experimenting with new techniques such as barrel aging, which brings out fruit flavors and tames the grape’s rustic character.

Though the origins of this varietal are cloudy, the Freisa grape was likely born in Chieri. For centuries, Freisa was made by respected Piemontese producers, and its popularity peaked during the booming market of the late 19th century. After spending much of the 20th century in obscurity, the wine has recently reemerged. Today, regional winemakers debate its merit, an argument many have attributed to the fact that two different grapes are named Freisa—one of high quality and one of mediocre quality. Scientists have not yet been able to prove whether the two vines are separate sub-varieties or genetical twins, differentiated by distinct terroir and viticulture.

Cavallotto 2003 Freisa Bricco Boschis $17.60

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Erbaluce, Gavi, & Chardonnay

Erbaluce
Known in Antiquity as Alba Lux or light of dawn for the copper luster it takes on when the sun hits it, Erbaluce is a white varietal grown only in Piemonte. Although some claim that the grape is a mutation of Fiano that was brought to northern Italy by the Romans, it is most likely that they found the indigenous vine already growing here at the foot of the Alps. In fact, the Romans were probably tending to this fruit when they first organized their haphazard vineyards into manageable rows. Later, medieval winemakers, upon discovering that Erbaluce’s unusually high acidity lends itself to passito vinification, began to produce dessert wine in the passito style.

Today, Erbaluce production is still contained within the glacial basin around the towns of Caluso and Canavese, where it has been organized into two DOCs, Erbaluce di Caluso and the smaller Canavese Bianco, both of which are pure varietal wines. The still dry wines of these appellations are known for their high acidity, floral aromas, and crisp, minerally fruit flavors; similar characteristics find different expressions in spumante (which is often amabile or slightly sweet), passito, and passito liquoroso forms.

Cieck 2004 Misobolo Erbaluce $17.20

Gavi
It is said in Piemonte that long ago, the golden-haired Princess Gavia married against the wishes of her father, the Frankish king Clodomiro. She and her bridegroom fled across Lombardia to the land ruled by the Goths, but a local innkeeper soon revealed their secret to soldiers sent to find her. In the end, Gavia’s love won the king’s approval and the couple settled here to rule the territory as vassals to Queen Amalasunta of the Goths. The area is now named for the princess, and the yellow-gold wine produced here also takes her name to remind the people of her beautiful hair.

Of course, some less romantic historians tell a different story. They explain that almost 2000 years ago, the Val Lemme was inhabited by the Cavaturini tribe, whose name derives from the caves that were their homes. The land was therefore called Cavium, which quickly evolved to Gavium and eventually to Gavi. Another group of experts suggests that the area was initially named for the Ligurian Ga Va or ‘land of hollows,’ another reference the area’s caves.

Gavi is made from the native white Cortese, a vigorous vine that thrives in southeastern Piemonte’s Monferrato Hills and produces fresh wines of high acidity with subtle flavors of apple, citrus, and honeysuckle. This wine earned DOC status in 1974, and in 1998 it became Italy’s second DOCG white wine. Today, Gavi is among the region’s top wines, overshadowing the neighboring white Arneis. A sparkling version of Gavi is also popular, as Cortese lends itself perfectly to a bubbly style.

Villa Sparina’s Gavi di Gavi, with its peachy aroma, rich palate, and signature almond finish, is one of the best expressions of this rare wine. The estate’s Monterotondo is also a regular, showing prominent oak that combines with the Cortese to create a unique flavor. Villa Sparina’s newest release is the Montej Bianco, a blend of Chardonnay, Muller-Thurgau, and Sauvignon Blanc.

Villa Sparina 2004 Gavi di Gavi $18.92
Villa Sparina 1999 Gavi di Gavi ‘Monterotondo’ $70.00 (1.5L)
Villa Sparina 2004 Montej Bianco $11.22
(Chardonnay, Muller-Thurgau, Sauvignon Blanc)

Chardonnay
With an Olympic audience coming to Torino, one attraction will be the noble varietal of Chardonnay – Piemonte style. While the arrival of the international grape in this ancient land was initially greeted with opposition, its roots have become ingrained in the Italian soil. It now expresses its own distinct personality since a number of quality producers have trained the varietal to reflect Italian soil and conditions. In fact, the best Chardonnay of Italy can be found in the Langhe Hills from Angelo Gaja. Gaja became the first in the region to work with this grape when he planted it in the Gaia & Rey vineyard in an effort to bring attention to his Barbaresco. Here are three examples where barrique aging is used to complement the Chardonnay grape, not to toast it or overwhelm it.

Gaja 2000 Chardonnay Rossj Bass $27.95 (375 ml)
Rocche dei Manzoni di Valentino 2003 L'Angelica $34.92
Gaja 1999 Chardonnay Gaia & Rey $129.50

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