Winemaker Notes
100% Chiavennasca (Nebbiolo) sourced from the highest point in the Sassella subplot.
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
A throwback to when Sforzato could be made with grapes dried directly on the vine. Bunches grown at 600 metres are harvested just before the first snowfall - on 13 November in 2013. This is charismatic and delightfully confounding in its timeless, weightless quality. Gorgeous pressed flowers, juniper and potting soil punctuate dried fruit notes. Depth and concentration are rivalled by vigour and juiciness, while layers of tactile, clayey tannins meld with a gravelly mouthfeel. Blood orange rings out on the finish. The first vintage produced since 2009.
Responsible for some of the most elegant and age-worthy wines in the world, Nebbiolo, named for the ubiquitous autumnal fog (called nebbia in Italian), is the star variety of northern Italy’s Piedmont region. Grown throughout the area, as well as in the neighboring Valle d’Aosta and Valtellina, it reaches its highest potential in the Piedmontese villages of Barolo, Barbaresco and Roero. Outside of Italy, growers are still very much in the experimentation stage but some success has been achieved in parts of California. Somm Secret—If you’re new to Nebbiolo, start with a charming, wallet-friendly, early-drinking Langhe Nebbiolo or Nebbiolo d'Alba.
Containing an exciting mix of wine producing subregions, Lombardy is Italy’s largest in size and population. Good quality Pinot noir, Bonarda and Barbera have elevated the reputation of the plains of Oltrepò Pavese. To its northeast in the Alps, Valtellina is the source of Italy’s best Nebbiolo wines outside of Piedmont. Often missed in the shadow of Prosecco, Franciacorta produces collectively Italy’s best Champagne style wines, and for the fun and less serious bubbly, find Lambrusco Mantovano around the city of Mantua. Lugana, a dry white with a devoted following, is produced to the southwest of Lake Garda.