Winemaker Notes
Grapes are selected and picked by hand in the beginning - mid-October. Average production is 6,5-7 t/ha - 45-49 hi/ha. Alcoholic fermentation and maceration take place in stainless steel horizontal fermenters for 8-10 days. The wine is then aged in French oak barrels. Approximately 30,000-35,000 bottles are produced each vintage, and the first bottling was 1984.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Fine and polished with lightly chewy tannins and a medium body. Juicy and red-fruited with hints of cocoa. Velvety finish.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Conterno Fantino 2022 Langhe Nebbiolo Ginestrino reveals medium-rich concentration with primary fruits that touch the darker side of the Nebbiolo spectrum. Notes of blackberry and wild plum are softened by oak, tarry spice and toasted cinnamon. The wine deserves a bigger drinking window, probably taking it up to the 10-year mark.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Tasted alongside the 2023, the 2022 Langhe Nebbiolo Ginestrino is a similar medium red color and shows off the sunny side of the vintage, with deeper notes of ripe berries, dried earth, and subtle hints of balsamic herbs. The palate remains medium-bodied, though, offering more extract and richness, with ripe tannins and a salty flourish on the finish. Here again, this is more than a simple fruity wine in the category, and it can be enjoyed.
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.
