Winemaker Notes
Plots are harvested as individual lots and brought down the slope to be vinified together based on the altitude of the vineyards the fruit came from. Macerations tend to be 12-30 days long and fermentation starts in stainless steel. The wines then age for at least 18 months in a combination of French oak 225 liter barrels and 20 hectoliter vats. Bottles are held below the cellar in ideal conditions to achieve a mesmerizing character of elegance and complexity.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2015 Valtellina Superiore Riserva Grumello comes from a vintage that, more often than not, offers immediately accessible wines. This wine opens quickly and remains very generous all the while. Red fruit, wild cherry, blueberry and rose petal make strong appearances here. The wine is soft and loosely textured in terms of mouthfeel, but it is fresh and crisp in the long term.
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Wine Spectator
A tarry red, round and well-balanced, with supple tannins, this offers flavors of crushed cherry and spicy leather, featuring an overtone of grilled herb set in the medium-bodied frame. Best from 2020 through 2025.
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.