Winemaker Notes
The Nino Negri winery has been producing Sfursat since 1956, using grapes that are dried naturally. Its most prestigious Sfursat is 5 Stelle, which has been produced since 1983.
Only very favorable vintages allow this fine wine to be made from 100% Nebbiolo (Chiavennasca) grapes of the Valtellina, one of largest mountain vineyard in Europe. A full-bodied and exceptionally well-balanced wine.
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Spectator
A refined, integrated red, with a silky texture. Shows good tension in the interplay between steeped cherry, mandarin orange peel, raspberry ganache and eucalyptus flavors, with taut, sinewy tannins and a minerally underpinning of tar and iron. The firm tannins hold sway on the well-spiced finish. Best from 2027 through 2037. 1,670 cases made, 133 cases imported.
-
James Suckling
This has aromas of walnuts, cherries and olives. Some chocolate orange and cedar. Medium- to full-bodied, firm and flavorful, with toasty and tight tannins. Drink or hold.
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.