Rocche dei Manzoni Quatr Nas Langhe Rosso 2004
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As the Bricco Manzoni "younger brother," the Quatr Nas aims at embracing the most innovative concept of the assembly since the first vintage in 1996. This wine brings together the four most important vines in the world, keeping the Nebbiolo as the common denominator, to represent the territory typicality. Blend: 50% Nebbiolo, 50% Pinot Noir/Cabernet/Merlot
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2004 Langhe Quatr Nas is especially striking in this vintage. A cuvee of Nebbiolo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir, it is one of the handful of Piedmontese blends that delivers real personality and character. The wine remains young and painfully backward, but in a few years the massive vibrant dark fruit should begin to emerge. This is a great effort. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2024.
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Wine & Spirits
Twenty years after the first release of Bricco Manzoni, Valentino Migliorini created this blend of nebbiolo, cabernet sauvignon, merlot and pinot noir in 1996. This 2004 is tighter and tenser than the Bricco Manzoni (also recommended here, but from the 2005 vintage). It's an intriguing blend, the tannins still youthfully aggressive, the nebbiolo and cabernet character still battling for dominance. It finishes dry, a black and austere wine for a truffle risotto with roast lamb.
Rocche dei Manzoni was founded by Valentino Migliorini in 1974. The winery is located in the small enclave of Manzoni, in Monforte d'Alba. The buildings that make up the complex fit perfectly into the beautiful hilly landscape of the Langhe. A place where art, culture and music come together and create a unique opportunity to explore the great vintages that the Langhe has to offer.
In 1998, the Pianpolvere Soprano wine cellar in the vineyard of Bussia was purchased, and is run as an independent entity. It is a biologically run winery that, starting from harvest 2017, boasts the biodynamical certification too.
The production philosophy is based upon a desire to intervene as little as possible in the wine cellar operations. However, this does not mean that they do not have their own style. Rocche dei Manzoni has always been faithful to its core processes and these are based on the use of new small oak barrels for red wines. Over the years Rodolfo has learned how to properly blend wood to wine and this led him to introduce the use of egg-shaped concrete wine tanks in 2008. Thanks to these, the winery has managed to find the keystone to producing wines that are even more elegant and silky smooth.
Attracting the most glory, prestige and fame to the Piedmont region, Nebbiolo in all of its expressions—Barolo, Barbaresco, Roero, Ghemme and Gattinara—creates a complex wine, truly unique for its delicate qualities combined with strength and a great potential to improve over time.
But Nebbiolo isn’t all there is to red wine from Piedmont! Barbera is the most planted variety and historically most popular as a dependable, food-friendly, everyday wine.
Beyond these two, a surprising number of red varieties call Piedmont their home. Worth a try include Dolcetto for its bold concentration and aromas of spice cake. Other grapes to investigate include Freisa, Croatina, Brachetto, Grignolino and Pelaverga.