WTN: Some Northern Italian Varietals...(long/boring)

We tasted tonight (6/6/12) Some Northern Italian Varieties:
1. Rosa d'OroVnyds Arneis YoloCnty (LmtdRelease; 13%) 2010: Light gold color; rather fragrant/floral/pineapply/
spicy light earthy/pungent/smokey attractive almost GV-like nose; soft bit earthy/lush/ripe light floral/
pineapply slight mineral flavor; soft/lush/ripe bit earthy/loamy ripe/pineapple/floral finish w/ a very long/
lingering aftertaste of cotton candy/bananna candy; doesn't show the steely/stony character of many Arneis;
an attractive wine at an attractive price. $16.00
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2. Vietti DOCG: Roero Arneis (13%; U; www.Vietti.com) AlfredoCurrado/CastiglioneFalletto 2010: Pale yellow color;
very fragrant/perfumed/mango/pineapple almost muscat/floral slight mineral/stoney lovely/aromatic nose; fairly
tart/lean rather stoney/mineral/flinty very floral/pineapple/mango almost R-like/muscatty quite dry/zippy flavor;
very long floral/pineapple/mango/muscatty rather lean/mineral/austere finish; a wine with beautiful aromatics
and a laser-like mineral focus on the palate; lovely wine at a great price. $24.00 (KK)
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3. Alagna IGT Passerina del Frusinate (13%) Az.Agr. Marcella Giuliani/Anagni/Lazio 2007: Light gold color; very
ripe/overripe/candied/peppermint ribbon candy almost raisened very strong/grapey nose; very soft/fat/underacid
very ripe/candied/peppermint ribbon candy/dried pineapples slightly oxidized flavor; med/short soft/fat/porky
overripe/candied/raisened finish; an overripe/porky white; the legs and flavor suggest much more than 13%.
$18.00 (KK)
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4. Az.Agr. Antoniolo DOCG: Erbaluce di Caluso (12.5%; EB) 2010: Med.yellow color; very strong citric/grapefruity/
spicy very mineral/flinty metallic/dusty/root cellar/wet sidewalk/appley quite perfumed/aromatic nose; tart
metallic/tangy strong citric/grapefruity/spicy/orangey bit dusty/wet pavement/stoney flavor; long tangy/metallic
strong grapefruity/spicy/citric light dusty/wet pavement/loamy finish; a very attractive bright/zippy interesting
Erbaluce at a very good price. $18.00 (KK)
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5. Rosa d'OroVnyds Dolcetto ClearLake/LakeCnty (4 brls; EG/B; 13.6%) 2009: Dark color; strong earthy/grapey/classic
Dolcetto slight smokey/pungent/oak fairly lush/perfumed nose; fairly tart bit tannic/rough/rustic quite grapey/
licorice/black cherry some vanilla/Am.oak rather classic Dolcetto flavor; fairly long rough/tannic/rustic rather
grapey/licorice/pungent/black cherry/earthy some vanilla/oak finish; needs several yrs yet; rather classic
expression of Dolcetto grape and a bit on the rough/rustic side; very attractive wine for the price. $20.00
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6. Rivolia DOC: Dolcetto di Diano d'Alba RenzoCastella (14%) 2007: Very dark color; slight musty/TCA/corked light
earthy/grapey/licorice nose; soft rather coarse/rough/rustic/tannic slight licorice/grapey slight musty/corked
flavor; med.short rough/tannic/hard slight musty/corked very light grapey/licorice finish; some good Dolcetto
things there but probably compromised by the TCA. $26.00 (PMW)
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7. Poderi di Luigi Einaudi DOC: Dolcetto di Dogliani (13%) 2010: Very dark color; very strong black cherry/licorice/
grapey rather pungent/earthy/smokey very slight VA/EA/volatile lovely nose; soft very rich/lush quite grapey/licorice
slight earthy/pungent/smokey flavor w/ slight tannic bite; very long rich/lush grapey/licorice soft pungent/earthy/
smokey finish w/ slight tannic bite; a beautiful classic lush/grapey Dolcetto w/ a bit of a tannic bite; needs a yr
or two; delicious wine for $18.50 (KK)
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8. Poderi LuigiEinaudi VignaTecc DOCG: Dogliani (Dolcetto; 14%) 2005: Very dark color; rather aged/complex/earthy/
loamy slight licorice/grapey somewhat old-wine/aged-Barolo nose; bit dried out/tannic some aged/old Barolo light
licorice/grapey/earthy some complex flavor; long bit tannic/dried out/hard complex/old Barolo light licorice/
grapey finish; some like an old Barolo but w/o the aromatics; lost much of the lush Dolcetto fruit & starting
to dry out. $30.00 (MW/SPas)
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9. Rosa d'OroVnyds Nebbiolo Riserva Calif (4 brls; 13.8%) NV: Very light purple color; strong pungent/grapey/licorice
slight tarry/pungent light floral/rose petal/lilacs lovely aromatic nose; fairly tart bit tannic/hard pungent/
grapey/licorice slight tarry light floral/lilacs/violets slight earthy/loamy flavor; med.long bit tarry/pungent/
road tar some tannic/hard/structured light floral/lilacs slight earthy finish; not so much the high-toned aromatics
of Nebb but good pungent/tarry/earthy character; needs several yrs yet; quite a good characteristic Nebb at a very
reasonable price. $20.00
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10. Az.Agr. Antoniolo Nebbiolo Juvenia DOC: Coste della Sesia (13.5%) Gattinara 2009: Med.dark color; lovely very
floral/violets/lilacs light pungent/tarry/licorice slight earthy/wet pavement very aromatic nose; slight tannic/
hard very attractive floral/lilacs/violets/Nebb fairly tart bit lean lovely/perfumed flavor; long light bit
tannic/hard lovely fragrant/floral/violets/rose petal/Nebb slight tarry/pungent/licorice finish; lots of
lovely floral/classic Nebb aromatics and less of the pungent/tarry character; a very good Pinot-like expression
of Nebb; beautiful Nebb for a great price. $22.50 (KK)
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11. Az.Agr. Antoniolo DOCG: Gattinara (EB; 14%) 2007: Med.light color; lovely floral/lilacs/violets/Nebb light
pungent/tarry slight herbal/grassy/Kansas hay mow rather elegant/perfumed slight cherry/Pinot; bit tannic/hard
very attractive floral/lilacs/violets/Nebb slight earthy/rustic/bretty light pungent/tarry/road tar flavor; bit
hard/tannic very fragrant/perfumed/violets/lilacs/Nebb light tarry/pungent/road tar finish; needs 2-6 yrs of
age; much the same floral aromatics of the Juvenia but a bit more of the tarry side of Nebbiolo; lovely Nebb
and fairly priced at $40.00 (KK)
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12. Castello di Verduno DOCG: Barbaresco (14%; www.CastelloDiVerduno.com; OliverMcCrum) GabriellaBurlotto &
FrancoBianco 2004: Med. color; light tarry/pungent/earthy slight floral/lilacs/Nebb slight leafy/herbal/grassy/
appley rather interesting/unusual nose; slight tannic/bitey attractive floral/lilacs/Nebb some pungent/tarry/
road tar rather elegant/nuanced/restrained/complex quite attractive flavor; med.long bit tannic/hard/bitey
light floral/lilacs/perfumed/herbal complex attractive finish; probably not going to get much better; a rather
elegant/nuanced Nebb on the tarry/pungent side and not the ethereal aromatic character of some. $45.00 (WoP)
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13. Az.Agr. Antoniolo DOCG: Gattinara SanFrancesco (14%) 2007: Med.dark color; strong pungent/road tar/tarry some
fragrant/floral/violets somewhat smokey/pungent/earthy/licorice complex nose; rather tart strong pungent/road tar/
smokey/charred/licorice/earthy slight floral/violets somewhat tannic flavor; long bit hard/tannic pungent/road tar/
licorice slight floral/violets/Nebb rather tart finish; still needs some age; lacks the floral/aromatic perfume
of the Juvenia; pretty classic big Gattinara; not worth the premium. $57.00 (KK)
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And the wee BloodyPulpit:
1. Rosa d'Oro: This is a relatively new wnry up in LakeCnty. Last year, afore the RhoneRanger's tasting, I went
to a tasting of LakeCnty wines at BrianKane's wnry on TreasureIsland. Never before had the opportunity to tast
so many LakeCnty wines together. It's an area that doesn't get a whole lot of respect. I think many of their
grapes go South into Napa for annonymous use in those wines.
Pouring at this event was PietroButtitta, winemaker. They focus primarily on Italian varietals, some of which
are pretty uncommon. I invited Pietro to our NAP#2 event in Napa in August, where he showed his current Nebbiolo,
which I liked a lot. As I interacted w/ Pietro in preparation for NEB#3, I decided I should like to order a mixed
case of his wines to share w/ my group. The one in which I was really interested in was the Refosco. Alas, it had
long ago sold out, but Pietro sprung for the last remaining btl in his stash. I decided to pair his wines w/ some
representative varietals from Italy; not to show them up or anything, but to mostly get a handle on their varietal
character, both in Italy and in LakeCnty. Pietro has a Blog (www.rosadorowine.blogspot.com/) that is packed with
information. I think these are sound/solid/well-made wines that express their varietal character very well. They
are all reasonably priced. And they're sold by DarrellCorti...as strong a recomendation as you can get. One of
the strongest players in the underappreciated LakeCnty scene I would say.
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2. Dolcetto: I'm not a huge fan of Piedmont Dolcetto. It's an early ripener and, therefore, planted in areas that
Nebbiolo will not ripen. It is often described, because it's made to be drunk young, as the Piedmonte Beaujolais...
a comparison that I just don't see. I find that many of the Dolcetto d'Alba wines are often on the tart side
and have astrong tannic/bitter bite to them I don't much care for. I generally prefer the Dolcettos from
Dogliani as being more attuned to my Calif palate. This Einaudi '10 is, to me, what Dolcetto is all about...
one of the best I can recall.
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3. Erbaluce: I was first introduced to both Erbaluce and passito wines back in the '70's by DarrellCorti; his
coming from a Dr.??? that I don't think produces anymore. I try nearly every (dry) Erbaluce di Caluso I stumble
across. I find them rather mean/acid little wines, often a bit on the insipid side. This Antionolo Erbaluce
is the best dry Erbaluce I can recall in many a year w/ good aromatics and lots of minerality.
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4. Antoniolo: It's been quite a number of yrs since I've had any of the Antoniolo wines. I recall them as being
on the rough/rustic, maybe coarse side. So I was surprised when the wines showed up here in NewMexico, coming
thru Guliana Imports of Boulder.
I was very much taken by the Juvenia, which come from along the Sesia river to the East of Gattinara proper;
a DOC you don't often see. It, to me, captured what I like most about Nebbiolo...that beautiful/ethereal aromatic
almost Pinot-like character the grape can show. The two Gattinaras were bigger/more structured Nebbs that showed
more of the pungent/tarry character of the grape. The high-end Osso SanGrato Gattinara, at $75, I've not yet tried.
Tom

Now this caught my attention

We visited Antoniolo last September, and popped back again to buy a few bottles last month. I do think they're now the leading Gattinara producer in terms of chasing quality, though as you say, the prices do reflect this. I recall the lady at Gattinara (was it Rosella?) explaining how the soils in Gattinara meant they'd never achieve the dark colours and weight of Barolo/Barbaresco, then we went to the restaurant across the road, had a half bottle of the standard 2007 Gattinara, and low and behold, there was enough depth & gravitas about the wine that it would have fooled us into thinking it was from Barolo/Barbaresco.

We didn't taste the Erbaluce or Juvenia, both in hindsight are a shame to have missed out on. P.s. is it Erbaluce di Caluso, or just Erbaluce Colline Novaresi / Coste della Sesia? I say that as the grape is the dominant white locally, so plenty made in the local appellations (including some very fine dessert wines - the Rovellotti dessert wine we had just over a week ago was wonderfully complex & balanced). We've picked up some Le Castelle Gattinara and the standard Gattinara (both 2007s) to go with a couple of bottles of the San Francesco Gattinara 2003 we unearthed in UK (even though it's not imported into UK as far as they were aware!). I'm expecting to give them at least a decade before opening.

We also tasted a few Ghemmes as we were staying there, including a winery (Mirù) who we've become enamoured with. Partly it's very well made wines at very cheap prices, but a big part is the wonderfully warm welcome we received on our first visit and again this time. On the first visit we arrived as the grapes were coming in for the harvest, yet we were made to feel very welcome & offered freshly baked brioche (con crema) as well as freshly pressed nebbiolo juice. On our return we were armed with some thankyou gifts for such hospitality, yet seemed to leave with more than we brought... Italian hospitality can be a very special thing and it's these sort of people that make the memories so good, as to keep driving us back to Italy.

Other Ghemmes of note included Platinetti, Torracia del Piantavigna (sp?), Cantalupo (pricy for the region, but the quality again is there). Also a special note goes to Ioppa's dessert wine I Stransì, made from Vespolina (an underated local grape, with the tannins of Nebbiolo, albeit not quite the same charm, it can age well, as Mirù demonstrated with their 2004). Ioppa's dessert wine was wonderfully vibrant and punchy - more of a 'wake-me-up' at the end of a meal, but wonderful with chocolate and coffee.

Coming back to the original thread, we also managed a trip to Castello di Verduno (well worth making an appointment if you're in the region). Their 2007s were more open that this 2004, but 8 years old can be a difficult time for Barolo/Barbaresco... Lost too much fruit & tannic punch for Birger & lacking the ghostly charm of old age for me

Many thanks for the notes - never boring, but your modesty is always appreciated

regards

Ian

We visited Rosa d'Oro 3 or 4 years ago. As you say, nicely made Italian varietals at silly prices.

Hi Tom -

Thank you for the notes. The Rosa d'Oro wines sounds like great QPRs.

Interesting that the Passito version of Erbaluce was your first exposure to that grape. I've had a few dry Erbaluces, and have liked most of them, but have yet to locate an Erbaluce Passito. I remember some writer - not sure who - said that the Passito version was responsible for the local reputation of Erbaluce di Caluso, so I'll have to try a couple of these sometime.

As far as Dolcetto, Alba and Dogliani can both make very good wines in my opinion - the producer and style matters most to me. Anyway, I've liked the Einaudi Dolcettos in the past. Those from Diano d'Alba are more difficult to find in my experience, and the only one that I've ever tried was a pleasant one from Bricco Maiolica.

One other producer of wines from the Coste della Sesia DOC is Proprietà Sperino, owned by Paolo de Marchi of Isole e Olena in Tuscany. Although I'm not a big fan of some of Isole e Olena's reds, I thought that the Proprietà Sperino Coste della Sesia Rosato was very nice.

Now this caught my attention

We visited Antoniolo last September, and popped back again to buy a few bottles last month. I do think they're now the leading Gattinara producer in terms of chasing quality, though as you say, the prices do reflect this. I recall the lady at Gattinara (was it Rosella?) explaining how the soils in Gattinara meant they'd never achieve the dark colours and weight of Barolo/Barbaresco, then we went to the restaurant across the road, had a half bottle of the standard 2007 Gattinara, and low and behold, there was enough depth & gravitas about the wine that it would have fooled us into thinking it was from Barolo/Barbaresco.

I believe her name is Rosanna, Ian. As far as her statement above...I think she's wrong. I think her Gattinaras have ever bit the weight/intensity of most B/B, save the Gajas and a few others.

We didn't taste the Erbaluce or Juvenia, both in hindsight are a shame to have missed out on. P.s. is it Erbaluce di Caluso, or just Erbaluce Colline Novaresi / Coste della Sesia? I say that as the grape is the dominant white locally, so plenty made in the local appellations (including some very fine dessert wines - the Rovellotti dessert wine we had just over a week ago was wonderfully complex & balanced). We've picked up some Le Castelle Gattinara and the standard Gattinara (both 2007s) to go with a couple of bottles of the San Francesco Gattinara 2003 we unearthed in UK (even though it's not imported into UK as far as they were aware!). I'm expecting to give them at least a decade before opening.

We also tasted a few Ghemmes as we were staying there, including a winery (Mirù) who we've become enamoured with. Partly it's very well made wines at very cheap prices, but a big part is the wonderfully warm welcome we received on our first visit and again this time. On the first visit we arrived as the grapes were coming in for the harvest, yet we were made to feel very welcome & offered freshly baked brioche (con crema) as well as freshly pressed nebbiolo juice. On our return we were armed with some thankyou gifts for such hospitality, yet seemed to leave with more than we brought... Italian hospitality can be a very special thing and it's these sort of people that make the memories so good, as to keep driving us back to Italy.

Other Ghemmes of note included Platinetti, Torracia del Piantavigna (sp?), Cantalupo (pricy for the region, but the quality again is there). Also a special note goes to Ioppa's dessert wine I Stransì, made from Vespolina (an underated local grape, with the tannins of Nebbiolo, albeit not quite the same charm, it can age well, as Mirù demonstrated with their 2004). Ioppa's dessert wine was wonderfully vibrant and punchy - more of a 'wake-me-up' at the end of a meal, but wonderful with chocolate and coffee.

Many thanks for the notes - never boring, but your modesty is always appreciated
regards
Ian

Harumph...haven't a modest bone in my body, Ian!!!
The white was labeled "Erbaluce di Caluso".
I seldom ever see any Ghemmes around. I sorta lump those in w/ Gattinara...haven't had enough Ghemmes to make any distinction of them. Thanks for the recs on producers
that you like. Not familiar with any of them. The only other Gattinara producer I see much of is Travaligni. I think they're OK..but just that. Never been that impressed
by them. And I hate those hokey/misshapen btls they come in.
Tom

Hi Tom -

Thank you for the notes. The Rosa d'Oro wines sounds like great QPRs.

Interesting that the Passito version of Erbaluce was your first exposure to that grape. I've had a few dry Erbaluces, and have liked most of them, but have yet to locate an Erbaluce Passito. I remember some writer - not sure who - said that the Passito version was responsible for the local reputation of Erbaluce di Caluso, so I'll have to try a couple of these sometime.
As far as Dolcetto, Alba and Dogliani can both make very good wines in my opinion - the producer and style matters most to me. Anyway, I've liked the Einaudi Dolcettos in the past. Those from Diano d'Alba are more difficult to find in my experience, and the only one that I've ever tried was a pleasant one from Bricco Maiolica.
One other producer of wines from the Coste della Sesia DOC is Proprietà Sperino, owned by Paolo de Marchi of Isole e Olena in Tuscany. Although I'm not a big fan of some of Isole e Olena's reds, I thought that the Proprietà Sperino Coste della Sesia Rosato was very nice.

Yup, Andrew.....I love those wines from Sperino...both the Uvaggia (blended) and the Lessona (Nebbiolo). I bit on the pricey side...but maybe worth it. I understand they also make
an Erbaluce di Caluso..but I've never seen it available. I'd love to try it sometime.
Tom

Tom
Yes Travaglini are the big name in Gattinara - for what it's worth I'm on the other side of the fence re: the quirky faux hand blown bottles, quite liking them, but I recognise how they can play havoc when stacking wines.

We ended up picking up a bottle of their little 'project' called "Il Sogno", which is made in an Amarone style (actaully bought in La Morra, as they hadn't got any left to sell at the winery and the new release hadn't got labels ready. Not cheap and I've not tasted it, so might be an expensive mistake!

Old bottles of Nervi (Gattinara) can be a joy (50s, 60s 70s), but I found their 1990 Molsino single vineyard surprisingly feeble and fading, in no way resembling those older bottles (which may not of course have been 100% nebbiolo!).

Ghemme allows for a little of Vespolina and another grape in the blend, and so can often be a little less inspiring than the best Gattinara, but there is some good stuff being produced and prices remain very sensible on the whole. I tend to see it as a consistently better option than Langhe nebbiolo, with which I've had very mixed experience in the past.

regards
Ian