Tried this last night w/ my pasta al forno:
1. BonipertiVignaioli Favolalunga DOC: Colline Novaresi Vespolina (12.5%; L.FAV13; www.BonipertiVignaioli.com; no oak; OliverMcCrum Wines/Napa) Gilberto Boniperti/Barengo 2013: Med.color; strong floral/lilacs/grapey/raspberry/herbal bit smokey/pungent/asphalt earthy/dusty/musky very interesting/exotic nose; lightly tart/astringent rather floral/lilacs/herbal/raspberry/grapey bit pungent/fresh asphalt/dusty/musky slight herbal/basil structured/med.bodied flavor w/ light angular/grippy tannins; very long tart/slight astringent grapey/floral/lilacs light pungent/asphalt/musky/dusty rather exotic/unusual finish w/ light/rough tannins; needs some 2-6 yrs I suspect; maybe one of the least Nebb-like Vespolinas I've tried; doesn't have the soaring perfume of Nebb nor the hard/unyielding tannins of Nebb; reminds me some of a Dolcetto Dogliani but less grapey and more structure; reminds a bit of a Rockpile Zin or mountain Zin like Lagier-Meredith, but not as rich; reminds me some of several Calif Nebbs; a very interesting/exotic Piemonte red; highly recommended for something different. $17.60 (PrimaIlC)
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. My Prima IlConsorzio shipment arrived ystrday afternoon. I eagerly cracked that sucker open to see what next Frank had discovered. Boniperti....never heard of that producer before. Looked on the back and saw Oliver McCrum, so I knew that was going to be my dinner wine, right off the UPS truck. I could hardly wait...my fingers were trembling as I extracted the cork...beads of sweat were pouring from my brow..the anticipation was overwhelming. After the first whiff...I knew this was going to be an unusual & special wine.
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2. Boniperti: This was a new producer for me. He also makes a Fara (Nebb/Vespolina blend), a Nebbiolo, a Barbera, and a Rosato. Use of wood is very minimal to none at all. I was mightly impressed by this one and really want to try some of his others. This producer for Oliver is so new he doesn't even have him listed on his WebSite yet (www.OMWines.com).
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3. Vespolina: I've only tried some 12-15 pure Vespolinas before, so not quite sure what the true varietal character of the wine is. Many of the ones I've tried (all from Alto Piemonte) have shown a lot of the same aromatics as Nebb but w/o the hard/bitey tannins Nebb often shows. It's a grape that makes very interesting wine.
KenMusso has Vespolina planted at his CinammonHill vnyd up in ElDorado Cnty. Should have taken his first crop off it last Fall. It'll be interesting to see what kind of wine he makes from Vespolina.
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4. Prima: The Prima IlConsorzio, in WalnutCreek, is one of the few wine clubs to which I continue to belong. FrankRothstein does an amazing job of selecting very good value wines for his 3-btl a month shipments, most priced around the $20/btl mark. This was one of the best gems he's uncovered.
Tom