Well we have had three fantastic days today we head to Calabria and Sicily. As well as seeing all our producers we represent in Australia via Mondo Imports, we had some great tasting at some of the best producers in the Langhe.
The highlights included a tour and tasting with Roberto Conterno from Giacomo Conterno (trying the 2010 Monfortino out of barrel) and dinner last night with Gaia Gaja over a bottle of 78 Barbaresco.
It has been a busy trip this year with lot’s of stops for just one night. Throw in lunch and dinner with producers and suppliers and it normally means that eating dinner is the last thing you feel like at 8pm. However as I have mentioned previously, sitting down one on one is by far the best way to work together especially considering Australia and Italy are so far away, so the opportunity to do this is very rare. Most of the time just once a year!!
After leaving Parma we drove up to La Morra first for lunch and were craving a proper VPN Neapolitan Pizza. The go to Pizza place in the Langhe is Per Bacco in the heart of La Morra and the pizza’s did not let us down. We ate five pizza’s between three of us and they were as good as I have had anywhere outside of Naples.
From lunch we headed to Alba where I do a bit of business buying bottles from old cellars. It is always good togo and see what is available from the treasure chest of old Barolo and Barbaresco. Yesterday the cellars were full with many old bottle of Monfortino and Produttori available to buy.
It is crazy how time flies when you are on the go and before we knew it, it was 8pm and time for dinner at La Ciau del Tornavento in Treiso. This amazing restaurant produces some of the best food in Italy and last night we were not disappointed. At La Ciau we caught up with Paolo Saracco and Massimo Benevelli. Two producers that we represent with pride in Australia. Whilst sales of both these wineries have gone through the roof in the last year (we have just done our first full container between the two wineries!!) I know that they are happy regardless of sales, as it is more about relationships than sales budgets. When I catch up with Paolo and Massimo in Barolo or Barbaresco I know the drill: plenty of fantastic wine and lot’s of food! Last night was exactly that and we did not arrive back to our hotel until close to 1am.
After just quick stop in the Langhe (less that 24 hours), today we headed in Milano for lunch with our Australian shipping agent (Vito Bonino!!) who has been with us for most of our trip and our Italian contact. More on that later!!
In the next few days I will report back on this dinner, it was a great night with a new producer being ‘uncovered’ on the night…
Today was a big day of driving. A few wrong turns along the way added about an hour to my trip. I finally arrived in Radda in Chianti around 3pm and checked into my hotel before jumping in my car again and driving about 30km to San Gimignano. The stress of driving evaporated as soon as I entered the town’s walls.
And when in San Gimignano, an ice-cream is a must…
For me, the Gaja family are one of the reasons why Barbaresco is now considered to be one of the greatest wines’ of the world. This has not always been the case, as if not for the hard (and sometimes controversial) work of Angelo Gaja, Barbaresco might not have such a high standing in our world of wine. This has nothing to do with quality, but more to do with the acceptance of Barbaresco being the equal to that of Barolo.
Angelo Gaja has not only been able to lift the profile of Barbaresco and the wines of Gaja to be placed amongst the finest of Italy, but their wines are now accepted to be the equal of the most noble wines of the world.
The hard work of Angelo Gaja has done promoting the wines of Gaja around the world is now undertaken by his daughter, Gaia Gaja. Angelo must be proud to have such a smart and passionate daughter by his side telling the story of Gaja around the world. I first met Gaia in Melbourne a few years ago and it was an honour to have Gaia return the favour on an amazing tour of her families vineyards and cellars in Barbaresco. As much as I know and understand Gaja, I feel a deeper understanding and greater respect for the reasons why this family has been so influential and successful.
The cellars of Gaja are amazing and seemingly take up half the town of Barbaresco. The cellar and winery are spotless and nothing is left to chance, different size barrels (from large to small) are situated on different levels of the cellar.
On every corner and floor of the cellars, a different piece of art captivates your eye. In some wineries it might seem out of place, but here in the heart of Barbaresco it serves of a reminder of the beauty of Barbaresco and its’ wines.
It was a fascinating experience to visit each of the single vineyard cru’s with Gaia and listen to her explain the differences between each site. Different row orientation, soil and aspect all contribute to the differences between the three single vineyard cru’s.
After a tour of the cellar and vineyards, we went upstairs to the tasting room to try a number of different wines under the Gaja label. As we walked through the corridor, Gaia’s mum was hosting an international tasting for a bunch of buyers. Little things like this illustrate to me why the family has been so successful: they all work hard in all parts of their business.
We tried through a number of different wines spanning over two decades. For me, the three wines that stood out (and I could have easily chosen any of the ten wines as they were all of the highest quality) were the 2008 ‘Estate’ Barbaresco, 1999 Sperss and 1989 Darmagi. Below are my tasting notes on the three wines:
2008 ‘Estate’ Barbaresco: perfume, tightly wound, red berries, rhubarb, quite savoury, ripe tannins and balanced. So youthful with many many years in front of it.
1999 Sperss: Amazing, so perfect, will hold for many years. Sweet graphite, earth, minerals, so youthful and expressive.
1989 Darmagi: Served blind by Gaia, I picked it as 1999. Well a decade off, not bad! Hint of capsicum and ginger, very Cabernet palate but with an expression of the Langhe. Amazing wine, so perfect.
It was a perfect way to finish an amazing few hours with Gaia Gaja in the cellars of Gaja in Barbaresco. Grazie Mille Gaia!!
After nearly a week of tasting then lunch, tasting then dinner it is good to be arrive back at my apartment in the Langhe and stay here and cook. The views are amazing and so is the produce in this area.
Tonight I cooked a porcini risotto with fresh truffles and a Fennel-Radicchio salad. I bought a bottle of Giacosa Arneis for the risotto then opened a bottle of Vietti Castiglione Barolo 1989.
It is good to be back in Italy, with great people that we import, eating great food and drinking great wine.
Today after lunch I left Milano to drive to the Langhe. For the next few days I am based at Paolo Saracco’s apartments situated in the middle of his vineyards in Castiglione Tinella.
Not only is Saracco Moscato one of the best Moscato d’Asti’s in the world, they are also great people and have an amazing house (split into three apartments to rent). If you have a car it is well worth staying here. Click on the link: http://www.albergocastiglione.com/pagine/ita/casa-nelle-vigne.lasso
This afternoon I spent a few hours with my contact who supplies me my old Barolo and Barbaresco and tonight dinner is planned with the Saracco and Benevelli families. What a great way to spend my first night in the Langhe.
In two weeks time I will be back in Italy and based in Barbaresco for a week before heading into Tuscany and then onto Vinitaly. For me the Langhe is the mecca for food and wine in the North of Italy.
Other than visiting some pretty amazing vineyards, there will be plenty of eating the specialities from the region…
And it goes without saying, when in Milan….
I will updating my blog daily when I am away and I hope you enjoy. There will be many great people, great bottles and great food along the way.
Whilst I am in Alba I will spend most of my week there visiting the wineries we represent in Australia (Roagna, Traversa, Bruno Porro, Paolo Saracco-Vic, Piero Benevelli, etc) but I also try and visit the king and queen of Barbaresco.
Who are these people?
For me it is Aldo Vacca and Gaia Gaja from Produttori del Barbaresco and Gaja respectively. Not only do they make some of the best Barbaresco in the world, they are also humble people who have a passion for the Langhe and are willing to share their time and knowledge with the rest of the world. It will be, as is always the case, one of the highlights of my trip to Italy.
On my last visit to Barbaresco, I missed catching up with Gaia, so I look forward to trying some of the new releases on this visit to the winery.
Land of vineyards, woods, cultivated fields and ancient farmsteads.
Its roads travelled by stubborn and determined, wise and visionary men and women.
This is Dogliani, a frontier, where the respect for time and the love of place have made these valleys unique.
There are a number of wines from Piemonte that whilst popular, have been allocated to the ‘not to serious pile’. Dolcetto is top of the tree in this regard with most of the wine world knowing this grape variety as the ‘perfect lunchtime wine’.
Dolcetto has long been considered a lunchtime wine, but is it? Spare a thought for those folks in Dogliani who have been making serious ageworthy Dolcetto for a long long time.
So what does this mean? That we are happy to drink this wine at lunch and not at dinner? Whilst like most varieties, there is a lot of bad Dolcetto out there, Dolcetto also has a serious side to it. In time I hope Dolcetto is seen in a different, more serious not. It deserves to be.
Recently, Dolcetto has started the process of being recognised as a serious wine style and all of this work has been from the Dolcetto producers of Dogliani.
Our Dolcetto is the result of the values we believe in.
At Dogliani we dream that is possible to follow the ancient art of wine-growing in a land that still speaks of rural countryside. Here, our vineyards exist in harmony with the rest of our farming culture, sharing the land with hazelnut groves, fields of grains and cereals, pastures, and the woods that are home to wild hares, boars, deer, as well as our extraordinary truffles.
At Dogliani we dream that those who make wine are still able to listen to their craft, fruit of the traditions impressed upon their souls and upon the work of their hands. At Dogliani we dream that our wines can express, with elegance, all of those Piedmontese values that we hold dear: sobriety, determination, truth and that freedom that allows us to firmly believe in an identity decidedly out of fashion. At Dogliani we dream that there is a world out there still able to hear and appreciate these simple, age-old values on which agricultural life and society have always been founded; values that are the true bridge to the future.
It’s true, at Dogliani we are dreamers, but – with our feet firmly planted in the clouds. La Bottega del Dolcetto
The La Bottega del Dolcetto di Dogliani website http://www.ildogliani.it is a fantastic reference point for all things Dogliani and should be your first starting point in learning about how good Dolcetto can be. Two years ago I visited Dogliani and fell in love with the wines that I tried. It made me believe that Dolcetto could be serious. The wines I tried were grown up, sophisticated and complex. The exact opposite to what I thought Dolcetto was.
However, even though I came back with a new found understanding of Dolcetto, I still did not believe that Dolcetto could be taken seriously and that there was a market for it in Australia. Youthful ignorance on my part.
Fast forward two years and our first shipment of DOCG Dolcetto di Dogliani has just landed on our shores and I am glad we took the final step and brought these wines into Australia. Already they have found a market willing to embrace the serious side of Dolcetto.
The road to DOCG (as flawed a domination that it is) was a long, steep and windy road for the producers of Dogliani. This is something that is not granted overnight: it takes a decade of vintages to prove that the wines justify the classification.
To obtain DOCG status a wine must demonstrate its superior prestige over a period of at least 10 years, during which it is produced and bottled. At the end of this time, a national governing board must decide whether to accept its candidacy or not. To substantiate its request, Dogliani presented ten vintages of Dolcetto di Dogliani Superiore together with a group of DOC wines that had a more incisive and particular character as compared to Dolcettos conceived as easy and early-drinking wines. The bottles were tasted by a special commission and, after a waiting period, the DOCG status was conferred on Dolcetto di Dogliani. http://www.ildogliani.it
For me the best examples of Dolcetto from Dogliani take on a almost Barolo like structure with beautiful complex fruit matched with some pretty serious tannins. This structure and tannins sets Dolcetto di Dogliani apart from the rest of the the Langhe.
What makes Dolcetto from Dogliani different from the rest of Piemonte?
This is La Bottega del Dolcetto di Dogliani (the association of producers of the Dolcetto di Dogliani) take on it:
The Climate
Dolcetto, demanding as it is in everything else, also prefers a certain climate. This grape does not cope well with extreme heat or cold, both of which can halt or slow the ripening process. Nor does it appreciate overly dry weather. A good supply of water is essential and it prospers and grows best in ventilated, open hills in the vicinity of higher mountains.
Sunshine and rain, changes in temperature, wind patterns and air currents, alternating day in and day out, an unexpectedly cold night, all constitute a very subtle language that requires of the winegrower an experienced ear, a language that the grape vine is able to interpret immediately. Climate is one of the three fundamental elements that, together with the geology of the terrain and man’s intervention, define terroir. Unlike other zones, where the character of each vintage is not so distinct, here the combinations of temperature, sunlight, and precipitation are almost infinite, and determine the constant divergences that we find in the wines. Climate, almost impossible to predict, far easier to assess in retropspect.
The Soil
Looking out on the tidy rows of vines, rhythmically following one upon the other, we see only the above-ground vine stock, the shoot system which grows upwards, reaching for the sky. But in reality, much of the plant’s vital existence is underground. Far from being just a simple, inanimate support, the earth, in the composition of its soil, the quality of its minerals, its capacity to heat and cool itself, and its wealth of micro-organisms, defines the place where the vine sinks its roots, often metres deep, and determines its character in great part. Dolcetto, sensitive as it is to every element that affects its existence, is even more so where soil is involved. There are very few areas where this grape manages to find its equilibrium, and many, on the other hand, where just a few weeks before ripening fully, the berries fall off the vine due to an excess of humidity, or soil compaction.
In sandy soil, Dolcetto will germinate early, thanks to the warming of its roots, but will also feel more strongly the earth’s cooling, caused by spring or late summer rains, than it would in other soil types. In silty-clayey soil, the thin layer of earth causes the interruption of vine dormancy to occur more gradually, but also slows down the roots’ reaction to adverse climatic conditions. Dogliani is fortunate in having soil types with a special aptitude and affinity for growing Dolcetto.
What does the future lie for Dolcetto di Dogliani?
Considering how far Dolcetto has progressed in the last decade, it would be fair to say that the future looks rosy for Dolcetto di Dogliani. Increased exposure has been crucial for people to see the serious side of Dolcetto. It can be complex. It can be serious, and it can age long term.
When buying your next bottle of wine from a restaurant wine list or wine store, look out for Dolcetto di Dogliani. It may not be easy to track down, but it is definitely worth the effort.
il vino da tavola 