Nestled into the northwest section of Italy, about an hour southwest of the fashion capital Milan, lies a series of hills that yield some the finest and long lived reds in all of Italy.  From communes such as La Morra, Serralunga d’Alba, Monforte d’Alba, Castiglione Falletto and Barolo emerge some of the most revered Barolo’s, all derived from the great black grape Nebbiolo.  The region’s geography ranges from the plains in Novara and Vercelli to the hills of Asti and Monferrato to the steeper and picturesque hills of Langhe and Roero.  As you might infer, the range of geography produces differing climes and microclimes, all impacting the style of wine.

With a history that indirectly dates back to 1AD, Pliny the Elder describes a wine from this region that fits the characteristics of the Nebbiolo grape.  Documents from the castle of Rivoli dated 1235 refer to a description of the grape that fits Nebbiolo while more specific referrals were made in 1303 and 1304, referring to the grape as both “nebiolo” and “nubiola,” the later evoking a description of the wine as delightful and excellent.  By the 15th century, the laws of La Morra were firm that the punishment for destroying a Nebbiolo vine could range from a severe fine to amputating the right hand and for repeat offenders, hanging.

While Nebbiolo based wines such as Barolo and Barbaresco receive such international accolades, the grape contributes only about 3% of the region’s wine production and less than one fifteenth of the annual Barbera production.   For a wine to be a DOCG approved Barolo or Barbaresco, it must contain 100% Nebbiolo.

The grape itself is a somewhat finicky, preferring the calcareous marl soils of the right bank of the Tanaro River around Alba where outstanding Barolo and Barbarescos are produced.  The slightly acidic sandy soils of the left bank can support the grape but the wines tend to mature early, displaying less perfumed scents and lacking in the classic tar aromas.   While the classic Barolos and Barbarescos are associated with communes including and surrounding Barolo and Barbaresco, the villages of Ghemme and Gatinara produce a delightful and lighter Nebbiolo from soils composed of igneous (cooled lava or magma) rock. 

Nebbiolo is one of the first of Piedmont varieties to bud and flower and one of the last to ripen, the harvest often not completed until late October.   The grape flourishes in warm, dry weather, further developing the sugars and fruit flavors and balancing the grape’s natural acidity and tannins.  Ideally, the vines are planted on the south and southwest facing slopes, offering maximal sunlight at an elevation of 500-1000 feet.  The grapes are particularly sensitive to coulure, a metabolic reaction of the vine to cool, cloudy and rainy weather conditions resulting in an uneven growth of grapes after flowering.   Some of the flowers remain closed and thus are not fertilized.  Coulure can also predisposed the bunches to disease.
 
Winemaking styles of Nebbiolo based wine varies from the old school traditional processes to modern day techniques.  The more traditional process involves extended maceration times of twenty to thirty days resulting in high extraction of phenols such as tannins and very high fermentation temperatures, reducing flavors and aromas.  With a high tannic level, these wines have a reputation of being rough around the edges, benefiting from time to bring them into better balance, often times five years or longer.  As well, older techniques were not as attentive as today to the sanitary state of cement tanks and oak barrels, risking bacterial contamination of the wine and infusing it with “off” scents that some claim added an earthy aroma to the wine.

An alternative approach to winemaking is seen with many modern day vintners, the maceration time reduced to seven to ten days along with controlled (i.e. cooler) fermentation temperatures.  This, side by side with much improved hygiene of the tanks, has resulted in wines with a more pure expression of flavors and aromas.  Toward the end of fermentation, some winemakers will heat their cellars, jump starting the malolactic process which in turn, tends to soften the wine .   Winemakers will often use new small oak barrels that serve to soften the wine still further in just a few years as well as potentially imparting scents of vanilla and oak.

The DOCG regulations for Barolo require that the wine spend one year in oak and three years of total aging for a normal style while the riservas must spend 57 months total aging time.  In contrast, the normal style Nebbiolo based Barbarescos must spend nine months in oak and twenty one months of total aging.  A riserva Barbaresco is required to spend forty five months of total aging.  The minimum alcohol level for both DOCG approved Barolos and Barbarescos is 12.5%.

The Barolo zone is composed of several key communes, each of which can produce a different aromatic slant on the wine.  The Castiglione Falleto often yields wines that are well structured yet offer finesse.  The Monforte produces wines with great balance and firm tannins, offering the potential for aging.  Serralunga produces the heaviest of the Barolos.  All of these zones have soils of sand, limestone and some clay.  To the west are the zones of Barolo and La Morra, characterized by calcareous marl, chalk and clay, the soils expressed in wines that are softer and more perfumed.

The towns of Ghemme and Gatinara located in the Novara and Vercelli hills also produce some DOCG approved Nebbiolos.  The grape here is known as Spanna and tends to produce lighter yet still earthy wines.  These wines do not require 100% Nebbiolo, producers allowed to add a small amount of grapes such as Bonarda, Croatina and Vespolina.  Carema, in the northwest of Piedmont, produces DOC wine with a perfumed character while those from Alba (Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC) offer a tamer version, retaining complexity and structure and better for near term enjoyment.  The Roero district, characterized by sandy soils, also produces a DOC Nebbiolo based wine that tend toward the lighter side.  The Langhe Nebbiolo is a regional DOC for Piedmont which contains wine declassified from producers in Barolo, Barbaresco, Nebbiolo d’Alba and Roero.

One hundred percent Piedmont Nebbiolo (Barolo and Barbaresco) tends to display a medium purple hue and in their youth aromas of dried cherry, plum and medium tannins.  Allow these wines to age for a decade or longer, however, and they transition into something quite special, the color revealing hints of brick and orange and more complexity emerging with scents of leather, tar, tobacco, earth, olive, truffles and lovely perfumed nuances of rose petal.  The best of these have the potential to age for twenty even thirty years.  If you’re looking for Nebbiolos for near term enjoyment, those from Gattinara, Alba and Carema offer nice choices.

Some top Barolo names to look for are Bruno Giacosa, Robert Voerzio, Paolo Scavino, Domenico Clerico, Luciano Sandrone, Elio Altare, Aldo Conterno, Giacomo Conterno, Pio Cesare, and Vietti.  Star Barbarescos include Gaja, Pio Cesare, Bruno Giacosa, Moccagatta, Rinaldi, Bruno Rocca, Sottimano, Produttori del Barbaresco, Ceretto, Albino Rocca and Vietti
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Tags: Barbaresco, Barolo, Nebbiolo, Piedmont