Nebbiolo

Also known as: Spanna (Northern Piedmont), Chiavennasca (Valtellina), Picoutener (Savoie)

Nebbiolo demands patience – from the winemaker as well as the drinker. The grape ripens late, often only in the fog (nebbia) of the Piedmontese autumn. The wines need time to shed their closed nature. But those who wait are rewarded: no other red wine combines so much power with so much transparency. The pale red colour is deceptive, the tannin is not.

Vietti in Castiglione Falletto shows the full range of vineyard sites, Sottimano concentrates on Barbaresco with a focus on single vineyards such as Currà and Fausoni. Roagna goes even further back – to almost forgotten vineyard parcels and decades of bottle ageing.