I’m drinking the Nervi 2000 Gattinara for this first time and love it. Thank you for the article on this grape varietal. I will be buying more soon for sure!

Tom

Nebbiolo d’Alba can vary widely depending on producer and vintage. Some producers take their Nebbiolos quite seriously, while to others it’s just an afterthought - one piece of advice - buy Nebbiolo d’Alba in BAD Barolo, Barbaresco vintages - it’s often de-classified juice from those wines (that didn’t get made because of concerns over quality)

Also, the permissable yields, the average ages of the vines, the level of triage, etc. all favor the the prestigious appellations of Barolo, Barbaresco, Ghemme, Gattinara over the less “ambitious” Nebbiolo d’Alba.

TOM CIOCCO

The easily measurable differences between Brunello and rosso is indeed exclusively about aging requirements, HOWEVER, in most cases, it is the unseen elements that also make a difference. In most cases, rosso di Montalcino is made with either the fruit from younger vines, or the “second cut” of fruit from the older vines. There are a few very high end Brunello producers who use the EXACT same fruit for both Brunello and rosso, but this is far fronm the norm.

TOM CIOCCO

Thanks for the endorsement of Gattinara. I’ve read that the quality of Gattinara and Ghemme has begun to rival that of Barolo and Barbaresco and I would like to try them, but I haven’t been able to find any in my market. I’ve also noticed Nebbiolo d’Alba getting more attention. Do you have an opinion on how they compare to Barolo and Barbaresco?

Your topic reminds me of the relationship between Brunello di Montalcino and Rosso di Montalcino. Andrea Robinson refers to Rosso di Montalcino as “baby Brunello” and defines it as containing the grapes that didn’t quite make the cut for the Brunello.

A friend of mine visited a Brunello producer this summer who made a point to assure my friend that his Rosso was in no way inferior to his Brunello. My friend was told that no distinction was made in the grapes that went into each wine, only in the aging regimens. The Rosso was merely made in such a way as to be more approachable in its youth.

What do you make of this? Is this producer an exception? Or, is this the approach taken by most Brunello producers? Or, was this just a savvy producer, marketing his “second” wine?

Enjoy your long weekend!

Second, no posts until September 3rd!!! You deserve a break, but I’m going to have to look for a good book on Italian wine for these kinds of breaks (got any suggestions?)