A month long Italian wine & food adventure

[winetastic]

My partner and I just returned from a month long trip through various Italian wine regions, with the exception of the last few nights in the trip, we were 100% focused on wine and visited between 2 and 4 producers most days, plus bonus tastings at enotecas/wine bars as the mood took us.

We spent 6 nights in Barbaresco, 3 nights in Alba, 6 nights in Barolo, 4 nights in Montalcino, 4 nights in Panzano in Chianti and rounded things out with non-wine related ventures of 1 night in Parma (spent drinking wine) and 3 nights in Lake Como (more wine). On reflection, putting a break in between Piemonte and Tuscany would have been wise, however since my knowledge of Tuscan wines is limited at best, a more leisurely pace when it came to tastings worked out just fine for that leg of the trip.

Overall impressions as far as wine-tourism destinations? Barbaresco is the most amazing place on the planet, the views in all directions are breathtaking, the restaurant and wine bar options outstanding and at no stage do you feel you are in a 'tourist area'. Barolo is great especially once you are high up in the hills of Monforte or Serralunga, however I would recommend moving around to different villages in the area rather than spending too much time 'in town'. Montalcino is quaint and has outrageous food at modest prices, the wines however are extremely variable in quality. Panzano has a couple of unique experiences, the best coffee and amazing views as you drive around.

It is going to take me quite some time to write this all up and convert my hand written scrawls into a reasonably constructed tasting notes, so ill probably be updating this thread for a week or two. The plan is to write a post per producer or venue, so I can turn this first post into an index of sorts.

Barbaresco Producers
Cantina Del Pino
Carlo Giacosa
Produttori Del Barbaresco
Albino Rocca
Bruno Rocca
Cigliuti
Boffa
Sottimano
Gigi Bianco
Moccagatta
Olek Bondonio
Giuseppe Cortese
Marchesi Di Gresy

Barolo Producers
Pio Cesare
Giovanni Rosso
Elio Grasso
Benevelli
Cavallotto
Massolino
Borgogno
Azelia
Brezza
Paolo Scavino
GD Vajra
Cappellano
Vietti
Bartolo Mascarello
Poderi Luigi Einaudi

Montalcino Producers
Poggio Antico
Ill Palazzone
Casanova di Neri
Collemattoni
Ciacci Piccolomini
Casa Raia

Chianti Classico Producers
Il Molino Di Grace
Isole e Olena
Querciabella
Fontodi
Castello di Monsanto
Le Fonti

Wine Bars, etc.
Prima e Poi del Tornavento (Barbaresco)
Voglia Di Vino (Alba)
Vincafe (Alba)
Vinoteca Centro Storico (Serralunga)
La Vite Turchese (Barolo)
Accademia del Buon Gusto (Panzano)
Aperitivo et al (Bellagio)
Enoteca CavaTuracciolo (Bellagio)

Restaurants
Ristorante Antica Torre (Barbaresco)
Ristorante Antine (Barbaresco)
Ristorante Rabayà (Barbaresco)
Locanda in Cannubi (Barolo)
Ristorante Boccon Di Vino (Montalcino)
Re di Macchia (Montalcino)
Castello di Verrazzano (Greve in Chianti)
Officina della Bistecca (Panzano in Chianti)

Accomodation
Casa Boffa (Barbaresco)
Vincafe (Alba)
Hotel Barolo (Barolo)
Casa Svizzera (Barolo)
Hotel Vecchia Oliviera Sas (Montalcino)
I Casaloni (Panzano)

[Ozzie W]

I am looking forward to reading more about your Italian wine trip, winetastic. I've got a keen interest in Italian wines at the moment.

[swirler]

Thanks in advance for the work you've/'re going to put in.

The introduction was great. Can't wait for the rest!

[michel]

Great effort
Post away !

[Ian S]

I swear you've visited as many B&B producers in a single visit, as we've done in half a dozen visits - well done!

I very much agree with you on Brunello, and whilst I've had the odd good bottle, the majority have been underwhelming and I much prefer Vino Nobile di Montepulciano (leaner/ bonier and all the much better for that) and selected Chianti estates. For value it's either Vino Nobile, Selvapiana or the few quality Sangiovese producers in Emilia Romagna.

I do find Barolo itself now increasingly touristy, but then I've seen the change over recent years, hence certain elements jar. The other villages mostly avoid that, though I suppose La Morra has a bit more passing traffic than the others.

Very interested in all you choose to write up, and especially a load of restaurants / wine bars we've not been to, so good to get a view on them. I really should also try the Bondonio wines sometime, as they've been talked about a lot on wine for a, but I can barely recall seeing a bottle, let alone one in a wine bar for tasting.

Any great food discoveries or joys would be good to hear of as well. Did you taste any Cugna/Cogna/Cougna? The home-made stuff can be stunning.

regards
Ian

[rossmckay]

wow, really looking forward to the write-up that's a staunch effort

[Michael R]

wow, really looking forward to the write-up that's a staunch effort

+1

[Gavin Trott]

Greatly looking forward also, working now on planning our trip to Italy, seemingly with similar ideas to yours, next year.

So, looking forward to reading greatly! Well done (in advance).

.

[winetastic]

After spending a day and night in Milan to get over the worst of the jet lag, we jumped in our hire car and headed off toward Barbaresco. Driving in the cities of Italy is quite an experience, road rules are definitely more like guidelines and everyone thinks they are Michael Schumacher or Valentino Rossi in the case of the scooter riders. The Autostrada (motorway) network is excellent, albeit rather expensive, while the free major highways are in a dire state, driver beware.

When we arrived, despite the fact it was 18C and sunny, there was still patches of snow in the higher vineyards and around the village of Barbaresco itself. The village itself is serene and peaceful, shown below the view from across the way:


Enoteca regionale del barbaresco (the church of wine):


We had approx 60min to kill before lunch, so walked into the cantina next door, Rocche Dei Barbari. I had never heard of them and apparently they basically only sell wine direct to the consumer and very little makes it to retail. No notes were taken, however the Primanebbia (Langhe Nebbiolo) 2010 was suitably delicious and good value, so we walked away with a bottle. The opportunity was given to taste some back vintages thanks to an argon presevation system, the 1998 Barbaresco was all secondary leather and tar characteristics, very interesting but definitely lacked a bit of freshness.

Lunch at Ristorante Antica Torre
Antica Torre offers an intimate and relaxed dining experience, the menu like most in Barbaresco contains entirely local dishes. I thought my ability to read a menu in Italian was decent, however we were entirely at sea here due to the very local descriptions for the dishes. The staff while very friendly, had limited English and we did struggle a little given we only spoke a few words in Italian. I ended up ordering the 'Plin' ravioli and roast duck, while my partner inadvertently ordered essentially the same dish for entree and main, tongue with salsa (cold) followed by beef cheeks with the same salsa (hot).

The prices on the food are quite high, though on this first visit, the dishes were all very good.

The wine-list is also extremely locally focused, with page after page of Barbaresco offerings, a handful of Barolo and not much else - in other words, exactly what you would want.

We selected a bottle of Giuseppe Cortese Barbaresco Rabaja 2006 from the list (approx EUR 50), which appeared to be excellent value. I did not take notes outside of 'official' tastings, however this bottle was magnificent and was an excellent pairing with the Duck main course.


Chefs welcome, fried polenta with ragu, delicious:


'Plin' ravioli with butter and sage, one of the best pasta dishes of the trip:


Lingua (tongue) with salsa, nice enough but nothing to rave about:


Roast duck, meat was excellent, but Italians surprisingly tend to overcook side vegetables:


We ended up having a second lunch here and the quality of the dishes was not quite as high the second time around. Worth a visit but there are better value options around.

[Rocky]

Well done. Like a good book I find myself eagerly waiting for the next chapter.

[vovo]

Awesome, I am keen to read this too. I have visited only a tiny fraction of the places you listed, but will be interesting to use them as a yardstick to gauge the rest of your trip. Bring it on.

[Ian S]

Many thanks for this.

Yes I really should have mentioned the state of the roads - driving from France into Italy was a major shock. The French roads often pristine with litter pickers bravely ensuring the verges are clear, and the state of repair excellent. The tolls are worth it for the quality and at times the lack of traffic (we were worried when we left Calais, as within a minute we couldn't see another car - that's unusual for Europe). Crossing the border into Italy was such a noticeable difference with potholed roads and an excess of concrete and garish signposts. Italian driving is something I greatly respect. Yes they drive fast (you should try around Bologna, where many sports car and performance bike producers are based - the speeds are often insane). Yet the quality of driving is immense, and judgement of gaps/distance utterly brilliant. Scary to us, but I do trust the general standard of driving there, much more than our own, which I believe has dropped well below French driving (which used to have a poor reputation).

Rocche Dei Barbari are also a new name to me, though I surely must have walked past them 3-4 times on prior visits. Plenty of producers who never get a mention with the critics (Italy or abroard).

Piemontese pasta can be a (pleasant) surprise for those who assume pasta must come swimming in a tomato-based sauce. The simple preparations with butter and herbs can be a real joy, and it's something we do at home (along with Pasta in broth / in brodo).

Brave of you to go with the tongue - twice! Not a dish either of us enjoy at all, indeed the concept of bollito misto (where tongue is but one of the 'boiled' meats) is one we've not enjoyed. I wonder if you had the Finanziera, with it's cock's comb as the highlight? I shall read on the later instalments to find out. Much more to my taste are Bagna Cauda with the wonderful piemontese peppers and Vitello tonnato, both unusual combinations that work very well.

regards
Ian

[Benchmark]

Great reading.

[winetastic]

Thank you all for the encouragement! Will get to some actual wine tasting soon...

I spent almost an hour writing up the next two sections and somehow lost it when I saved the draft. Once I get over being annoyed at myself ill do it again in a more stable environment.

[via collins]

Agreed on the driving Ian. It's another language entirely in Italy.

My driving experience was Sicily, where the cars are small, the speeds are great, and the horns are used to chatter on the roads. We initially thought it was aggression, but of course it's not - it's subtle language to indicate what one is doing, and to advise those nearby. Once we learnt the language of the roads, we really enjoyed it.

But could never in a million years drive like that here in Melbourne

Commiserations on the drafting SNAFU winetastic - like others, I am thoroughly enjoying the prospect of more writing - and yes, less tongue

[winetastic]

Following lunch we took the massive 1 minute commute to our accommodation Casa Boffa. We were expecting to meet two of Tamara’s friends who were joining us for the Barbaresco and Alba legs of the trip later that evening, however we were pleasantly surprised to find they had just arrived and checked in.

Accommodation: Casa Boffa
The most important aspect of any place to stay in wine country is of course access to good coffee, on this front I score Casa Boffa "Langhe Nebbiolo/10" since they have a high end, fully automatic espresso machine which turns out creditable cappuccino's that I was happy to down several cups of every morning. Now that the important things are out of the way...

Casa Boffa is a boutique B&B with a large verandah which boasts a million dollar view of Barbaresco vineyards, the Tanaro river and Monte Bianco in the distance. Boffa is of course also a cantina, and the cellars sit literally right below the rooms. They are also one of the few wineries in the area to offer wine tastings to anyone wandering by, as well as selling wine by the glass along with some small nibbles.

The view from the verandah:


The rooms themselves are spacious and clean, with modern bathrooms and comfortable beds. Breakfast was of excellent quality and included meats and cheeses with fresh tomato, cereal, fresh fruit, pastries, ‘health’ bars and of course plenty of espresso. As a bonus, since we were there in the off season, the pricing was very affordable.

What really set this place apart was the very warm reception we received from our hosts Carlo and Linda, who repeatedly went above and beyond the call of duty. The first time we returned from a tasting with a couple of bottles of Barbaresco in hand, Carlo immediately offered us some glasses (riedel pinot of course) and offered the pop the corks. If that wasn’t hospitable enough for a venue selling wine by the glass, complementary prosciutto and parmesan followed soon thereafter. We spent every glorious afternoon sat on the deck, sipping wine and watching the sunset, before migrating indoors into the breakfast area to enjoy another glass or two while waiting for dinner-o'clock to roll around, since most restaurants in Italy do not open for dinner until 20:00.

One evening Carlo and Linda were heading out early to meet some winemaker friends, so rather than kicking us out to lock up what doubles as the tasting room filled with wine, he just left us the key to do so at our leisure. As a side note, he was obviously feeling the effects of the festivities the next morning, yet still had everything ready to go at breakfast time - above and beyond the call.

I cannot recommend Casa Boffa highly enough, it was by far the best place we stayed on the trip and I definitely felt quite sad once we had to ‘leave home’ to head into Alba and beyond.

[winetastic]

Tour and Tasting: Cantina del Pino
After a leisurely 15min stroll, we walked from the Barbaresco village center to find Cantina del Pino winemaker Renato just greeting 4 other guests from the US and Italy for a tour. Renato was an engaging host and really got stuck into the detail when anyone showed interest. There was plenty of excellent discussion around soil types, aspect, the effect of climate change and so forth.



Once we got into the cellar, we got the rundown that the Barbarescos spend 1 year in older barriques before moving to the larger format botti.



My notes were a bit short here (jetlag?) so i'll keep it simple rather than embellishing.

Barbaresco ‘Ovello’ 2012
Pre-release, bottle had been opened earlier in the day. Strawberry, lots of floral elements, some cedar on the finish, very good.

Barbaresco ‘Ovello’ 2011
More generous than the 2012 when it comes to fruit and aromatics, cherry and cedar, good length.

Barbaresco ‘Ovello’ 2008
Pop & pour, tannins very challenging right now, a baby that is looking awkward, quality was there.

Barbaresco ‘Ovello’ 2006
Pop & pour, some leather and red cherry on the nose, tannins starting to soften, definitely the best of the lot to drink right now.

Overall I would describe the house style as lean-modern, the aromatics are not suppressed by the use of smaller format oak and you still get plenty of very pretty floral aromas supported by woody spices like clove. The weight of the wines is moderate by barbaresco standards but I did detect a little cedar on the finish on the younger vintages - assuming the oak treatment remains relatively similar, it seems to integrate well as the wines mature.

Relative to other Barbaresco producers we visited, I feel they fall in around the middle of the pack. Personally since I am quite oak averse, the house style is probably not quite my thing. The tour itself was excellent and I learned a lot. The opportunity to taste some back vintages certainly didn’t hurt either.

[Sean]

deleted

[Chris H]

Echoing that. We are all greatly enjoying your write-ups Winetastic.

[wifekidsmortgage]

Reading with great interest as I'm likely to be in France and Italy in mid to late December. My daughter has a French trip to of all place Bordeaux (just terrible!) and we intend to get back to Milan where we have stayed before. Definitely will be fitting in a Barolo visit and tastings at some stage while in Italy.

[Ian S]

Really good stuff - enjoyable reading for sure.

Breakfast is a bit of a hit & miss affair in Italy, as it's not really a proper meal there (they make up for it later in the day). Just a coffee and a cake is often enough to kick off the day (at least until it's time for the next coffee!). We've had some very good ones, but also some pretty uninspiring ones, including at places that excel with lunch & dinner. This sounds like it's at the better end of the scale.

We've not visited Cantina del Pino, but do enjoy the wines. Sometimes people get uptight about the use of barriques (especially on Wine Berserkers forum), but the devil is in the detail. 1 year in older barriques (perhaps with a low toast level?) followed by Botte Grande would be quite a way from the Altares and Revellos of the Barolo scene. I've had a good few of the 1998 Ovello and also some 1999 Ovello, and from an initial note about 'a little oak poking out' in 2006, the later notes didn't mention it at all. The 1998 was at it's best with our most recent bottle opened in Jan 2016 and still showing no signs of decline. Prices have crept up, but I still rate them as decent value for good wines.

I'll be interested in your take on the various vintages once you wrap the posts up. I've tended towards the 06s 08s and 10s (albeit not to the extent of the hype surrounding the latter). 07s are IMO great choices in a restaurant, but not ones I'd prefer to cellar. 09s will mostly pass me by. 11s I've only experienced at the Langhe Nebbiolo level, but what I've tried at that level has been excellent - that's not to say anything about the grand wines. It could be that the lovely aromatics are more crucial to the lesser wines that sometimes can be a little dull.

[winetastic]

We've not visited Cantina del Pino, but do enjoy the wines. Sometimes people get uptight about the use of barriques (especially on Wine Berserkers forum), but the devil is in the detail. 1 year in older barriques (perhaps with a low toast level?) followed by Botte Grande would be quite a way from the Altares and Revellos of the Barolo scene. I've had a good few of the 1998 Ovello and also some 1999 Ovello, and from an initial note about 'a little oak poking out' in 2006, the later notes didn't mention it at all. The 1998 was at it's best with our most recent bottle opened in Jan 2016 and still showing no signs of decline. Prices have crept up, but I still rate them as decent value for good wines.

One of the things I definitely learned on this trip is its not as simple as barrique vs botti or modern vs traditional, lots of shades of gray. There is a big difference between subtle cedar and clove type characters vs vanila and lashings of direct sweet oak. All that being said, my favorite wines of the trip never touched small format oak.

I'll be interested in your take on the various vintages once you wrap the posts up. I've tended towards the 06s 08s and 10s (albeit not to the extent of the hype surrounding the latter). 07s are IMO great choices in a restaurant, but not ones I'd prefer to cellar. 09s will mostly pass me by. 11s I've only experienced at the Langhe Nebbiolo level, but what I've tried at that level has been excellent - that's not to say anything about the grand wines. It could be that the lovely aromatics are more crucial to the lesser wines that sometimes can be a little dull.

Ill definitely do a vintage impression at the end. I actually dont think we tried a 2007... pity it seems!

[Chris H]

Just coming back from Italy. The 2011 Barolo confirmed my comments on those I'd had before I left. Lovely upfront fruit and relatively soft tannins - Bartolo Mascarello, Rinaldi, Massolino Parussi, Guiseppe Mascarello Monprivato, Verduno Massara, Cavalotto Bricco Boschis and Ratti Marcenasco.

[winetastic]

Later in the evening we were feeling like a light meal and of course, another glass of wine, so we went to the nearest wine bar, another massive 1min walk from our accommodation.

Wine Bar: Prima e Poi del Tornavento
Actually I think we came here on three occasions during the trip. Since there were always 4 of us, we only ever ordered bottles so I cannot comment on the selection of wines by the glass, however by the bottle they have something for every price point (plenty of Gaja) and cover the local Barbera and Barbaresco offerings from recent vintages quite well. I would have preferred a few more Langhe Nebbiolo options since the ones I was most keen on were sold out.

Food wise you could get a tasty meat plate, cheeses, salads and even smallish meals of braised veal in Barbaresco, all of which were very good. Probably the best dish was actually the hand made ravioli, which was served without any sauce or cheese, just by itself in a wooden box with a hinged lid.

In short, a solid place for a drink or a light bite.

[winetastic]

Just coming back from Italy. The 2011 Barolo confirmed my comments on those I'd had before I left. Lovely upfront fruit and relatively soft tannins - Bartolo Mascarello, Rinaldi, Massolino Parussi, Guiseppe Mascarello Monprivato, Verduno Massara, Cavalotto Bricco Boschis and Ratti Marcenasco.

Interesting, Bartolo Mascarello Barolo 2011 and Massolino Barolo 'Parussi' 2011 were my top two 'current release' Barolos from the trip.

[winetastic]

Tasting: Carlo Giacosa
I will admit that our appointment at Carlo Giacosa was made at the last minute to fill a gap in the schedule, I knew nothing about the producer other than they were within walking distance of our accommodation and they make Barbaresco, which is a good enough reason to try something new.

On arrival, we were met by Luca, Carlo’s grandson, who was a bit shy and sat us down immediately for a tasting. Later on Carlo himself dropped in and was all smiles and very welcoming, despite our lack of Italian and his lack of English. We didn't have a chance to delve into any technical details about the wines or the philosophy, it was just a nice relaxed tasting.

Langhe Arneis ‘Sara’ 2015
One of the few whites we came across, spiced pears, medium acidity, slightly spritzy feeling on the palate, modest minerality, cannot complain for 8 EUR.

Langhe Nebbiolo 2014
Strawberry and vanilla aromas, approachable palate with modest weight, yet a hint of bitterness on the finish, 11 EUR but probably pass on this one.

Barbaresco 2012
All strawberries and alpine air, fruit forward palate but serious structure, modern in terms of extraction and fruit weight but not overdone, 20 EUR.

Barbaresco ‘Montefico’ 2012
Now we are talking, 3 years in large format oak, subdued nose of cranberry, hint of cedar, lovely fine silky tannins, juicy yet finishes clean, 20 EUR, excellent value.



The trend we saw here was the oak influence reducing as we moved through the range, something which was also not uncommon in Barolo. The Montefico was an easy wine to like and our friends grabbed a bottle each of the 2012 and 2011 to drink later back on the verandah. I would not hesitate to grab a bottle or two myself if I spotted it at a sharp price here locally, however I would likely consume within 10 years.

[winetastic]

Tasting: Produttori Del Barbaresco
Well ahead of time I attempted to make an appointment for a tour at Produttori Del Barbaresco, however I was informed they do not take appointments and we should just drop in for a tasting at our leisure. The tasting room itself is very minimalist and modern, there were three wines available for tasting and two young and disinterested girls there to do the pouring.

If perhaps you are not familiar with the region, Produttori Del Barbaresco is a collective which purchases grapes from many farmers in the region. The entry level Barbaresco is generally excellent value. In good years they also make quite a few single cru riservas, so paradoxically the standard Barbaresco may be ‘better’ in the more ‘modest’ years. In 2012, no riservas were made.

Langhe Nebbiolo 2014
Crushed fresh cranberry and raspberry aromas, with secondary elements of forest floor and pine air, fruit forward palate with modest silky tannins. Delicious and quaffable, an excellent result for the vintage.

Barbaresco 2012
Restrained, almost shut down nose, some investigation finds cherry, alpine herbs and citrus peel. Silky yet structured on the palate, quite mineral with juicy red fruits, pine and a clean finish. Very good.

Barbaresco 2011
Open nose of menthol and dried roses. The palate is very ripe with slightly chunky and drying tannins, hard to drink without food, pass.

The tasting experience here is one you would be familiar with at the larger commercial cellar doors in Australia, nothing special so if you are in the area, just drop in if you have half an hour to kill. The wines themselves of course offer excellent value and I’ll be grabbing some of the 2014 Langhe Nebbiolo to drink now and probably a few of the 2012 Barbaresco for the cellar.

[Ian S]

Carlo Giacosa is a new name to me, but sounds like a number of producers, putting out attractive wines at fair prices, yet getting not a sniff of attention from the critics. The Montefico sounds wonderful... and for just €20.

[andrewpc]

Thanks for the great write-up. Very interesting.

[JamieBahrain]

Great stuff ! Makes me long for my next trip.

Carlo Giacosa has been around for a long time and I've had his wines from the 60's. They hold up well, as Barbaresco does with a feminine longevity, in contrast Barolo.

Foolishly folks buy the old gear thinking they are getting Bruno Giacosa! As then old labels can be confused as Carlo father isn't mentioned on the most prominent part of the label from memory and I'll hunt a snap.