Touché Ruché

Ruché just doesn't taste like it comes from Piemonte. It is a graceful wine, elegant and floral with a body more defined by its lively acidity than its soft, round tannins. If there is a wine in Italy to relate to fine Beaujolais it is most certainly not the tart dolcetto, which is often referred to in that context, but the refined smoothness of ruché can be more than a little reminiscent of a Fleurie or Chènas. Of course, ruché is not Beaujolais and has its own distinct character, but as most people have not tasted this delicious wine it is a fair way to set a point of reference.

Ruché now sports its own DOC, Ruché di Castagnole Monferrato, and this small zone in the hills just outside of Asti is responsible for all the production from this rare variety. Now that DOC status has been awarded to this region you can expect to see production expand perhaps making ruché easier to find. This is one of those wines that one sip is likely to inspire gulps and case purchases. Ruché is pure forward fruit flavor.

Ruché is a bit of a mystery vine. Local wisdom says it is an ancient variety probably indigenous to the Monferrato hills. Even the origin of the name is unclear with some claiming it came from the name of a local monastery while another source points to a resistance to a particular vine disease. Whatever the case, little documentary evidence exists and the history of ruché is more folklore than fact.

Cantine Sant'Agata is making an exceptional assortment of ruché wines and excellent wines from Asti's two other important red wine vines: barbera and grignolino. Founded in 1916, the present generation, Franco and Claudio Cavallero, produces 150,000 bottles of wine from their own vineyards, which total 30 hectares. Other than a small amount of chardonnay all their vines are indigenous and all their wines are of excellent quality and value.

2003 Cantina Sant'Agata, Ruché di Castagnole Monferrato, 'Na Vota ($19)
Brilliant ruby with a just a touch of purple, quite translucent. Smooth, forward ripe cherry vanilla nose with a bitter tinge. a touch of cassis and lovely hints of wildflowers and violets. Firm and fresh on the palate with flavors that expand and grow mirroring the forward yet complex fruit and flowers of the bouquet. In the finish the cassis dominates carried by a refreshing acid zip. The warm 2003 vintage produced particularly rich versions of lesser known Piemontese varietals like ruché. grignolino and freisa and you should keep an eye out for them as they are now in the market. They also offer a special selection ruché, Pro Nobis, to continue the Beaujolais reference, it is to regular ruché what Moulin-a-Vent is to normal Beaujolais.  It has all the characteristics of the 'Na Vota on steroids. I will confess I prefer what I consider the more balanced 'Na Vota, but I am probably in the minority on that choice with most consumers preferring the chunky Pro Nobis.

A John Given Selection-Imported by John Given Wines (Northeast and other states)
Imported by Siema Wines (southeast and other states)

Wines from the Salthouse

Doug Salthouse did very well in his former business. So well that he is well acquainted with the world's most famous wines. Not only has he drunk them, he has visited them. He is at home with Lafite, Domaine de la Romanee Conti, Vega Sicilia and Gaja. So how did he become one of the finest retail sources for wines that have modest prices, but big character and loads of complexity.

I met Doug several years ago on his visit to the Piedmont region of Italy to research the great wines of Barolo and Barbaresco. I knew right away he was a kindred soul when it came to wine and food. This was an unfortunate event for our spouses, who we eventually pushed over the line.

With his former business out of the way, Doug took the plunge and purchased a wine and liquor store in New Jersey and Smart Buy Wines and Spirits was born. Doug, of course, offers all the heavy hitters of the wine world, but what makes this store special is that Doug has taken his well-developed and sophisticated palate and applied it to discovering a tremendous selection of wines selling for under $25.00 - many less than that.

Several months ago I asked Doug to send me an assorted case a month, a kind of impromptu monthly wine club. The results have been a long list of really exceptional wines that are real bargains. It reminds me of when I started buying wine thirty years ago and it was easy to find great bottles for under $20.00.

You can find many of these wines (and some of the more expensive wines too) in Doug's e-newsletter. You can subscribe to this educational newsletter by visiting www.smartbuywines.com.  I have also started an ongoing thread of my tasting notes on Doug's wine selections that you can find here:

http://winecampblog.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=5

Real wine merchants that rely on their own palates and opinions have become increasingly rare in this age of wines-sold-on-points, but Doug's selection are based on his own convictions as to what makes wine so fascinating. I can't wait for the next shipment.

Smart Buy Wines and Spirits

102 Linwood Plaza, Fort Lee, NJ 07024

Phone: (201) 242-WINE (9463)  Fax: (201) 242-9601

Zenseless Zagat in Zeattle zzz...

Last weekend, I was walking around Seattle with a copy of the current Zagat Guide in my back pocket. Like millions of tourists traveling around the nation, I was using Zagat to lead me to fine restaurants. A lot of people are eating mediocre meals and drinking bland commercial wine thanks to Zagat. While invariably Zagat will lead you to packed restaurants, only with difficulty will it lead you to adventurous cuisine and great wine lists – except if price is no object and you don’t need a guide for that.

The trouble with Zagat is that you have to read between the lines for the guide to lead you to a great (meaning exciting food) restaurant. If you eat by the numbers, Zagat will give you the massively successful corporate-group operations (in this case Seattle’s Wild Ginger) that deliver reliably efficient food with boring results. Now, I understand this is what the vast majority of the dining public is seeking and they are great business concepts; what they are not are exciting places to eat.

It is well to remember that Zagat is a simple popularity contest, not a thoughtful review by experienced dinners. The better marketed a restaurant is, the more customers they have and the more Zagat votes they get. When it comes to Zagat, more votes are most decidedly not always better. Zagat usually gives you only the restaurants too successful or famous to ignore.

If you want interesting food and wine, buy your Zagat long before you visit a city and read between-the-lines to seek out cutting edge food. An hour of research and comparison with other guides before you arrive will lead you to a much better meal and wine list. The trouble is you often should avoid most of their highest recommendations and often a few less points can be a good thing.

Oddly enough, Zagat can be a treasure trove of ethnic BYO restaurants. You are much better off bringing your own wine to a really fine ethnic restaurant than dealing with hot spots with politically correct corporate food and wine.

Montecastelli Selections

The room is packed with wine lovers clutching oversized wine glasses. Behind each of the dozen or so tables covered with wine bottles stands an Italian winemaker busily pouring their wines into the mob of outstretched glasses in front of them and trying explain in their best English their vinous creations. Through the crowd darts the energetic and passionate Jens Schmidt, owner of Montecastelli Selections. Each of these producers are part of the Montecastelli portfolio - his selections. Jens seems to be at every table at once as he tries to convey his passion for these wines to each of the consumers attending.

The sold-out tasting is at Sam's Wine Warehouse in Chicago, one of the world's largest fine wine retailers. It is not easy for new importers to get their wines into such a high profile store, but almost the entire Montecastelli catalog is represented on the wine racks at Sam's - a tribute to their quality and the sharp palates of Sam's Wine Director Todd Hess and Italian Buyer Greg Smolik (since departed to form his own interesting wine importing company). Hess and Smolik are looking over the crowd at the tasting with satisfaction as each guest departs with shopping carts laden with the delicious Montecastelli wines. Their customers are sure to return for more as these wines will taste even better at the dinner table.

Jens and Ruth Schmidt have come a long way in a very short time. Montecastelli was only founded in 1997 and their American importing company was born in 2002, yet they have established themselves with some of America's most demanding retail buyers and are distributed in 22 states. They have accomplished this with only two tools: a dedication to quality and old-fashioned hard work. Montecastelli is the name of their home and farm in Tuscany where they have restored an 11th century monastery. Here they produce their excellent olive oil and have also established a lovely agriturismo. They are living in reality what so many thousands only dream about.

One thing that is certain when tasting through this portfolio is that all of the wines are absolutely delicious to drink. They are modern wines, yet they pay homage to traditional winemaking and never let modern methods overwhelm the integrity of the vineyard. Jens describes his palate in this way, "Technically speaking I value cleanliness, fruit and natural balance of acidity. I disapprove of even only small amounts of Bret (brettanomyces-a winemaking fault that is sometimes considered acceptable in small amounts), oxidization and lack of acidity. However in our wines I am looking for more: To make things unique I always look for character and integrity. Integrity is the combination of the vintners approach and individuality confronted with the things in nature he cannot change: history, climate and soil type. Character is emerging as a unique expression of the vintner findings over time and his ability to listen and taste."

Indeed each wine in the Montecastelli portfolio is a wine of character.

You Say Its Your Birthday?

Tom Wark, the indefatigable blogger that created Fermentation: The Daily Wine Blog (http://fermentation.typepad.com), has become the cornerstone of the wine blogging community with links and feeds scattered far-and-wide across the Internet. His enthusiasm for wine blogging has expanded the public awareness of wine blogs and his selfless devotion to promoting all wine bloggers has set the tone for this virtual community. Yes, Tom is one of the grand old men of wine bogging and, as unbelievable as it may seem, today is only his first anniversary as a wine blogger. For those of us who follow Fermentation that is astounding. How can such a influential blog be only having its first birthday? It really brings home that wine blogging is a medium in its infancy.

What really sets Tom apart is the journalistic edge he brings to Fermentation. There are not only opinions there, but real reporting. I often feel like I’m reading the Op-Ed section of the wine industry. In particular Tom has led the charge on the direct shipping issue, even outing crooked state representatives.

The whole wine blogging community owes Tom much for his support, leadership and fine example. Happy Birthday Fermentation and many, many happy returns.

Reasons to be Cheerful - Part Three

Reasons to be Cheerful:

1. 2002 Coho Pinot Noir Russian River Valley
2. 2002 Coteaux du Layon Domaine des Baumard Clos de Sainte Catherine
3. 2002 ChinonDomaine Phillippe Alliet Coteau de Noire
4. 2003 Chinon Vielles Vignes Domaine Phillipe Alliet
5. 2004 Muscadet de Sevre-et-Maine sur Lie Domaine de la Pepiere, Clos des Briord Cuvee Vielles Vignes

Why are these reasons to be cheerful? Besides being very nice wines, it makes me very cheerful to know that someone is not only drinking them with pleasure, but taking the time to tell us about that pleasure. This is the power of Wine Blogging; the ability to greatly expand communication on wines beyond larger producers with advertising budgets and wine blogs stretch the envelope beyond the usual suspects. The list above are recommendations from a very fine Wine Blog, Catherine Granger's Purple Liquid. This is really a lovely Blog that marries well the experience of fine food and wine served at a passionate table. Catherine captures the experience of wine and food beautifully and I highly recommend passing on the link to her site to all your wine loving friends.  http://manageyourcellar.blogspot.com/

Red Wine, Tomatoes and Fish

Surrounded by coastline, Italy is full of fresh seafood. Blessed by abundant sunshine, it is also full of richly flavored tomatoes. This means that the two often appear in the same dish and that creates a challenge for food and wine matching.

White wines always seem to fall a little short against the acids of the tomatoes and reds always taste a little more tannic contrasted against the seafood. Italians usually don’t give this much thought and make do with whatever is local. A tried and true solution is rosé, but good rosé can be hard to find. Fans of salmon and tuna long ago discovered the natural combination of pinot noir with robust fish dishes and the often garlicky and a bit spicy fish and tomato combinations of Italy fall in the same category. The problem is that wines like that are hard to find in Italy. Oddly enough a good solution can be found in the hills of Tuscany far from the fresh seafood restaurants on the coast.

The fine pinot noir vineyards of Marchesi Pancrazi are a lucky mistake. For years they produced an ordinary light red wine thought to be sangiovese; then an enologist visiting owner Vittorio Pancrazi discovered the vineyards were in fact planted with pinot noir vines. These mis-identified vines were planted in 1975 and not correctly identified until 1989. This mistake made Vittorio Pancrazi the owner of the oldest pinot noir vines in Toscana and started him off in what was to become a passion: to make great pinot noir in Toscana.

The Marchesi Pancrazi Pinot Nero has now well established itself as one of the best pinot noir wines in Toscana and in fact in all of Italy. Dedicated research has adjusted Burgundian winemaking methods to the unique soils an climate of the Pancrazi vineyards which are located on the estate, dating from the fifteenth-century, west of Firenze. New clones of pinot noir have been selected and vineyards replanted all with the goal of great pinot noir in mind. Fortunately not all the attention was focused only on great wines and in the process Marchesi Pancrazi has also created a charming and easy wine for everyday drinking that happens to go perfectly with the seafood and tomato dishes where we started.

The Pancrazi San Donato is their lighter, fresher wine for light-hearted early drinking. It  is made from 50% pinot noir and 50% gamay and serving it slightly chilled brings out the juicy fruit flavors. The gamay undergoes carbonic maceration and this blend offers the charming fruit that this style of fermentation produces along with a balancing backbone from the pinot noir. In San Donato, Vittorio Pancrazi has created a lovely cru Beaujolais styled wine.

I Was Big Glass Gluping

The Riedel explosion has done much more good for wine than bad, but one negative aspect has been the onslaught of giant wine glasses. My recent experience at Thanksgiving not only exposed me to many wines I would never drink on my own,  but it also brought home the change in the way people drink wine today as compared to  a few years ago. In a typical exercise in American overreaction, we went from glasses that were too small to glasses that are just plain huge. I am reminded of The New Yorker cartoon where a man is drinking from a huge glass of wine and comments that his doctor has recommended he cut back to one glass of wine a day. While I understand (and agree with)  some of the Riedel philosophy that the space amplifies the aromas, all to often most wine glasses these days are just big. While the exacting designs of Riedel and other fine wine glass producers without a doubt improves the wine experience, most other (read cheaper) glasses don't do anything for wine except to hold more of it. Many glasses used today make the host look cheap if less than a third of a bottle is poured into the glass. This phenomenon works well for mass-brand-wine-beverage producers as they are more interested in consumers that gulp than those that savor. Bigger is not always better when it comes to glasses.  Invest in fine quality glasses of medium size if you don't want to own dozens of different types of glasses for each and every type of wine. A great wine shows its character in any well designed glass, but can be lost in a glass whose only quality is its size.

Thanksgiving Mix and Match

With families thousands of miles away, holidays take on a different personality. This year for Thanksgiving we were kindly adopted by a friends family in Portland. It was a full-blown, traditional Thanksgiving feast and the thirty plus guests attacked it ferociously. The tables were filled with a mishmash of all of today's most popular wines and there was shiraz, merlot and lots of labels with bright funny animals. I cannot resist trying to taste every wine in such a situation as these are bottles I would never buy on my own.  The wines were generally what I expected, but what stood out to me was the fact that almost none of them matched well with kaleidoscope of food on our plates. What I also noticed is that no one else in the room other than me seemed to give a hoot. The  wines flowed, stomachs stuffed, bottle after bottle emptied with nary a comment about how they matched with the food. It is at these moments that you really see what a wine geek you have become and how separated you are from the way most people experience wine. You also clearly understand how millions upon millions of cases of (what I consider) awful wine can disappear down the throats of wine consumers. There is indeed two segments of the wine business: first there is the wine beverage business and then there is the fine wine business. The second is microscopic in comparison.

A Turkey of a Recommendation

This morning on NBC's The Today Show, famed restaurateur, author  and winemaker Joseph Bastianich was the expert quest recommending wines for Thanksgiving. His recommendation for the turkey? None-the-less than Robert Mondavi Pinot Noir. I'll repeat that just in case you missed it: Robert Mondavi Pinot Noir. Now thousands of the millions who saw the segment will search out the Mondavi and for many of them it will be their first experience with pinot noir. While I realize that Bastianich had to make a recommendation of a wine that was readily available, it seems he could have found something better than the Mondavi when he was given such a bully pulpit to promote an interesting wine and, yes, there are interesting wines available that are produced in quantity. As a winemaker and restaurateur that gives the public image of supporting small production wines, this was not a choice that well reflected that image. To make matters worse, he kept referring to the Mondavi as a wine made by the father of the California wine industry, when (as we all know and I am sure he knows) the Mondavi family no longer makes the wines sold under the Mondavi label as now they are made by corporate giant Constellation Brands, who while they may own most of the California wine industry, certainly did not father it.

The consumer has a rough road when the experts treat such opportunities so lightly. 

Living On the Edge - Damijan Podversic

2001 Damijan Ribolla Gialla, Collio ($35)

In the Gorizia hills of Friuli on the border with Slovenia winemaker Damijan Podversic makes some of the most personal - and sure to be controversial - wines made anywhere. Damijan ferments on the skins in upright wood fermenters using only natural yeast. This may not sound so controversial, but indeed it is as he is making white wines not red. The results are white wines so concentrated with flavor and tannin that if you close your eyes you would be absolutely convinced you were drinking a red wine. Actually, you feel like you are drinking a red wine even when you have your eyes open. Podversic joins Gravner and Radikon, also from this region, in producing wines that really have no other equivalent in the world of white wines. What is it about Friuli that inspires such radical winemaking? While all three of these producers produce extreme wines, they are extreme in different ways and very distinct from each other. This orange/gold wine should be served at cool room temperature. It is intensely flavored and bone-dry with warm orange spiced flavors bolstered by a strong dose of tannin. Like this wine or not you have to admire the courage, intensity and creative independence exhibited by the winemaker. This is a must "brown-bag" for your tasting group that will drive your friends crazy and spark some serious debate. Ribolla Gialla is one of the indigenous vines of the Friuli region with records of its existence predating 1300. While this wine is a long way from a typical Ribolla Gialla it is a wine that stretches the imagination and brings a wonderful grape variety into the spotlight.

Warning: Serving Damijan to Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio lovers could be dangerous as, for them, this wine is the vinous equivalent of electro-shock therapy.

A Jens Schmidt Selection: Imported by Montecastelli Selections

Closer to Fine - Wine

There she is in a full page photo with feature story in the December 15th, 2005 issue of The Wine Spectator. Emily Saliers, 50% of The Indigo Girls, a folk-rock duo that makes clear their left-wing, anti-establishment politics. The article doesn't focus on politics of course, but on the fact that Saliers is now a restaurateur and wine lover. The caption below her photo lists her favorite wines as; 1994 Silver Oak, 1996 Opus One and 2000 Petrus.  Now there are some radical left-wing wine choices. It seems very strange that an artist who has prided herself as being a free-spirit would list wines that epitomize conservative choices (both wine and political choices) when there are so many wine growers in the world that make spectacular wine AND agree with her politics, indeed with her entire view of life. What this means I am not sure. You can certainly chalk it up to new money and little wine experience (and too much Wine Spectator reading) and hope that Saliers eventually follows the spirit of her art as she selects her wines. Celebrity and business-expense-account drinking are the only reason contrived wines like Opus and Silver Oak exist and articles like this just keep them going.

The Greatness of Wine from a Poor Vintage - Sottimano 2002

Andrea Sottimano rushes into the small tasting room of his family’s winery in Barbaresco. He is covered with dust and sweat, removing his hat he smiles disarmingly and says, “sorry, I’m late”.

You know right away that this is no gentleman farmer’s estate. Andrea was, as always, out in the vineyard working their vines. At the Sottimano estate they take the phrase “great wine is made in the vineyard” to a new level. Each of their vines is treated like a Bonsai tree in a Japanese garden. Nothing is too much for these vines to ask.

The ultimate proof of their skills and dedication in the vineyard sits in the glasses in front of me as Andrea pours the full range of their 2002 vintage. This was a year so difficult that many producers gave up, selling their wines off in bulk. The Sottimanos did not give up, but attacked their vineyards with a vengeance, reducing yields to ridiculous levels. This intensity extended beyond simply reducing bunches as they even dropped the lower half of the remaining bunches to the ground.

If you’re wondering why they do this it can’t be for the money. The Sottimano Barbaresci sell for under $75 – or less than many Napa Cabernets that harvest many tons an acre more than they do. This is a work of passion and they have even reduced pricing to encourage consumers to try their 2002’s. If you don’t have a cellar to age your Barbaresci the recommended eight or so years before they mature, these wines are a must buy as they offer pure nebbiolo pleasure in a package ready for drinking sooner rather than later. This is not to say they will not develop nicely with several more years of aging.

The 2002 Barbaresci from Sottimano are not the greatest Barbaresci you will ever taste, but they are an amazing accomplishment and will provide delightful drinking while you are waiting for their exceptional 2001’s and 1999’s to mature. In another testament to their skills in the vineyards, their 2000’s offer more complexity than the simple charming, forward wines offered by most producers.

Click below for my Sottimano new release tasting notes 

 http://winecampblog.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=397

Richard Sanford, Pinot Paradise Lost

There are few more gentle and artistic souls in the world than Richard Sanford. Over the last decades he devoted his passion to that most difficult of vines, pinot noir. Indeed he scaled the heights of making great pinot noir more than a few times.

That's why I was shocked some years ago when he took one of the "Engulf and Devour" wine companies as a partner in his winery. I knew that Richard's high ideals would not blend well with the build-the-brand and take-no-prisoners, attack dog sales approach of the Terlato family. I knew that before too long their "philosophy" would soon drive him out.

Sure enough, now Richard Sanford is no longer a part of the winery that bears his name. The Terlato concept of fine wine was molded by Santa Margherita, which even with all their millions they still actually drink. A few years of dramatically increasing the yields, winemaking shortcuts and tossing organic agriculture out the window has gutted the quality of the label that Richard created, leaving him no choice but to abandon ship and start all over again.

I am sure Richard's new wines will be up to our expectations, but it is sad that the once revered Sanford label has now become the Rutherford Hill Merlot of pinot noir.

Haves and Haves-nots

The obvious story of Mondovino would seem to be the haves vs. the have-nots. The rich and powerful Mondavi, Antinori, Frescobaldi and the Bordeaux aristocracy against the small passionate producer. In fact, we have the roles reversed in this case, the "have-nots" are really the "haves".

The story of Mondovino is that the "haves" of the wine world are not those with money and titles, but those with passion and, most of all, great vineyards. The "have-nots" in this case are the big money folks are more concerned with manipulations, marketing and consultants. Let's face it, these are things you can control and buy, but great vineyards are hard to come by and almost impossible to buy in the great old-world regions.

Since they lack great vineyards and true passion they create brands not wines. Industrial producers like Bossiet build their success on being the exact opposite of the vineyard based Burgundian tradition, a patchwork of small plots and diverse owners that are a marketing executive's nightmare.

I suppose you could ultimately blame the consumer, who is more interested in consistency and fame than real complexity. That is why the greatest winemakers are not press or marketing driven, but driven by an inner vision and love for their land. These are people who want to lead the consumer, while the Boissets and Mondavis of the world are led by the consumer.

Mondovino

Mondovino made it to DVD before coming to McMinnville. This truly surprised me as there are hundreds of wine professionals in the hills surrounding the Mack Theatre. Besides that, the Mack often brings in movies that don’t qualify as blockbusters. In its own way, Mondovino was a true wine blockbuster far more than Sideways. I thought this would be a slam-dunk success for the theatre and a real happening for the wine community here in the Willamette Valley. However, last Friday’s showing of the film brought out only a thin crowd of twenty or so wine folks. The premise of the film supports the small winemaker, vineyard-focused style of winemaking that predominates here, but the problem may lie in the insulated nature of winemaking here. More exposure to the broad world of winemaking is essential for winemakers with high goals and it’s a shame more did not take advantage of this opportunity.

Sticky Fingers

My arms are covered with sweet, sticky grape juice up to my elbows. I can't believe how sweet it is as I lick my dripping fingers. This is the experience of hand sorting grapes before they are destemmed and enter the fermenter. It is a great experience as it really brings home to you that wine comes from grapes. The finished product has little to do with the flavors of the fresh fruit (except in a very general way), so for the consumer the wine in their glass is only intellectually associated with the fruit it came from.

This only reinforces my dislike of over-oaked and over-manipulated wines as these characteristics only further separate the finished wine from the vineyard from which it came.

Farming

One thing that being at a winery almost every day, is that you begin to see it more and more as a farm, as compared to the finished bottles most people think of when a winery is mentioned.

As I arrived at the winery this morning, the normal early morning calm was replaced by a large crew harvesting the vineyard in front of the winery by hand. As they swarmed through the vineyard you could not help but be reminded that those same hands had also picked the marionberries, apples, tomatoes and all the other fruits and vegetables that the rich soils of the Willamette Valley grow. It is hard work for little pay and the pickers are exclusively immigrants from various Spanish speaking countries south of the United States. For them, the grapes are no more romantic than any of the other crops they have sweated over during the course of the year.

Despite its pure agricultural birth, wine has transcended all other farm products and become romantic and collectible. A product people are willing to argue heatedly about on dozens of wine discussion forums. Those men and women, who were out in the vineyard at dawn, would think that quite funny.

The Transition

I have changed sides. For the last 30 years I have been a critical consumer and wine trade professional. Now I am getting my hands sticky with freshly picked grapes and have spent a full year with vineyards I find I am transformed. Wine is no longer what it was before and I will try to communicate those issues to the readers of this blog. There is truly an "other side" to wine and I will try to bring an appreciation of wine as an agricultural art to my readers here.

So we start...

Beppe Colla

He quietly moves through the winery with a slight limp. He greets visitors with a humble handshake and smile then goes back to his work. This quiet man is Beppe Colla and he is one of the giants of Langhe winemaking standing in importance alongside the greatest names of the region like Giacomo Conterno, Paolo Cordero di Montezemolo,  Renato Ratti, Bruno Giacosa and Alfredo Currado: people that defined Barolo and Barbaresco and laid the foundation for the wines of today.

For over fifty years Beppe Colla has made wine in the Langhe and has seen the transition of this zone from a region on the edge of disaster to the home of some of the worlds most expensive and sought after wines. From his first vintage in 1948 ( a disastrous vintage) and his just completed 56th vintage in 2004 (which looks to be an excellent vintage) he has seen it all and possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of every aspect of the climate and vineyards of the Langhe zone and has personally experienced every vintage of the modern era of Barolo and Barbaresco. It is this incredible range of experience that he brings to winemaking at Poderi Colla.

After working for other producers, Colla acquired the Prunotto winery in 1956 and quickly set about turning it into one of the regions best wineries. In 1961, (in his opinion the finest vintage he has experienced) he bottled the first range of single- vineyard wines in the zone: Barolo Bussia, Barbaresco Montestefano, Nebbiolo Valmaggio, Barbera d’Alba Pian Romualdo, Dolcetto d’Alba Cagnassi, Freisa Ciabot del prete. Their quality and clear distinctive character convinced others to follow his lead and changed the entire concept of winemaking in Barolo and Barbaresco, which had always been blended wines. As a founder of the “cru” concept in the region Colla has firm ideas of what are the finest vineyards of the area and singles out the following sub-zones as the greatest nebbiolo vineyards:

Barolo: Cannubi a Barolo, Brunate a La Morra, Bussia a Monforte, Rocche di Castiglione a Castiglione Falletto, Vigna Rionda a Serralunga, Ginestra a Monforte
Barbaresco: Montestefano a Barbaresco, Rabajà a Barbaresco, Gallina a Neive, Rizzi a Treiso, Roncaglie a Barbaresco.

When asked what were his favorite wines he  produced during the time at Prunotto he singles out:Barolo Bussia 1961/1971/1982; Barbaresco 1964/1971/1978; 1961 Dolcetto d’Alba Caramelli; 1967 Nebbiolo d’Alba Occhetti; and 1971 Barbera d’Alba Pian Romualdo. Many of these classic Barolo and Barbaresco wines still appear on the auction market. I thought it was interesting to note that his favorites were not only Barbaresco and Barolo.

Looking back on almost six decades of winemaking Colla notes with satisfaction, “I have now seen, that after a first period of strong criticism, that all the producers have accepted the philosophy of bottling separately the different top vineyards.”