Sparkling Italians

One year we spent New Year’s Eve in Venice. We went to a restaurant and had a wonderful seafood dinner and drank sparkling wine. We began with Prosecco and then had a Franciacorta Brut.  With our dessert we drank an Asti Spumante. Walking back to our hotel through Saint Mark’s Square just after midnight was quite an experience. The whole square was filled with people popping sparkling wine corks, drinking the wine from the bottle, laughing and carrying on, and then smashing the bottles on the ground.  To get back to our hotel, we walked through the square as quickly as possible!

The Lion of Saint Mark

Since then we often serve Italian sparkling wine with a seafood dinner for New Years Eve and remember that night in Venice.

Italy produces a vast array of sparkling wines referred to as spumante. They make it in every form from dosage zero (driest) to demi sec (off dry) and everything in between.  Many different grape varieties are used and the wine is made by either the Charmat method wherein the second fermentation takes place in a temperature controlled stainless steel tank, or Metodo Classico where the secondary fermentation takes place in the bottle.  They also produce wines, which are slightly sparkling, and these they refer to as frizzante.

Prosecco from the Veneto is the number one selling sparkling wine in Italy. Almost all Prosecco is made by the Charmat method. I like Prosecco as an aperitif, with appetizers, seafood risotto and with fried foods. In Rome I always enjoy Prosecco with fried zucchini flowers stuffed with mozzarella and anchovies. There are many good Proseccos on the market at very reasonable prices.

Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG “Rustico” Brut Nino Franco 100 % Glera grape. Traditionally the grape was called Prosecco. This is the least expensive of their wines.  $16

Prosecco  “Organic” Treviso DOC Mionetto Made from certified organically grown grapes without the use of synthetic chemicals and fertilizers.  $15

Bisol, Valdo, Aneri are other producers that I lik

There are individual producers that make good Spumante in the Metodo Classical style in Italy but in general I believe that the best come from the regions of Lombardy (Franciacorta) and Trentino.

Franciacorta

The label on a bottle of Franciacorta only bears the designation “Franciacorta”, this single term defines the territory, the method of production and the wine. All Franciacorta is Metodo Classico and DOCG.

Franciacorta is made from Chardonnay and/or Pinot Noir; Pinot Bianco can be used as well, up to 50% of the blend

Franciacorta Gran Cuveé Saten Brut Bellavista A special cuvee made from 100%Chardonnay selected from the best vineyard. It is made in the cremant style resulting in lower CO2 pressure, the defining feature of all Saten wines. It is produced in limited quintiles using old small barrels as was once practiced in the past.  Saten is a blanc de blancs and can be made from Chardonnay and Pinot Bianco up to 50%   $50

Franciacorta Brut this non- vintage wine is made from 90% Chardonnay and 10% Pinot Noir Berlucchi The wine is fermented for six months in stainless steel and aged for 12 months before disgorging. After disgorging the bottle is aged for 2 more months in the cellar before release. $30

Dosage Zero Millesimato  Franciacorta  This vintage wine is made from 60% Chardonnay, 23% Pinot Bianco and 17% Pinot Noir. Ca’ del Bosco The average age of the vines is 31 years and the harvest takes place the first week of September. $50

Other producers Contadi Castaldi and Monte Rose-look for their Rose Brut

Trentino

Ferrari Brut NV Trento DOC Metodo Classico 100% Chardonnay. The grapes are picked by hand at the beginning of September. They come from various communes in the Val d’Adige, Val di Cembra and Valle dei Laghi. The vineyards are between 300 and 700 meters above sea level, with southeast or southwest exposure. The wine is aged for at least 24 months on the lees. The yeast is selected from Ferrari’s own cultures $25

Ferrari Rosé NV Trento DOC Metodo Classico 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay. The grapes come from hillside vineyards around the town of Trento at 300 to 600 meters above sea level. The wine is aged for 25-30 months on the lees $37.

If you want something special to celebrate the New Year Italian style then I recommend what I believe may be the finest Metodo Classico wine made in Italy. It is about $100 a bottle and worth it.

Giulio Ferrari Riserva Del Fondatore This is a single vineyard reserve aged vintage wine. The grapes are picked at the end of September in the Maso Pianizza a vineyard owned by the Lunelli family  that owns Ferrari. The vineyard is in the commune of Trento and is between 500 and 600 meters above sea level with a southwesterly exposure. The wine spends at least 10 years on the lees.  They do not make this wine in every vintage.  The first vintage was 1972

Emilia Romagna

For many years the “industrial” sweet Lambrusco wine that was imported into this country was not very good.  It had a screw cap, was very inexpensive, very sweet and for some reason was very popular during the 1980’s. This sent the wrong message to serious wine drinkers. I often heard it said that no one could make a good Lambrusco!

This has changed and there are some excellent Lambruscos now available here. They were always available in Emilia.

In Italy on New Years Day it is traditional and good luck for the coming year to eat lentils. In Emilia the lentils would be served with cotechino, a large spiced pork sausage.  The wine they would drink with this meal would be a dry, low alcohol (11.5%), high acid Lambrusco with a strawberry accent that is a perfect combination with this dish.

Lambrusco Secco “Concerto” Reggiano DOC Made from the Lambrusco Salamino grape. It is a sparkling dry red wine with traditional fermentation in the Charmat Method. Ermete Medici & Figli. $15 

Lini and Ca de’ Medici are other good producers. Most Lambrusco is made by the Charmat Method but some producers also make a Metodo Classico.

Sparkling Dessert Wines- Piedmont

Asti DOCG (formally know as Asti Spumante) is made from the Moscato Bianco grape, also known as Moscato Canelli.  It is a sparkling wine produced by using the Charmat method. It is low in alcohol, about 7%, and has aromas and flavors of peach, honey and tropical fruits. It should be drunk young because the wine is at its best when it is fresh.

Often in the past I would see Italian/Americans putting a cube of sugar in their Asti. I was told it helped the bubbles and made the wine sweeter. Serve it with cookies, plain cakes and panettone.  From $14 to $20

Producers include Bera, Gancia, Cinzano, and Martini and Rossi.

Some producers also make a Metodo Classico

Moscato D’Asti DOCG is made from the same grape as Asti and has many of the same flavors and aromas. It is also low in alcohol around 6%. The difference is that this wine is slightly sparkling (frizzante) and it is vintage dated while Asti is not. It should be drunk as close to the vintage date as possible. The two wines share the same DOCG. From $15 t0 $20

Producers Michele Chiarlo, Fontanafredda, Elio Perrone, La Spinetta and Vietti

Asti and Moscato D’Asti can be found for around $20 a bottle

Brachetto D’Acqui DOCG is a sweet wine and it is most famous as a red sparkling wine. Made by the Charmat method. It is made from the Brachetto grape. It has intense berry flavors and aromas, especially strawberry, and goes very well with chocolate and all kinds of chocolate desserts.

Producers  include  Braida $30 and Banfi-Rosa Regale $20

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Champagne Ed McCarthy at the Wine Media Guild

Champagne Ed McCarthy at the Wine Media Guild

“Champagne is the most glorious beverage on the planet-at least it is for me,” is the opening line in Ed’s book Champagne for Dummies. Ed was the speaker at the Wine Media Guild’s annual holiday Champagne tasting and lunch. The only thing Ed likes better than talking about Champagne is drinking it. Ed arranged for the members of the WMG and their guests to taste and then drink with lunch an impressive array of Prestige Cuvee Champagne.

The Whole Salmon

The Wine Media Guild tasting and lunch always takes place at Felidia Restaurant in NYC. All three courses at lunch featured salmon including ravioli and the main course, a 26-pound salmon, which was quite a sight when it was brought into the dining room.

Ed explained that a Prestige Cuvée is the best Champagne produced by the Champagne house. These wines are made from the best and most expensive grapes from the best vineyards, usually from all Grand Cru or a blend of Grand Cru and Premier Cru villages. They are aged longer in the producer’s cellar than their other Champagnes.

14 Prestige Champagnes were included in the tasting and lunch:

Ayala 2002 La Perle d’ Ayala Nature  Made from 80% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir from Grand Gru and Premiere Cru vineyards. 2002 was a great year for Champagne. Ed said that it was the best year since 1996 and these were the two best vintages in the last 20 years. In 2002, the beginning of the year was a little difficult because of a lot of rain particularly in July. Indian Summer started on September 7th, which allowed for an exceptional maturity for the grapes. The harvest was average in volume, but the quality of the fruit was excellent, allowing for this wine to be made without dosage. The wine is aged for at least 5 years in the cellar and is aged under real cork, rare in Champagne today. Elegant small bubbles, light style with hints of white fruit and citrus, dry with good acidity.$145

Alfred Gratien NV “Cuvée Paradis” Produced from 65% Chardonnay, 18% Pinot Noir and 17%Pinot Meunier. This is a small house and their wines are very difficult to find in this country. The wine is fermented in 228 liter oak barrels for 6 months and spends 6 years in bottle. This is a non-vintage prestige cuvée and Ed found it to be elegant and more sophisticated and classier than some of the very good, but heavier Vintage Brutes. It has aromas and flavors of white fruit, honey and nuts. Ed described it as elegant and having intensely concentrated and complex flavors with hints of white fruit, toast and gingerbread, and a long aftertaste. $130

Taittinger Comtes de Champagne 2000 Blanc de Blancs The grapes are pressed immediately in presses located in the vineyards. The first pressing, known as cuvee is followed by two more pressings known as the first and second “tailles”. Only the juice from the “cuvee” goes into this wine. Temperature controlled fermentation takes place and about 5% of the wine is matured for a few months in 225 litter new oak casks. Prior to disgorgement the wine is aged for 9 or 10 years. Ed said that this was a good but not a great year for champagne but the wine was showing very well and it is their flagship Champagne. He described it as being full and rich.  It was toasty with hints of white fruit, good acidity and a long lingering finish. $130

Perrier-Jouet “Fleur de Champagne” 2002 50% Made from Chardonnay, 45% Pinot Noir and 5% Pinot Meunier in the popular “Flower Bottle”. The wine needs some more age before it can really be appreciated.$160

Piper- Heidsieck “Rare” 2002  Made from 65% Pinot Noir and 35% Chardonnay from twelve 100% rated Grand Cru Villages. This needs at least 15 years from the vintage date to develop fully. It was interesting because I found aromas and flavors of spice and ginger with citrus fruit and good acidity. $175

Roederer “Cristal” 2004  55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay. Ed said that it is made with grapes from their own vineyards, almost all of which are Grand Cru. The best champagne Ed had last year was the 1988 Crystal. It seems that most of the Prestige Cuvee champagnes need at least 15 years from the vintage date to be ready to drink especially those from the 2002 vintage. This was a big,rich champagne and I have to agree with Ed that it is too young. $195

G.H. Mumm “Cuvée René LaLou” 1998   The wine is 50% Chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir.  This wine was ready to drink and I did not think it will improve with age. $155

Gosset  “Célébris” 1998  Made from 64% Chardonnay 35% Pinot Noir. They avoid malolatic fermentation and always perform riddling and disgorging of prestige cuvees and large formats by hand.  Ed described it as a delicately flavored champagne, with intense tiny bubbles and wonderful floral aromas with vanilla and lime flavors and a great aftertaste $155

Laurent-Perrier “Grand Siecle” NV    Made from 50% Chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir. I believe Ed said it was from three different vintages. This was one of my favorites and the best buy at $115

Deutz “Cuvée William Deutz” 1999 62% Pinot Noir 30% Chardonnay and 8% Pinot Meunier This wine is drinking very well right now. It was one of Ed’s favorite wines at the tasting and I have to agree. $175

Pol Roger “Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill”1999  $195 Made from 70% Pinot Noir and 30 % Chardonnay from their Grand Cru vineyards. Ed felt it still needs 4 or 5 more years to be ready. He described it as being rich, firm and austere but also with finesse and complexity. This was another of his favorite wines and I have to agree. $195

Bruno Paillard Nec-Plus-Ultra (N. P. U.) 1995 Made from 50% Chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir. It is only made in great vintages and the grapes come from 5 Grand Cru villages. Ed said they only use the first pressing. The wine is fermented in small oak barrels and then rests in these barrels for 9 months. The wine remains on the lees for at least ten years. On the back label there is the disgorgement date so you know when the wine left the winery. The dosage is reduced to a minimum. The wine had flavors and aromas of ginger, honey orange blossom and a hint of brioche on the palate. This was the most expensive wine at the tasting.

$240

Charles Heidsieck “Blanc des Millénaires 1995 $ Blanc de Blancs.  Ed said that it was an excellent champagne with surprising weight and power for a Blanc de Blancs $185

Henriot “Cuvée des Enchanteleurs 1995  Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from six of the most prestigious Grand Cru vineyards.  Ed said it was excellent and one of his favorites. It was my favorite Champagne of the tasting. It is rich with citrus aromas and flavors and hints of wild peach, hazelnut and a touch of honey. It is aromatic with a great finish and aftertaste. $ 145

Last year Ed was the speaker for a tasting and lunch for a group called the NY Wine Press. I attended as a guest. I must like this wine because it was my favorite at that tasting also.

Ferrari: World Class Italian Metodo Classico at its Best

“This is not Prosecco!” exclaimed Mr. Marcello Lunelli, as he began a tasting of Giulio Ferrari Riserva Del Fondatore. A member of the family that owns the Ferrari winery, and the lead winemaker, he introduced a group of wine writers to the history of the company and its wines. We all laughed at his remark, knowing that Ferrari wines are Method Classico (Methode Champenois) at its best and the wine we were tasting has been a perennial winner of the coveted Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri Award.

Mr. Marcello Lunelli

Mr. Lunelli told us that Giulio Ferrari, the founder of the company, returned to Trentino after studying in France and was convinced that the local terroir was perfect for the Chardonnay grape. He felt that by using the Metodo Classico (Méthode Champenois) he could make great sparkling wine there. He became the first person to plant Chardonnay in Trentino. In 1902 he began the company and it became very successful.

In 1952 Bruno Lunelli, the owner of Trento’s best known wine bar took over Ferrari from Giulio, who continued the work at the winery until his death. Today the third generation of the Lunelli family runs the company. It has a 40% market share of all the Metodo Classico made in Italy.

With the exception of the Ferrari Rosé and the Ferrari Perlé Rosé all the wine are Blanc de Blancs, 100% Chardonnay. They use selected yeasts from their own cultures. Mr. Lunelli said that they were moving toward becoming organic, and after that biodynamic, but it would take a few years.

He said the temperature in Trento has risen 1 degree in the last 13 years. This does not seem like much but if you wanted to have the same conditions that you had in the past the vineyards would have to be 150 meters higher. They can do this in their part of Trento because of the mountains but other producers in other areas are not so lucky.

Today, there are 500 growers that supply them with Chardonnay grapes. The growers are paid according to the quality of the grapes.

Giulio Ferrari Riserva Del Fondatore is a single vineyard reserve aged wine. The grapes are picked at the end of September in the Maso Pianizza a vineyard owned by the Lunelli family. The vineyard is in the commune of Trento and is between 500 and 600 meters above sea level with a southwesterly exposure. The wine spends at least 10 years on the lees. They do not make this wine in every vintage. We did a vertical tasting of this wine with Mr. Lunelli and he said that the first vintage was 1972

2001 Mr. Lunelli said that this was a year with ideal climatic conditions. The temperature was perfect in July and August with cool nights and hot days. The grapes developed gradually allowing for complexity and ripeness and very good acidity. He called it a perfect vintage. It was fresh and elegant with a hint of yeast and toast and good acidity. Nice fruit in the finish and aftertaste.

2000 He said that it was a very cold July and an extremely hot August. In September there was much needed rain and temperature variations, adding to the final ripening of the grapes. Because of these unusual weather patterns the grapes were well constructed with thick skins and very aromatic. This was very early harvest that yielded healthy, balanced grapes. Mr. Lunelli said that in his opinion the 2000 would age better than the 2001. Very well balanced wine with a mineral earthy and steely character, it had a great finish and aftertaste.

1997 This vintage was characterized by exceptional weather conditions. There was drought at the end of winter and the beginning of spring with late frost in May. The summer was very rainy with above average temperatures. The yields were low 20% to 25% below average but the grapes were healthy and balanced. Harvest started early for the lower hills at the end of August and continued through the second half of September. Mr Lunelli said this was one of the best vintages. This wine was more developed with toasty and nutty aromas and good citrus flavors

1995 This vintage Mr. Lunelli proudly said produced perhaps the finest and most elegant wines of Ferrari’s history. It was the scarcest vintage in the past 30 years but it produced wines of exceptional quality. A cold and rainy spring disrupted the vines’ blooming and fruit set, causing a natural thinning. Bunches were smaller and loosely-packed which combined with the moderate summer, allowed the berries to reach perfect ripeness. The harvest started on September 28th and the grapes showed higher acid levels. This is a great wine and my favorite of the tasting.

1986 It was a fairly dry winter with heavy snow falls in late February, heavy rain and very high temperatures in May. All of this contributed to an early growth cycle. The early summer months were unseasonably mild and dry, resulting in loose grape clusters. Good weather during the final stages of growth imparted high acidity. Harvest began in the first week of September. This wine was the most mature of the ones that we tasted. It was toasty with a hint of sherry. This is for those of us that like their sparkling wine with some age.

After the tasting they served a light lunch with these two wines.

Ferrari Perlé 2004 Trento DOC Method Classico Vintage Blanc de Blancs 100% Chardonnay. The grapes are harvested by hand in the middle of September from a hillside owned by the Lunelli family around the Trento vineyards. The vineyards are 300 to 700 meters above sea level with a southeasterly or southwesterly exposure. The wine remains for about 5 years on the lees. It is a crisp dry wine with hints of apple, almonds and a touch of toast. $35

Ferrari Perlé Rosé 2004 Trento DOC Method Classico Vintage 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Chardonnay. This is a vintage Rosé from the Lunelli family estate vineyards, harvested by hand at the end of September on the hills surrounding Trento, between 1000 and 2000 feet above sea level with either southeastern or southwestern exposure. In 2004 there was mild weather and perfect ripening conditions. It is aged 5 years on selected yeasts. It is an elegant and complex Rosé with ripe red berry aromas and flavors with hints of raspberry and a touch of almond and a long finish and pleasing aftertaste. $75

These next two wines were not part of the tasting but they have been a favorite of mine for a long time and my introduction to Ferrari.

I first became a fan of Ferrari when I started drinking the Ferrari Brut NV Trento DOC Methodo Classico 100% Chardonnay many years ago. The grapes are picked by hand at the beginning of September. They come from various communes in the Val d’Adige,Val di Cembra and Valle dei Laghi. The vineyards are between 300 and 700 meters above sea level, with southeast or southwest exposure. The wine is aged for at least 24 months on the lees. It is selected yeast from Ferrari’s own cultures $25

Then I was introduced to Ferrari Rosé NV Trento DOC Method Classico 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay. The grapes come from hillside vineyards around the town of Trento at 300 to 600 meters above sea level. The wine is aged for 25-30 months on the lees $37.

Both of these wines are excellent value for the money.

Celebrating Thanksgiving All Weekend Long

  We like to have Thanksgiving lunch/dinner (Linner) at 4:00PM. This gives everyone the chance to eat and drink as much as they want and still not get home too stuffed too late. Our linner usually lasts for 5 or 6 hours. This year was no exception. Michele made gougeres to start, followed by a mushroom soup and of course turkey with a fennel, sausage and rice stuffing and many side dishes, followed by a cheese course and pumpkin pie for dessert.  We have been having Thanksgiving every year for several years together with Tom Maresca http://ubriaco.wordpress.com  and his wife Diane Darrow http://dianescookbooks.wordpress.com. Diane is a very good baker and brought baked bread and a pear tart.  Travis and Nicole, who were also there, brought wine.

Thanksgiving Wines

 Champagne Extra Brute NV “Les Boguines” La Closerie 100% Pinot Meunier. This is the first time I had Champagne that was 100% Pinot Meunier. Jerome Prevost, the winemaker, believes in intervening as little as possible. Therefore, the wine was not fined, filtered, or cold stabilized. This was one of the driest Champagnes that I have ever tasted with nice fruit and very good acidity. It had a long finish and a lingering aftertaste.

 Chablis Grand Cru “Les Preuses” 2000 Réne & Vincent Dauvissat. It has been my pleasure to have had the 1993 and 2007 “Les Clos” from the same producer. This was the first time I tasted the “Les Preuses”. The Les Preuses was not as big and round as the Les Clos. It had a more mineral, earthy and steely character to it which made it an excellent food wine. They are both great examples of Chablis grand cru.

 Barbaresco 1979 Podere del Pajoré Giovanni Moresco 100% Nebbiolo (rose sub -variety). This has always been one of my favorite Barbarescos and to my regret it was my last bottle. There was severe pruning that limited the size of the yields and the grapes were harvested late when they were totally ripe. The rose sub-variety is one that is reputed to produce the lightest Nebbiolo wines, but you could not tell it from this wine or the others I have had over the years from this producer. This is a big Barbaresco with all of the classic Nebbiolo aromas and flavors and it will age for a few more years. In 1979 Angelo Gaja become involved with the winery and took over the management of the vineyards. I believe Gaja brought the vineyards because he now makes a wine called “Sito Maresco”.

 Morey-Saint-Denis 1989 Domaine Dujac 100%  Pinot Noir. I have not had much experience with this producer but this was classic Burgundy at its best. A wise man once said there is Pinot Noir and then there is Burgundy.

 Just before Thanksgiving Michele showed me a very interesting article in the The New Yorker, November 28 2011, Letter From Rome entitled “The Renovation.” It was about an American Rita Jenrette that married Prince Nicoló and is now the Princess Rita Boncompagni Ludovisi. They are now living in a villa just outside Rome. They did not mention Fiorano in the article but I am sure there is a relationship somewhere. After reading the article I had to serve a bottle of Fiorano for Thanksgiving.

 Fiorano 1992 Vino da Tavola Boncompagni Ludovisi  Alberigo Boncompagni Ludovisi, Principe di Venosa made with merlot and cabernet sauvignon grapes.  Burton Anderson, in his landmark Italian wine book Vino, called Fiorano Rosso “the noblest Roman of them all”.  The Prince’s few acres of vines are planted along the Appian Way about 20 kilometers southwest of the center of Rome and almost right next to Roman’s second airport, Ciampino. It is the best cabernet/merlot blend made it Italy and one of the best in the world!  In my opinion–and I am in the minority here–one of the best places in the world to grow Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot is in Lazio close to Rome.

 The 1970 Chianti Classic Badia Coltibuono was not good and I replaced it with the Grato Grati declassified Rufina Vino Rosso Toscano da Tavola 1982 Grato Grati 100% Sangiovese.  It is a wine that I really like and you can tell by the number of times that I serve it, it is my favorite Chianti. The wine is aged in large Slavonian oak barrels. It is declassified Chianti Rufina. I have been drinking this wine for a number of years now. The vintages I have had over the last few years have been the 1979, 1982, 1988, 1990, 1995 and 1997 (the last three are labeled Chianti Rufina) and have never found them wanting. To my great regret they are no longer available in NYC.

 On Friday Michele and I went with friends to Legend an excellent Chinese restaurant in NYC and had great food. I was in the mood for a Martini and gave the waitress exact instructions on how to make it for me. The bartender, a woman in a man’s hat, followed them to the letter and it was a perfect Martini. It fact it was so good I had another.

Saturday we stayed home and a friend gave us a bottle of Barbaresco 1997 Cantina Vignaioli  Elvio Pertinance.(cooperative) 100% Nebbiolo, to try. The grapes for the Barbaresco come from the hills of Treiso. It is a blend of Nebbiolo grapes grown on the vineyards belonging to each of the cooperative members. The selected grapes are crushed immediately on their arrival at the winery. The must ferments on the skins at a controlled temperature for at least 15 days. Following malolatic fermentation and a brief stay in stainless steel the wine is aged in casks of Slovenian oak for over one year prior to bottling. This Barbaresco is a very approachable wine with good fruit and soft tannins but will last for a few more years.

On Sunday we had friends over for lunch and we drank Barolo Riserva “Monprivato” 1993 Giuseppe Mascarella. The vineyard is in the village of Castiglione Falletto. There is traditional style floating of the cap fermentation for 20 to 25 days. The wine is matured in Slavonian oak barrels of medium size for about 38 months. The wine is bottles four years following the vintage.

 Barolo 1983 Cantine di Marchesi di Barolo 100% Nebbiolo the grapes came from different vineyards. The soil is of medium consistency with a substantial amount of quartze sand. Soft pressing of the hand harvested grapes and fermentation takes place in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks.  Skin maceration is for 8 days and the wine is racked when the fermentation has been completed. This is for the current release. For the 1983 the skin contact would have been between 25 and 30 days. The wine is aged for the most part in Slavonian oak casks of 30-120 hectoliters for about two years. It is kept in bottle for another 12 months before it is released.

 Both 1983 and 1993 were not considered to be great vintages. These two wines however were showing very well and even the1983 had a few years left.  They both had classic Nebbiolo aromas and flavors.