Andrea Sottimano

Another great, sunny day in the Langhe!At now it's a optimal vintage for Nebbiolo: hot during the day, very cold in the night( less than 12°C, this night!) Yesterday we began to harvest the Dolcetto, very healthy grapes.We are going to press them now, I will send some photos. Best, Andrea

It's been a very interesting and enjoying week for me! I hope you have enjoyed it too, I'm sorry if my english is not good sometimes. As I write before, I will continue to write my "updates" every 2-3 days, togheter with some photos to Craig. Now I have really to go to begin the harvest! All the Best, Andrea Sottimano

Hi Robert, I welcome visitors without problems, if you phone or mail to arrange an appointment it's the best. Good Question!I like to think at the differences between Barolo and Barbaresco, as the differences between Cote de Nuit And Cote de Beaune in Burgundy. There are geografical reasons, climatic reasons, geologicals reasons and, also very important, historical reasons.I am sure that you will fell the difference from the tannins of a Barolo from Monforte and the elegance of a Barbaresco from the lower part of Neive; but I am also sure that It will be less evident in a comparison between Castiglione, for example and Barbaresco or Treiso. I mean that the differences are between one zone and the other; if you see it from this particular point of view, things become maybe a little more complcated at the begin but very very interesting! I'm sorry that I've to go, now.I will continue it, if I can, on this forum or I will send you an E-Mail this evening or tomorrow morning. Best, Andrea

Another great day, here!Sun is shining and no clouds. Tractors are ready and in 5 minutes we will begin to harvest.Usually, the greatest problem is the littlehumidity in the early morning; in that case we have to wait until it's gone(about 9-9,30 am).But this is a very dry morning and there are no problems with it. We will begin to press this night or tomorrow morning, very early. I will continue to send to Craig Camp some "updates" of the vintage,( i will try to do it every two three days, but I can't guarantee!) and some photos, too. Best, Andrea

-Dolcetto, the most food friendly, simply but at the same time rich and fruity, with some tannins that reminds you that we are in Piemonte....On a great pasta. -Barbera, this wine is, now, unrecognizable for that ones that tasted it at the begin of 80's.It's a variety that produce normally very high yealds, that means high acidity and very low colour, not to mentione the lack of complexity.In the last 20 years, yealds are rapidly went down, more and more; now a Barbera from a good producer is a rich, with a wonderful fruit, complex wine, with that "fresh" touch at the end that makes it a perfect match with a lot piemontese dishes. -Nebbiolo.Well, what to say ?A great "cepage", it has not a deep colour as the others, but, starting from the nose, you will fell its class: flowers in some zone, more fruity in others, licorice, mint, a multilayered parfume that change and evolve as the minutes go by; the mouth could be richer or less, elegant as the wines from La Morra or Neive or powerful and tannical as the wines from Barbaresco, Serralunga, MOnforte. Every zone here has a different personality, it's you that you could find your favourite one! Best, Andrea

How many places and how little time that I have! Of course, on the way from the exit of the highway there are the Cascinale Nuovo, at Isola d'Asti and " La Locanda del Boscogrande", two places absolutly to don't miss! In the Barolo zone: I would need hours to mentione everyone, but the first that came in my mind are: -Belvedere in La Morra, great wine list and food, Borgo Antico in Barolo, Della Posta, Brezza, Le Torri in Castiglione,Osteria Veglio in La Morra,La Salita in Monforte,etc........

The sun is come back today, and temperatures are rapidly rising up.After the short rains of the last days, the humidity is very good. As you can see in the photos, the grapes of Dolcetto are ready to be harvested, and we wil begin tomorrow morning. Today we have sampled all around here, and the Babo, (the misure of the sugar-potential alcohol) is very good and the quantity of polifenolic is more than enough. I will try to put here the photos of the first phases of harvest, tomorrow morning, as my last post. Best, Andrea

Piemonte is enormously rich of autochtones varieties: -Arneis, a food-friendly white wine, produced on the "other side" of the River Tanaro, in the zone called Roero.Yellow-green in the colour, flowers, a pleasure, easy wine. -Cortese, a medium bodied white; you will find it in the Gavi zone(south Piemonte), or around there. -Timorasso, an unknown white wine that the lovers of earthy,mineral,multi-layered and fashinating wines don't have absolutly to miss!Some great,great wines in this area(near Alessandria, always south of Piemonte), the first producer that came in my mind is Massa. -Freisa, a fashinating red wine,lighter in colour or in aromas than a Barbera or Docetto, has a very intriguing nose of flowers, in the mouth there is an immense elegance.I love the Vajra Freisa, or, if you're lucky enough, an old Giacomo Conterno.....For the Pinot Noir lovers.It age very well, I've tried several 89 or 90, all good. -Ruche', another elegant, ancient variety.Light-coloured, ethereal parfumes of roses, try the Scarpa's, also after some years. I will continue....

Hi iroc, Dolcetto is, indeed, a not-so-easy grape to vinificate; starting from its time of maturation( in cold vintages he suffer it and it doesn't have the chance, like Barbera and Nebbiolo to have eventually some more sun in September-October), then choosing the right time to harvest( It doesn't have the same polifenolic structure of the others to support too much alcohol, and, moreover,at exception of determinated zones, it needs a balance between every components.So, not too late or too early, if you want a balanced wine.). In vinification it needs a lot of oxygen(that's why someone use wood for it), so you have to "move it " a lot of times(.......and not so much, to don't go to "the other side" of the problem!.....), so that the wine won't not have bad perfumes. (excuse me for my english...). These are the principals problems, not to mentione colours sometimes not too stable, problems with its natural potential tannic..... Next time you will drink a "simply" Dolcetto, think about it.... Best, Andrea

Hello Gordon, I find guides or winejournals very useful when you begin to discover a wine zone in which you don't have points of reference.When my passion brought me into the always difficult "universe" of French wines, the first thing that I did was to buy every guide, journal that could talking about it.After the first great wines and the first big delusions, I choose what was made for my taste and the next year I bought only one guide.....I am still continuing to buy it, but also if my favourite producer of Cote de Nuits doesn't deserve a 9 from Bettane, believe me, If I like it I will buy it! This is to say that journals, ratings, guide must be a complement to your knowledge about wine; what matter is only your own palate and your taste. Of course, Italian producers do pay attention to these ratings(do you remember when I said that the "Tre Bicchieri" pushed everyone here to do better and better?),in some cases they can really move the market in a certain direction! It's undeniable that also for my wines in the US,the good ratings from Parker and WS helped us a lot. I'm happy, always, for a good ratings, but, really, believe me when I say that I don't choose the vinification or the wood in function of the actual state of mind of a journalist or following some marketing strategies! It's not serious, and it's very dangerous.(not to say a little boring, too...) Best, Andrea

Your question was one of the first that I saw, but I preferred to wait a little... It's very difficult for me to imagine a"perfect"Nebbiolo, maybe because I prefer to think that sometimes what I've tasted was an"almost" perfect wine, but I will always look for(...or,why not? I will try to do it!...)an even better Barbaresco or Barolo. It's like someone asks to you what is you favourite Jazz or Blues song?In your mind there will be not one song , but one thousand!From Skip James, to John Lee Hooker, etc... It's the same for me; my idea of perfect Barbaresco or Barolo is a wine in the middle of a Giacosa 89 or 78, a Clerico 89 or 96, a Monfortino 61, a Gaja 74 or 89, a Sandrone 89, a Scavino 89 or 99....... Best, Andrea

The weather today is changed a little: It has rained a little this mornig, but now it has stopped.The sky is grey and cloudy, but, luckly, there is a cold wind that will help the grape to dry.Anyway, absolutly no problems for the health of the skins; if the yealds are low enough from the green harvest of this summer and the grapes are well separated the harvest is only posticipated of 2 days (....Sunday.....). For the Nebbiolo this is the optimal weather( of course we will need some more days of sun, but temperatures and humidity are ok at now). We will see!

I would like to suggest some good places, in the case you are here during the Truffle Fair: Barbaresco: -Antine', 1 star Michelin, traditional with some "fantasy".Young chef, very very talented.Starting from 37 Euro, GREAT wine list of Barbarescos. -Antica Torre, absolutly traditional, wonderful tajarin!normal-good wine list.From 25-30Euro. Treiso: -La Ciau del Tornavento, excuse me if I am a little repetitive, but I love this place(togheter with Antine')and... I will marry there on december....don't miss it!( 1 star Michelin) -Vecchio Tre Stelle( 1 star Michelin), another place in which you will stay great! Young, talented chef, Between modern and traditional cuisine.Good wine list.From 40 Euro. Alba: -La libera, optimum at lunch, good wine list -Trattoria dell'Arco, one of the greatest Q/P of the zone, wine at glass, traditional food, all hand -made, very good wine list!From 25 Euro -La Diletta, in the Castelli hotel, very fantasist chef, Modern ambient, good Piemontese wine list. -Dulcis Vitis, a new place, very elegant in the center of Alba, _VinCafe', the historical wine bar of Alba, you can eat something drinking wine at glass, from 10-15 Euro in the center of Alba, great selection of Piemontese wines and....sparkling wines!( a mania for the piemontese producers...).If you go in the evening, you will surely find some producer, maybe me...... -Osteria del Teatro, wine bar- little restaurant, traditional ambient, you can go for aperitif or a nice dinner.Near the center, from 15-25 Euro. I will continue.....

Hi Pedro, you're right when you say"starting with their colour and finishing with their tannic load.This could be especially painful and unfair in blindfold tasting." I never meet anyone that, becoming a wine lover, begin with a Nebbiolo or a Pinot Noir. Usually( myself included, when I started to be wine passionate)you begin with easier wines, more fruited, richer, softer that you can drink easily.But when you want to "pass" to a superior level of knowledge, you understand that you are looking for more complex wine, maybe less rich but more charming and, on all, that begin to rest in your mind.Depending on your passion, you go on and on, until you can arrive, also, to Barolo and Barbaresco.(but I could say also Burgundy, Rhone, German white wines....). With this I am not saying that you HAVE to like A Barbaresco if you want to be a Real Wine Expert, not at all!I am only convinced that there are some wine that maybe you can't appreciate without a certain "background" of tasting.It's not an elite statement, it's only that I don't like to follow the wine busuness. I am sure that if we vinificate our wines in a softer and international (I hate this word!)way, maybe we will have some more new customers, but we will became a fashion.And like every fashion we will "pass" next year.... We have to continue to promote our wines in the most terroiristic way, insisting on the great differences between one parcel and the other( there is a beautiful map on the web site of www.enotecaregionaledelbarbaresco.it) Best, Andrea

Today it's a very beautiful day; the sun is shining, there is a little cold wind but temperatures is rising up.Producers of white grapes will begin this afternoon or tomorrow at maximum. The Babo on the Dolcetto grapes is now more than 20-20,5°, I think we will begin to harvest it on Friday morning, and will press it the same day, I will ask to Craig if I can put some photos on my posts. Nebbiolo grapes are simply wonderful! Best, Andrea

Ciao Marco, Dolcetto and Barbera or Barbera and Nebbiolo were usually blended 30-40 years ago for the normal-family consumption: it's not unusual to see, in fact, old parcels in which plants of Barbera,Nebbiolo and Dolcetto are mixed.... People used to do it because of the high acidity of the Barbera or for the tannins too astringents( yields were quite higher than today...) of Nebbiolo. Some producer does it now to make more approachable a young Nebbiolo, mixing it with Barbera or Cabernet.Results are often very good, in some cases outstanding. Moreover, these wines are very rich, intense and a lot of them "wear" the unmistakable mark of our lands, so they are different from a normal Bordeaux-blend. I think it was the only way, at the end of 80's, to attract the attention of consumer and medias to the Italian wines in that period in which the world wine was an egemony of the French's ( I'm thinking about wines like Darmagi, Arte,Monpra', Pin...);after that, all around the world people noticed that Piemontese wines could be very good and it was the begin for a "large -scale" invasion of Barolo and Barbaresco. Anyway, you ask me if there is a future for these wines: well, I think that every top producer that has one of it will continue to produce it, maybe in lesser quantity year after year, and he will always focuse more and more his attention on the Barolo and Barbaresco, the only wines that I consider the symbols of the Langhe in the world. Best, Andrea

The Slow Food movement born in the 1983, at 10 kms from here. The original purpose was to preserve products that were about to desappear( cheese, agroalimentar products, etc...) and to promote them. In 1986, togheter with Gambero Rosso , they published the Vini d'Italia guide, in which, for the first time in Italy, the best wines produced were rated in a 1 to 3 glasses scale.It was an important spark for the future revolution that happened in our zone; every producer, pushed by the desire to be awarded by the "Tre Bicchieri", begin to be more and more ambitious, trying to produce and to vinificate better and better. As I said in another post, this was a very positive factor for the increase of the quality here( tough someone decided to push too much on the "pedal" of extraction, for me...). Now, Slow food has founded the" Agenzia di Pollenzo", a very ambitious project in which are involved producers, restaurants and simply wine lovers: there is a university, a "bank" for old vintage of Barolo and Barbaresco, the new"Guido" from Costigliole, etc.... A lot of things, no doubt! And the Salone del Gusto, every two years, in Turin, the best from every side of the world.... To return to your question, yes, Slow Food pushed also me and my father to improve and, the most important thing, to COMPARE OURSELVES to the others Piemontese, Tuscan, French wines. Best, Andrea

Hi Boris, Nebbiolo outside the Langhe region could be sometimes really outstanding(of course, only in certain zones). One of my favourite is Antoniolo, in Gattinara: try their Osso San Grato 99, really amazing for the minerality and the concentration! Then, I like also the wines from Sella(always in the North Piemonte),Antichi Vigneti Cantalupo( I've tried their Breclamae 89, Beautiful!), Ioppa. Best, Andrea

Hi Boris, yes, that's the place I was talking about. With the finanziera?....Hard to match with something, maybe a Barbera d'Asti, a little bit acid than ours. Let me know. Best , Andrea

Hi Jean, I took a little time to think about it before to anwser.... I think that "modern" or "traditional" definition born at the end of the 80's to define the profound differences between the "Barolo as it 's always been before" and the " new wine made in barrique by a dozen of revolutionary". Coloured, rich wines on a side(... sometimes too much oaky, too....), lighter, less extract wines on the other side.And the revolution continued in the 90's, pushing every parameter to the limits for someone, while someone else considered it as an heresy for the Nebbiolo.It was really a war, and tons of pages were written on it. But, now, things are profoundly changed, for my point of view of course. The so-called "modernist",( I'm between them...) now, begin year after year to make longer maceration,to use no technologies( or only a minimum necessary) and to use more and more used woods to replace the new barrels.That's because we all know that in the past were produced some wines too oaky,too concentrated,too rich, good to astonish someone maybe but not good for the characteristics of the Nebbiolo, sometimes dramatically covered by vanilla flavours. In my case, for example, I make macerations on the skins of 12-15 days:traditional But I use only barrique:modernist And I don't use selected yeasts or bacterians:traditional You see, things are changed a lot. If you taste the top producer of 99 Barolo or 01 Barbaresco, you will understand what I mean: no overoaked, jammy, soft wines on a side and clean, profound wines on the other.It means that, maybe, the definition of modern and traditional must be re-written, and I hope that in a future, differences will came out only from the soil and not from the mentality of the producer... Last thing:two weeks ago ( at the Ugly duck, by the way.....)I had a dinner with -Monprivato 96 Mascarello -Ciabot Mentin Ginestra 96 Clerico -Brunate 96 Marcarini -Sori' Ginestra 96 Conterno Fantino -Cascina Francia 89 Conterno -Ciabot Mentin Ginestra 89 Clerico and my Barbaresco Cotta' 96. When a wine is really great, and the producer is respectful of it, no matter the size of the wood you use. I hope to have anwered to you, and I would like also to know your opinion( but also of the other forumist, of course)about this controversial subject. Best, Andrea

Hi Rob, before I began to write here, Craig told me that the questions would be all very intriguing, and, in fact, I am seeing a lot of interesting hints to start a discussion. I don't think to be a wine maker, I prefer to think to myself simply as a "vigneron", someone that work the most of the time in the vineyard trying to grow, to develope, to concentrate and then to "catch" the best that I can from every single parcel.I am surely more "type B", but maybe I feel myself to be a part of the terroir of my zone, and not a tool. The type A don't mind so much about differences from the terroir, that means less interest for the vineyards, that means wines without identity only in function of the fashion of the moment. In general, I consider a wine maker someone that put the most part of the results only on the vinification, a thing that I don't agree with at all.Of course there are few exceptions, but I don't think they like to be called that way..... Best, Andrea

One of my favourite white wines in Italy is the Verdicchio, in the central Italy; these are wines that age wonderfully, plenty of minerality and with lovely parfumes of flowers in their youth, my favourite are La Monacesca,Garofoli, Gaiospino, Sartarelli and the Villa Bucci riserva(try these wines after5-6 yers of cellaring).A great great white wine is also the Benanti Bianco, in Sicily. I will think about some others wines less known that I like. If you don't know it yet, try the wines from Bertelli , here in Piemonte, one of the best Rhone-ispired wines (white and red)outside France, not to mentione their Chardonnay... Best, Andrea

Hi Gordon, I think that this is a very interesting question(...but not so easy to anwer...). The quality of italian wines is increased in a incredible way during the last 10-15 years.The Barbaresco and the Barolo( not to mentione the Chianti, the Brunello,the Taurasi....)that you could find on the shelves now are all at minimum good-quality wines, with, in some cases, products that can compete without problems with their collegues in France,Spain,etc... That's because some producers, at the end of 80's started to see the agronomical part ,the vinification, or the cellars in a different way: after a lot of trips in Bordeaux,Burgundy, Rhone, they tried to produce Barolo and Barbaresco with shorter maceration, using barriques to produce a more accessible wine than before.And changes continued, on all, with our mentality; we began to taste our wines in blind degustations together with our neighbour, we became more severe with our products and that pushed us to do everything in our possiblities to develope the quality. The combined action of this "young" producers together with the presence in this zone of 10-12 old-school producers, some of them with 30-40 years of history and with wines that are monuments to the piemontese winemaking,( Giacosa,Mascarello, Conterno) took the Barolo an Barbaresco everywhere in the world, in the most prestigious wine lists or in the best cellars on the planet. Really, I'm proud to be a part of it. But. But now that a lot of people knows that Barolo an Barbaresco could be great wines, we need to pass to a more superior, and difficult, level, the identity. I mean that in a more and more globalised market, in which everyday new wines from all around the world come out, with great prices and good quality, piemontese wines have to be more and more "terroiristic"(may I steal it from you, Craig?). During the process of "revolution" of the 90's,in fact, someone has loose the real target of it, trying to make overripe,jammy,overoaked wines, maybe good for a degustation but not for the identity. Talking about my wines, starting from 1995, i began to change a little my vision of what it should be a Barbaresco: longer macerations, to try to extract slowly , at lower tempetratures, the right tannins and polifenolic, that's because I'm convinced they will be more stable in the wine;absolutly no selected yeasts or bacterium, they should change the characteristic of every single vineyards; no filter or fining; to try to move the wines in the cellar the less that we can; and, at the end, to choose the barriques with more attenction, looking at the different peculiarity of every forest. After that, I saw people very interested about it, all around the world. I am sure that every wine lover in the world, passioned like me of the different "nuance" of Burgundy or Bordeaux, will appreciate and will look for Nebbiolo that could bring the same emotions. I hope that I've answered to your question, It has been hard to find the right words! Best, Andrea

Today, at 11.00 am it rained a little.You know, if it happens during the day and water has the time to dry away from the grape, it's not a problem; it's good for the soil and to refresh a little the temperatures. During the day, infact, temperatures are moving down, but they are still enough to the maturation of the grapes:my grandfather calls it "nebbiolo weather", in other words, perfect conditions for a classic Nebbiolo. Anyway, let's hope that the sun came back soon! Best, Andrea

Hi Jonathan, I think that the best match(if you have the possibility to" catch" a good white truffle from Alba)is white truffle on an egg,simply, or on a risotto or hand-made pasta(tajarin, for example). The truffle taste is very strong, the parfume is powerful, you need a complex wine, tannic but balanced; I am sure that a 4-5 years old Barbaresco or Barolo will be wonderful on it. Let me know!( or invite me when you will do it....) Best, Andrea