Giacomo Conterno

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Finally, a visit to Conterno. This winery has been on the list for quite some time, and I was very happy when the dream became reality. Located in Monforte, it has an amazing view (as you can see above) and the winery is recently renovated, absolutely stunning.

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Roberto Conterno, the grandson of Giacomo, now runs the winery and he gave us the tour (along with a translator). I personally thought his English was good, but none the less… The winery is relatively small, they produce a small quantity of wine, and as of now they only really make 3 different wines, sometimes 4 when they also make the Monfortino. He uses big botti, a “traditionalist”, and all his wines are aged in wood (none in stainless steel).

The tasting consisted of his Barbera and the 2 barolos. Conterno is known for his Francia, that he uses both for his barbera and one of the barolos. I thought the 2014 Barbera Francia was excellent, which is rather strange, because 2014 was a difficult year and the wines have been so so… Roberto joined us for a glass or two, and passionately explained his philosophy. Overall a fantastic visit.

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Peck

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After moving to Milano, I had to start finding new wine stores. One of those was Peck. At Peck you don’t only find wine, they have a great selection of food as well (I spent quite some time in the Cheese section). Downstairs they have their Enoteca, and I was very surprised when I walked down the stairs and entered into the wine section. It was like it was endless. I just kept walking and walking and the store seemed to get bigger and bigger.

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They have a huge selection of wines from all over the world, it was almost overwhelming. And they also had a beautiful selection of large formats. Basically one of my new favorite places in Milano. Being Piemontegirl, I usually end up in that section of the wine stores, and true to form that’s where I spent most of my time while I was there. They have the big names like Gaja and Conterno, but they also have a good selection of the less expensive wines. While we are on the subject, good wine does not have to cost a fortune. Just saying.

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Definately a place to see if you are in the area. Check out their website for more information.