Tag Archives: piemonte

Favorites

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We all have our favorite wines or winemakers, and here are some of my favorites at the moment.

For Fun

Cascina Fontana Dolcetto 225,-
Looking for a wine to drink on a Tuesday night along with a bowl of pasta? Then this is your guy! And it the summer, chilling it a little may help cool you down in the hot summer months!

Trediberri Barbera 189,-
Trediberri’s first vintage was 2011 and his wines quality has skyrocketed! And at this price, this barbera is fricking steal!

Azelia Dolcetto 2013 179,-
A very interesting dolcetto, with grapes grown outside the Barolo area. This means that some of the best vineyards are actually used for Dolcetto instead of Nebbiolo, giving the grapes the best circumstances, making this Dolcetto extraordinary!

For Summer

Vietti Moscato 199,-
Get a bowl of strawberries and pop open this – it’s like you died and went to heaven. I love moscato, and I don’t even need a dessert. So good!

Trediberri Langhe Rosato 139,-
I am not a huge rose person, but if I had to pick one it’s for sure Trediberri’s Langhe Rosato. Fresh, not super sweet and made with love.

Agrapart Blanc de Blanc 508,-
Champagne is growing on me, and I really like this one. And as for Champagne, this is not super expensive. Blanc de blanc typically suits me best, and Agrapart makes a really good one!

Buy & Drink in 10 years

Marengo Barolo Brunate 599,-
Cavallotto Barolo Bricco Boschis 507,-
Corino Barolo 379,-

Team Green or Team Blue?

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Team Green or Team Blue?

How do you cut the foil?

Does it matter? Is there a right way? Apparently, people have a lot of opinions on the subject. Here are a few of the preferences:
Green
Blue
In between green and blue
Take the whole foil off
Use a foil cutter (and then the type of cutter decides)
Used to be green, now blue (or vice versa)
Don’t care

Does it matter?

Apart from peoples preferences, is there a reason to do it one way or the other? Does one way affect the wine or the pouring of the wine? Some people say that cutting by the blue line will interfere with the wine, because the wine can come in contact with the foil on the way into the glass or the decanter. Others say cutting by the blue line will increase chances of spilling the wine while pouring.

What do the winemakers say?

Without “outing” any winemakers, it was interesting so see to which team they pledged allegiance. And just like my instagram story, they favor green. Here are some of the winemakers that participated in the survey:
Carlotta Rinaldi
Nadia Curto
Giovanni Corino
Alberto Viberti
Alessandro Veglio
Lorenzo Scavino from Azelia

What do the the experts say?

Most of the experts are Team Green. However, they dispute the fact that the foil affects the wine if it comes in contact. It’s more about the look, the ease of removing the foil and the ease of pouring without spilling

Jancis Robinson: Team Green
Wine Folly: Team Green
Dr. Vinny (Wine Spectator): Foil Cutter

Conclusion?

It doesn’t really matter. Most people are Team Green. And some are neither. In the end, do whatever you prefer. And what team am I?

The Barolo “Boy”

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Chiara Boschis – a Barolo “boy”

About 30 years ago there was a revolution in the Langhe area, when the so called “modernists” where born. You may be able to debate how it started, but it can be argued that Elio played a big role when he brought his father’s big barrel outside and turned it into kindling. What followed was a sort of “war” between the modernists and traditionalists.

Chiara Boschis

I’m not sure you’ve heard of the “Barolo Boys“, but they are the main characters in this so called war. And amid all the boys – Elio Altare, Accomasso, Beppe Rinaldi & Roberto Voerzio – you have Chiara Boschis. Chiara assumed responsibility of the winery in 1980, and back then it was uncommon for women to be winemakers. But she persevered and the results are outstanding.

Chiara Boschis Wine Cellar

Chiara is a fiery, feisty, fantastic person with boatloads of passion. And her incredible energy is contagious. Chiara is not just a winemaker, she is a hard core farmer on a mission to save the planet. Global warming or global climate change is a common topic in the area these days.

Extreme weather & temperatures creates all sorts of issues for the vines. This year, there has been almost no rain, and rain is crucial in this period when the buds are appearing on the vines. And if there is frost after the buds have appeared, then there is a whole other set of issues. Just look at Burgundy the past week.

But Chiara, along with many other winemakers in the area, fights with all she’s got. Biodiversity & organic are popular words these days, and for Chiara they are words to live by! She always looks for new ways to aid the land where she grows her wine. She continuously thinks of new ways to improve. Chiara never gives up!

As for the wines, Chiara always strives for perfection. 2014 was a difficult year, so 2015 I think would automatically be a good year (compared to the 2014). As with any agricultural product, the wine reflects the vintage was well as the soil. Chiara Boschis made excellent wines both years, but I think I prefer 2015 over 2014 Mosconi. I look forward to the next vintages, as well as the transformation of the wines in the bottle.

Gaia Gaja @ Vinoteket

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Vinoteket, a hot new meeting place for wine enthusiast, recently hosted Gaia Gaja for a winetasting. Clearly, I was in attendance. Although I have tried quite a few of the wines from Gaja, I have never been to the winery.
All in all we tasted 5 different wines, 3 from Piemonte and 2 from Tuscany (who knew!).

Gaja has recently started a new project in Tuscany, and at the tasting Gaia showed us two of the wines from there. First, the Camarcanda, which is 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Cabernet Franc. A simple, but structured wine from a flat area with limestone soil.

Bolgheri is a simple beauty

Gaia Gaja

The second wine from Tuscany is the Brunello di Montalcino, the “brown grape” from Montalcino. With 100% sangiovese, a Brunello can be very tannic if made “poorly”. Gaja brought the Brunello from 2014, a difficult vintage, but a vintage that resulted in lower tannins and good acidity.

Wines from Piemonte

From Piemonte, we tried Conteisa, Spress and Sori Tildin. Conteisa, where the grapes are from La Morra, was more elegant and fruity than Sperss, where the grapes are from Serralunga. Both balanced wines with good structure and good acidity. Compared to the wines from Tuscany, Gaia feels like the nebbiolo wines are less persistent, more quiet.

Nebbiolo allows the vintage to be in front

Gaia Gaja

Sori Tildin comes from a vineyard planted veritcally (very unusual) which allows for a higher density of vines. Located on the top of the hill, southfacing on dense soil means the wine is very concentrated. Rich, dark fruits with a hint of mineralism.

Gaja on climate change & biodiversity

Although she spoke a lot about the wines, she also spend a significant amount of time on the topics climate change and biodiversity. Climate change has become an issue in the vineyards, as the weather is even more unpredictable than normal, making the work in the vineyards more and more difficult. A proposed solution to this problem is more biodiversity.

If you look out into the landscape in Piemonte, you’ll see miles and miles of vineyards as far as the eye can see. The problem with this “mono agriculture” is a lack of biodiversity. Despite protests from Angelo Gaja, they decided to hire consultants to help. Bee keeping, different types of herbal essence, leaving the grass growing, planting trees – all of these ideas are meant to encourage biodiversity.

A truly interesting woman, who comes from a winery with an incredible history! If I were to describe Gaia in 3 words:
Passionate
Fierce
Intelligent

News at Vinmonopolet

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Here are some new additions to Vinmonopolet’s selection. I love that Nadia Curto has made it on the list, it’s been a while since I’ve seen her wines in Norway. Cavallotto and Cascina Fontana are also favorites of mine. Looking forward to a year full of wine!

Cavallotto Barolo Bricco Boschis Vigna San Giuseppe Riserva 2012 916,-

Massolino Barolo Margheria 2014 615,-

Curto Barolo Arborina 2014 487,-

Curto Dolcetto d’Alba 2017 229,-

Cascina Fontana Barbera d’Alba 2015 309,-

1992 – the year I was born

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The year is 1992. In a cold, rainy little town called Stavanger, Oda Emilie aka Piemontegirl was born. Around the same time, in what seams like a different world, the cold also encompassed Piemonte. For the family and their bundle of joy, weather mattered very little. But to the farmers in Piemonte, weather matters. A lot. It can be all consuming.

1992 has a reputation for being a bad vintage. Starting off cold, warming up slightly in May and June, and lots of rain during the second half of the year does not add up to an “easy” vintage. The wet weather can be very problematic, bringing with it diseases and other issues. It was not looking very good for the 1992 vintage. Many estates did not bottle wine.

But I have a question for you? Have you tried a 1992 recently?

I have. Barbaresco 1992 from Produttori del Barbaresco. And guess what? It was MAGNIFICENT!

You should probably not keep them for very much longer, if you find any at all. I plan on drinking mine soon, probably for my 30th birthday! But my point is, that 1992 is not bad. Maybe it never was bad? I was not old enough to drink back then, so I’ve only ever had “old” 1992, but was it really that bad back then? Elio and Silvia Altare don’t seem to think so.

It was cold rainy difficult vintage but super smooth elegant wines were made. Pure magic for the wines made by the winemakers that are farmers first.

Silvia Altare

Cascina Fontana Langhe Nebbiolo

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Cascina Fontana Langhe Nebbiolo 2016

Mario Fontana makes a killer Lanhghe Nebbiolo! The grapes for his nebbiolo comes from the historic vineyard of Castello di Sinio and some from Il Pozzo in Castiglione Falletto.

Fontana makes wines in the traditional way, with large casks, as the wine will reflect. I find this wine to be well balanced and fresh – a very good example of a Langhe Nebbiolo. Hope you enjoy it!

wow cascina fontana langhe nebbioloWine: Langhe Nebbiolo

Producer: Cascina Fontana

Region/Appellation: Piemonte, Italy

Grape varieties: Nebbiolo

Vintage: 2016

Eye: garnet red

Nose: rose petals, strawberries, balsamico

Mouth: well-balanced tannins, long finish, fresh

Price Point: $18

Available at Vinmonopolet: no

Available at Systembolaget: no

Panettone & Moscato

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You know it’s the holiday season when Panettone decorates store windows, store displays and your instagram. I tried to make Panettone myself, and it turned out quite good, if I may say so myself. You can get the recipe here.

My sources tell me that for the holidays, a popular combination is Panettone & Moscato! Doesn’t sound half bad, right?