Nebbiolo wines of the Langhe and Roero with Demarie

A blogging friend of mine, Valerie from Girls Gotta Drink, that I finally got to meet in person in Verona earlier this year in February, is building her business in Piedmont. She not only does wine tours in Piedmont, but is representing wineries and promoting their products and building their brands and presence throughout the world. I was honored to receive some samples of the Azienda Agricola Demarie winery located in the Piedmont region.

The Demarie winery, owner by Paolo Demarie, is located in Vezza d'Alba, which is part of the Roero district. Their vineyards are spread out across 20 hectacres (50 acres) in the towns of Vezza, Guarene, Castellinaldo and Castagnito. The Demarie winery is run by 3 generations.

Paolo, owner of Azienda Agricola Demarie, by Valerie Quintinilla

Luckily many of the wines I received were focused on the nebbiolo grape, one of my favorites. I have more to share in the upcoming months, but today wanted to highlight two of the Demarie nebbiolo wines and do a comparison of them:

• 2013 Demarie Langhe Nebbiolo

• 2012 Demarie Nebbiolo d'Alba

As you all know terroir is one of the major factors in the result of a final wine in addition to the choices made by a winemaker inside the production facilities when it comes to fermentation and aging methods. Piedmont is one of those regions in Italy where terroir is so important, especially in the cru sites of Barolo and Barbaresco, as it produces many different styles of nebbiolo. Nebbiolo expresses itself throughout the rest of Piedmont in many different styles. These two wines are from the Langhe DOC and Nebbiolo d'Alba DOC.

The Langhe DOC
The Langhe DOC encompasses the areas north and south of the town of Alba. Many grape varieties are produced in this area and it's considered the fallback DOC of the DOCG of Barolo, Barbaresco and Roero. Therefore, producers that label with the DOC have less stringent regulations and more flexibility.

The Nebbiolo d'Alba DOC
The Nebbiolo d'Alba DOC on the other hand must be made of 100% nebbiolo. This is a much more affordable wine with many of the typical characteristics of nebbiolo. It's aged only a year in comparison to the DOCG versions aged 2+ years depending upon which DOCG we are talking about. If you've never had a nebbiolo grape this would be a good place to start to experience it before moving on to the some of the big boys of the region.\

2012 Demarie Nebbiolo d'Alba 
Made of 100% nebbiolo grapes.  This wine goes through malolactic fermentation in large slavonian oak casks for 8 months followed by 8 months in the bottle. Deeper ruby red in color with a hint of licorice on the nose. A medium body with dark fruit with more present tannin and balanced acidity. It's recommended by Demarie to be aged up to 5 years. ABV 14.5%.

2013 Demarie Langhe Nebbiolo 
Made of 100% nebbiolo grapes.  A brilliant ruby red, it's a medium bodied wine with juicy red fruit and a mouthwatering acidity. Drying tannin on the finish.  A more delicate wine compared to the Nebbiolo d'Alba.  

Wine pairing with Nebbiolo

From time to time I will write about wines to pair with your meals, but I just as much enjoy sitting there with a bottle of wine and enjoying some delicious appetizers. And of course I'll always look up regional foods to pair with the bottle of wine that I choose to drink that night. Cured meats are always a great pairing in Italy with many of the reds so I chose salami as one of the appetizers that paired well with the 2013 Demarie Langhe Nebbiolo. 

I found the Langhe Nebbiolo much more approachable in its youth. The other dish I prepared was bruschetta topped with gorgonzola and walnuts drizzled with honey. Very typical ingredients of the region and paired well with the 2012 Demarie Nebbiolo d'Alba. The Nebbiolo d'Alba's tannins were very present in the wine and I felt the creaminess of the gorgonzola helped to cut through some of that.

It's all about playing around with pairings and finding what you like. I hope you get to sample nebbiolo for yourself if you haven't yet. If you have, what are some of your favorite areas of Piedmont for nebbiolo and any favorite pairings?

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The respect of Dolcetto d' Alba and Bruno Giacosa

I hope you joined us for our 1st Italian Wine, Food & Travel (#ItalianFWT) event last week featuring the Veneto.  Some great stories were shared including my "sensational soave" blog.  This week I'm going to share with you some wine from the Piedmont region as this will be our next feature next month on December 6th.  If you are interested in joining us please reach out to me.  As I study my way through Italy I'm also focusing on this region myself right now and boy is this a huge region to learn when it comes to wine, but SO many great ones to share.  This week I'm sharing with you a Dolcetto d'Alba from the well known Bruno Giacosa. 

Vineyards of Piedmont

Who is Bruno Giacosa?
Bruno Giacosa is a very well-respected name when it comes to wines from Piedmont.  With 3 generations of winemaking and a long history of passion for the land in which he was born from and the fruits of the land all have earned him his status in the wine world when it comes to Piedmont, Piemontese, wines.  Growing up in the wine world and throughout his life he has built strong relationships with many folks of the region.  This combined with his knowledge of the terroirs has allowed him to purchase grapes from some of the best parcels of lands.  Later, once those folks began producing their own wine, Bruno Giacosa began to purchase his own vineyards in Rabaja and Asili within Barbaresco and Falletto within Barolo.  These specific areas within Barolo and Barbaresco are some of the most highly regarded areas for wine production.  

The wines of Bruno Giacosa
Today, Bruno Giacosa's wines are vinified and cellared in the town of Nieve.  There are a couple labelings to look for when reviewing wines from Bruno Giacosa.  There are those bottles labeled "Casa Vinicola Bruno Giacosa", which are actually the wines that Giacosa produces after buying grapes that he selects from vineyards he respects for producing great grapes.  Then there is the "Azienda Agricola Falletto" wines of Bruno Giacosa and these are estate grown grapes. The wine I'm sharing with you today is a 2012 Bruno Giacosa Casa Vinicola Dolcetto d'Alba DOC.  

This Casa Vinicola Dolcetto D'Alba is from the town and area of Alba, which I stayed in back in 2009.  Great town and if you go in autumn and catch the truffle festival as we did you are in for a treat!  

White Truffle Market in Alba

The Dolcetto from Alba (hence dolcetto d'alba) is a DOC designation (Denominazione di origina controllata), which was granted to this area in 1974.  Dolcetto is a grape that is meant to be enjoyed young and is one of the more quaffable and easy drinking wines of the region, but there are some producers out there making great dolcetto as this one was so being able to never generalize is important in the wine world or you can really miss out.  

The 2012 Bruno Giacosa Casa Vinicola Dolcetto d'Alba
This wine was ruby in color with some hues of purple on the rim showing some of its youth.  It was one of the nicer dolcettos I have had and it's no surprise because of it's producer.  It showed fruits of red cassis, cherry, cranberries, violets along with some warm baking spices like allspice and some slight nuances of vanilla bean.  This wine is ready to drink now and could even be slightly held on to, but dolcetto is typically meant to be drunk young.

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