Gattinara - Just one of the many neglected Nebbiolo wines

Barolo, Barolo, Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbaresco, Barolo, Barolo, Barbaresco, Barolo, Barolo, Where are your Barolos? I love Barolo. Barbaresco is like Barolo, right? Barolo, Barolo, Barbaresco, Barolo…

In my opinion, wines like Barolo, Barbararesco, Amarone, and Brunello, as great as they are, hold far too big a wedge of the Italian wine pie. With the nearly limitless variety that Italy possesses, it’s just short sighted and parochial to only drink these expensive, gold-plated appellations. And then we can go a level deeper…If folks know anything about Nebbiolo, they know that Barolo is made from this grape. I’d guess that about half of this number also know that Barbaresco is also made from 100% Nebbiolo. Once you’ve passed this signpost, the knowledge about Nebbiolo just drops off the shelf, and that’s a shame.

Nebbiolo is unquestionably one of the WORLD’s most “noble” grapes - Its color, aroma, flavors, and the places in which it can be grown are rarified and quite particular. The variety is absolutely and irrevocably linked to its birthplace of Piedmont in northwestern Italy. And despite many attempts to cultivate this variety elsewhere (California, Argentina, New Zealand et al.) results have ranged from satisfactory at best to COMPLETE, rapid failure - like planting the vines, and watching them die outright in the span of only a couple of years. To say that Nebbiolo gets homesick is one of the greatest understatements in the wine world. Some day, someone might overcome the great difficulties that growers have encountered in cultivating Nebbiolo outside of Piedmont, but thus far the results weighed against the costs and difficulties just don’t come out for most growers, so Nebbiolo often gets ripped up almost as fast as it went in…

So let me introduce you to Gattinara. Gattinara is one of the many, other-than-Barolo-and-Barbaresco, Nebbiolo-based wines that also hail from Piedmont’s hallowed soils. Other such appellations include Ghemme, Carema, Boca, Sizzano, Fara, Lessona, and Bramaterra…yes, all those, (and all of them are in Piedmont) and if one includes neighboring Valle d’Aosta and Lombardia, there are almost that many more! Of all of these “other” appellations, Gattinara is undoubtedly the most famous, and the one with the greatest reputation.

Believe it or not, before WW II, Gattinara held the place that Barolo now holds in terms of prestige. Traditionally, Gattinara, which sits quite a bit further north and east of the two “big B’s”, was the area that was best known for, and more heavily planted to Nebbiolo. The areas in and around the Barolo and Barbaresco zones had always been associated with the cultivation of Nebbiolo, but never to the degree that Gattinara was.

In Gattinara, the local name for Nebbiolo is Spanna , and the current DOCG regulations do allow for the addition of up to 15% of two local grape varieties - Uva Rara and Vespolina - in any percentual combination. These grapes are softer and fruitier than Spanna (Nebbiolo), and consequently can be useful in rounding out the final wine in colder, leaner vintages which are a bit more common this far north. Of late however, as climates continue to warm, and as growers learn more about clonal selection, fewer and fewer growers choose to include any Uva Rara or Vespolina. In terms of elevage, Gattinara, like Barbaresco, must be aged for a minimum of three years, one of which must be in wooden barrels, while Barolo requires at least 4 years of aging.

So why get up on a soap box about an oenological “also ran”? Well, for one thing, this “second best” status is mostly undeserved. Gattinara can be, and is often as good as its more famous neighbors - just as profound and complex, but due to differing soils, climate, and history, just DIFFERENT. But, with perception being the lion’s share of reality, Gattinara, if known to consumers at all, is thought of as a lesser thing. But not surprisingly, there’s a silver lining here, and I think that you can guess what it might be…yes, I think heard it from someone in the back…it is indeed PRICE. Now this is not to say that Gattinara is CHEAP, but it often costs less than half of what many Baroli (the Italian plural) do, and usually about 50% less than most Barbareschi (pronounced “Bar-bar-ESS-ki - the Italian plural again). So if QPR or “bang for the buck” are criteria that are high on your list, get to know Gattinara. If however, you want at all costs to cultivate a snobby edge, or just LOVE spending more than you have to for the wines you drink, by all means stick with the Baroli…obviously, my tongue is planted firmly in my cheek, but I do it to make a point, and that is not to let your buddies or collegues or your family who read a few wine rags cast aspersions on your selections because they’re not sexy or enough of a status symbol. Gattinara offers another “take” - and a great one I might add - on the nearly endless story that is Nebbiolo, so why not avail yourself of it, and keep a few extra bucks in your pocket while you do?

Just a short note - I’m taking a few days off across the labor day weekend, so I won’t be posting again until September 3rd, so until then, be well, and drink good wine!

TOM CIOCCO

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