Piedmont’s Nebbiolo can be paired very nicely with autumn’s earthy harvest, says Julie Dupouy
As days are shortening and nature is slowing down in preparation for winter, my favourite season in the kitchen is quickly approaching. I love to see autumnal produce with its beautiful colours arrive on the shelves as I look forward to planning some heartier meals. It is time too to reach a little further into the cellar, past the light, crisp and juicy wines, for some of the more savoury and soul-warming reds that pair so wonderfully well with the autumn larder.
Among the most prized ingredients of the season are mushrooms – cepes, chanterelles, pieds de mouton and a wonderful showcase for them is a decadent, beautifully prepared risotto, with its deep, earthy mushroom flavour. One of nature’s rarest jewels is the white truffle of Piedmont’s Alba region.
The Alba white truffle or tuber magnatum pico, is harvested in the Langhe, Roero and Monferrato territories of Piedmont, Italy. A bit like wine, its market price is dictated each year by the climatic conditions of the season which affects its maturation, and the quantities offered by Mother Nature. Truffle hunters need expertly trained sniffer dogs to find them. Their season is short and so they demand some of the highest prices in the food world reaching €2,000-€6,000 per kg. For those lucky enough to have the opportunity to prepare a meal using the a famous truffle of Alba, a few wafer-thin shavings is sufficient to take you to a very special culinary place. The classic pairing for this rare treat are the grand nebbiolo wines of Italy’s northwest corner – the legendary Barolo and Barbaresco.
Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Francesco Rinaldi, €44; www.whelehanswines.ie
The name Nebbiolo derives from nebbia, the Italian word for fog, referring to the natural misty bloom shrouding the grapes in early autumn, before harvest. Nebbiolo ripens very late and so it is usually grown on the sorihillsides – the best sites in the region which have full southern exposure.
Like pinot noir, nebbiolo has an incredible ability to express the subtleties of different terroirs. Wines from Barolo DOCG and Barbaresco DOCG can vary greatly in style depending on their producer and the plots they come from. Nebbiolo tends to produce wines which are light in colour and take on a brick-red hue with age. The wines are typically high in acidity and tannins and display complex and captivating aromas of rose petals, dried red fruits, liquorice, tar, tobacco, herbs and more. These wines can be austere with grippy tannins in their youth. They have the potential to age gracefully for decades and the top producers command really big bucks.
Fortunately, not all nebbiolo wines need long cellaring before being approached. Other areas in Piedmont and slightly further afield produce wines which are far more accessible in price than those of Barolo and Barbaresco but still offer an excellent way to discover the grape style and pair with autumnal dishes.
Rosso di Valtellina DOC, Azienda Agricola Barbacàn, €31.50; www.siyps.com
Langhe Nebbiolo DOC and Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC are two appellations which offer a great introduction to Nebbiolo. In some cases, these DOCs give a chance to Barolo and Barbaresco producers to alternatively classify part of their harvest and to offer a second wine in a style that is more approachable and fruit forward. Grapes from great terroirs, grown on new, younger vines, yet to come of age, often end up in these bottlings. While the Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC dictates production must include 100 per cent nebbiolo, Langhe Nebbiolo DOC allows a little more flexibility with up to 15 per cent of the blend potentially made of other permitted red grapes from the region. In the right hands, these wines can be absolutely delicious and deliver a quality well above what their price tag may suggest.
Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Massolino, €32.95; www.thecorkscrew.ie
In the north of Piedmont, on the hills located on the left and right banks of the Sesia river, nebbiolo is known as spanna and produces wines which tend to be a little less intense structurally than those of Barolo but which rival them when it comes to their perfume and vibrant energy. Look out for wines sold under the Ghemme and Gattinara DOCG or under the perhaps lesser-known DOCs Lessona or Boca.
In the far north of Lombardy, in the region of Valtellina, at the border with Switzerland, nebbiolo is called chiavennasca. Here, grapes are grown in one of the most dramatic vineyard landscapes in the world, on tiny terraces, perched on steep mountainside slopes. The most famous wine produced in the region is the Sforzato di Valtellina DOCG. Made from grapes which are carefully dried before fermentation – similar vinification to Amarone della Valpolicella – the wines produced are bright and elegant with deliciously tart black fruit characters.
Nebbiolo d’Alba, Tenuta Olim Bauda, €24.94; www.mitchellandson.com
Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Giacomo Fennocchio, €26.95; www.pintowines.ie
The production of high quality nebbiolo wines rarely crosses Italy’s borders but one of the countries that seems to have excelled at nebbiolo production in the last few years is Australia. The best of them, in my opinion, come from the Victoria area, with some superb examples produced in the Yarra Valley, Beechworth and Heathcote. If you manage to get your hands on one of the few bottles that arrive in Ireland from Luke Lambert, Jasper Hill or Giaconda, you are in for a treat.
Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Il Principe, Michele Chiarlo, €30.99; www.vintry.ie
