Nebbiolo
What is nebbiolo and how does it taste?
Nebbiolo is an Italian red varietal. Its wines are taut and tannic, sometimes needing cellar aging to soften. But if you are patient they will reward you with a wealth of flavors. A wine made with nebbiolo certainly has fruit to offer: strawberries, red and black cherries, raspberies, plums. Finer examples offer so much more: savory tobacco, baking spices, polished leather, menthol, balsam notes, or faded rose petals in the best bottles.
Where is nebbiolo grown?
You can find nebbiolo vines growing in the US, Australia, and even Mexico. Yet a region in northwestern Italy known as the Piedmont is, for many critics, the only place where nebbiolo vines have yielded distinctive, ageworthy, riveting red wines. Within the Piedmont, two delimited zones known as Barolo and Barbaresco reign supreme. In recent years, the nebbiolo wines from Gattinara, Carema, Ghemme, and Roero are vying to stand alongside those from Barolo and Barbaresco. Another delimited zone called Valtinella in the region known as Lombadry also offers nebbiolo based wines of note.
Some popular nebbiolo producers:
- Vietti Langhe Nebbiolo Perbacco
- Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco
- Vietti Barolo Castiglione
- Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia
- Angelo Gaja Barbaresco
What food pairs well with nebbiolo?
Nebbiolo wines almost demand to be served with food. But keep in mind that a mature Barolo or Barbaresco is not only structured but also aromatic. So let the wine take center stage and pair it with a simple yet classic dish such as roasted goose, pheasant, or wild duck. Truffles served over pasta or risotto are a winner. And a young nebbiolo wine calls for a grilled steak or beef braised in red wine, preferably the wine that you are enjoying with it!