Just wondering if anyone has had any exceptional visits/ tastings. My wife and I will be there in October and would prefer smaller wineries that feature Barolo and Barbaresco wines. We're staying near Alba and will have a car to travel throughout the Langhe. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Larry
Posted by
11647 posts
Boutique winery Pietro Rinaldi in Madonna di Como. It is just outside of Alba. Beautiful setting, lovely owners. We ended up buying a case of wine from them.
Posted by
Abruzzo Mountains
1089 posts
Hi, Larry, this may seem a little sideways to your question, but it is not very common for wineries here in Italy to have tasting rooms you can drop into. You will need to make reservations in advance, and during harvest in October they may not have staff available for tastings. Even here in rural Abruzzo, I have to call my favourite wineries in advance when I have friends visiting.
An option is to visit regional producers' joint cantine. In the Langhe, I have visited several of the producers' collective tasting / sales rooms: one for Barbaresco wines in the town of Barbaresco and one for Barolo wines in, yes, the town of Barolo, in the basement of the town castle. Both had lots of vineyards represented and both had organized tastings of a good variety of producers. That is your easiest option.
Another option is to take an organized wine tour. I have followed Italianna for a decade, but have not actually taken her tours yet. But she gets very good reviews and seems very knowledgeable (grew up in a Napa wine family before marrying a man from Piedmont.) But there are many other tour companies offering tasting day trips through the Langhe.
If you want to roll your own tour, be sure to contact your selected wineries in advance for appointments, or you will most likely be turned away. I'm sorry I don't have any specific names for you, but doing some searches on awards over the last few years will likely yield some clues for a treasure hunt.
Posted by
OP
Granite Bay, CA
97 posts
Nelly -
Thank you for your concise and informative answer. I've been to Piemonte before and have gone to the collectives you mentioned. I especially liked the enoteca in Barbaresco that is inside an abandoned church.
Since I've been before, I'm looking for smaller production wineries. Your suggestion about doing a wine tour is good, and I will make appointments.
Thanks again
Larry
Posted by
OP
Granite Bay, CA
97 posts
Suki -
Thanks for the tip on Pietro Rinaldi. I'll be contacting them.
Larry
Posted by
5158 posts
This might be out of left field, but there is a producer near Asti and I am a huge fan of one of their wines, an unusual sweet effervescent red called Braccheto d'Acqui. I see they also make more traditional reds, so thought you might want to investigate: https://www.braida.it/en/visit-braida/
Posted by
309 posts
I toured the area with Evan Byrne and enjoyed it immensely.
https://piemontemio.com/food-wine-tour/
He has been in the area for years and knows which wineries to take you based on your taste preferences. He made sure to introduce us to some unique varietals as well.