Bonds Adventures: Piedmont wine region

Our daughter Laurel arranged for a great personally guided tour of the Piedmont district in northern Italy. This region is noted for its wines, in particular wines produced from the nebiolo grape. Our guides Richard and Leslie Alexander are from Wisconsin and in their prior life in the US imported Italian wines. As they put it, living in north Italy was just so much nicer than the US they decided to move and set up their business. I can certainly understand what attracted them after our tour. check them out if you decide to visit teh northern Italian wide region. http://www.travellanghe.com/

First some wine basics. The nebiolo grape produces several wines but the two most noted, and certainly the best, are the Barbaresco and Barolo. These wines are made only from grapes grown on the southward facing slopes of hills; the sun and moisture from morning fogs combine for perfect growth. . Nebiolo can be planted on the northern slopes but is used for other, lesser quality wines. As you would suspect each of these wines has its own region of production, barbaresco from the Asti region and Barolo from the Alba area. These areas are visible to each other as they are on the opposite sides of a valley. While not mentioned, I rather suspect an active rivalry exists between the wine masters from each.

One thing that is important is the label information. To insure quality standards the state has established some designations for wines. There are three in use; DO, DOC, DOCG.

· DO — Denominazione di Origine (designation of origin, seldom used)

· DOC — Denominazione di Origine Controllata (controlled designation of origin)

· DOCG — Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (controlled designation of origin guaranteed)

My impression of the DO designation is that if you produced wine in Italy, you could use this. The other two are significantly more stringent. The DOCG has a special cork over seal on top as insurance you are getting what the label says. There are inspectors who randomly visit wineries to verify the grapes and production methods. Failure to maintain quality can cost the winery its ability to use the seal. This can be disastrous for a small winery by changing the value of its wines.

Additional label details to watch for include; Classico, wines that are produced in areas where a particular grape is “traditionally grown” and Reserva, meaning the wine has been aged at least two years longer than usual for that variety. One more important label item is a notation that the grapes used were all from a particular vineyard. We found this last item to be of particular interest since the small vineyards in this area often make and bottle their own. While I would not have thought that adjacent vineyard would produce different tastes, the variance was sometimes quite noticeable.

Enough, enough with the wine stuff!

Our tour began with a 3 hour train ride to Asti that took us through the rice growing area of Italy. known for risotto, this region grows a variety well suited for the dish. The preparation of a good Risotto requires patience and careful attention to consistency, blending the broths and ingredients exactly results in an exquisite dish. My preference is creamy with mushrooms and perhaps a bit of veal, and Parmesan cheese (must not forget the cheese, ever!)

Leslie met us at the train station and chauffeured us to various areas in the morning. Our first stop was at a Co-op winery that produced Barbaresco wines. I am not accustomed to drinking wine at mid-morning, but I could get used to it. Because this is a co-op the wines are not vineyard specific but do meet the regional guarantee. To my taste these were less acidic and presenting various fruit flavors. These wines were superb.

Our next couple of visits were to wineries similar in size to those we found in Virginia but when compared to those in California, much smaller. It seems that no one simply buys a vineyard in this area. They are passed along from generation to generation. During our travels we drove past several apparently abandoned buildings that appeared to be associated with nearby vineyards. We discovered that there is no option to contest a will in Italy and so the patron of the family decides which son or daughter will inherit which share and that decision is final. Because of that some of the houses and buildings fall into disrepair since children are unwilling to work on them as the parents age with out assurance they will be designated an heir. One of the vineyards we visited had been equally divided among the siblings but only one of them was interested in the business so she proceeded to buy out the others and expand the winery; a clear demonstration of Italian entrepreneurship that took several years to complete. At another, where we ate lunch, Franco Rocco was the fourth generation to cultivate the grapes and make the wines himself. His children will inherit an excellent vineyard and a high quality wine.

These family vineyards are the mainstay of this region and the efforts of the growers to maintain the quality is reflected in their attention to the vines. As the growing season progresses the foliage and later the grape clusters are pruned to insure that the plant will spend its energy producing fewer grapes but ones that meet the needs of this high quality varietal wine. The vines are planted on often steep hilly slopes not suitable for mechanized cultivation and tending so pruning, weeding, staking and harvesting is all done by hand. The care that is given to the crop is certainly reflected in the quality of the wines produced.

Our lunch was provided by Franco Rocco and his wife Susan at their home. We enjoyed antipasti, primo, secondo and dolce all prepared by Susan in her kitchen area. We enjoyed wines from Franco’s efforts that were paired with the dishes served. Certainly one of the highlights of this part of our adventure was sharing the food and friendship of the Rocco family. Lunga vita e buona fortuna a tutti loro

After this sumptuous luncheon, we soldiered on to the Barolo wines. These, I am afraid, did not get the treatment they deserved. Taste buds that enjoyed wine and robust flavors since about 10:00am are simply worn out and incapable of fully appreciating the complex nuance of the Barolo wines. A couple of tastings however, did demonstrate the unique differences between the Barolo and the Barbaresco and as a result my wine budget expanded. Next time I think I will buy a few bottles of each and then conduct a side by side exploration of the subtle nuances.

While this area is particularly noted for its wines, the cheeses and salumi we enjoyed were also noteworthy. Soft cheeses, hard ones, aged and young each with its own use and flavor – we were not able to taste each and every one but a good effort was made. The salumi produced in northern Italy offer just about the same range of options as cheeses; dry, moist, fatty, lean, seasoned or natural. Prosciutto hams hang in clusters in shops next to long salumi and short knotted ones, gray ones with organic skins are next to red ones in natural coatings. Open hams and rolls of seasoned salumi rest on counters and the butchers are often asking "ti piacerebbe provare?" Of course I would, only a small taste, per favore. Maybe just a bit more to insure I savor all the flavor, grazie.

With all the great food choices, I am not sure how anyone in this area stays slim. It must be from working in the vineyards since the hills are so steep as to prevent mechanized cultivation and harvesting.

I am happy to share the photos below.—Sorry I cannot share the great wines and food.

a view of the Italian alps from the Piedmont area.

The Asti train station where it all began and ended

Bonzai from a grape vine

cheeses on display

as mentioned before, every village has a church at its center.

a grape press still in use for Rocco's wines

wines on display

same store as above with shelves stocked full. there is just not enough time to get to them all, damn!

a family vineyard

first tasting five Barbaresco

Franco and Susan Rocco, fourth generation wine producer and one of the nicest people ever.
Susan is a great cook and her traditional family lunch remains a fond memory

Justifiably proud Franco Rocco with the fruits of his labors.

I just liked this photo

wine aging in the bottle

Family farm and vineyard

The Italian rail system is all electric and from our experiences it works. The USA should be so lucky.

some of the winery/vineyards use larger barrels for aging. These barrels are over five feet in diameter.

The small house at the top is used for protecting the oxen or horses that farmers use in the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. The frequent storms mean the animals need protection and so the buildings. Farmers wait out the storms outside the building.

Salumi chubs waiting for a knife.

Remember the cheeses, here are some of the meats to accompany.

Hazel nuts are another crop of this region. The trees can be planted in areas that are suitable for grapes.

There are five family vineyards in this picture

Another grape press, smaller than the one above, but still in use.

a well stocked wine shop

Rice fields near Piedmont area.

If you look carefully at the rear roof you will notice that it is not a straight line. this roof has been repaired to match the sag in the building. both ends seem to have dropped a bit and now the roof has a vee section to the left of the large vent. Which is easier, jacking up the building or just fixing the roof? ... I thought so too.

A Tasting spread

Pacing oneself is an important skill in this arena. five reds and three whites, all good.

While production is often small the modern technology of the enologist is present.

If you would like to try your hand at making a salami the seasonings are all available.

This huge sundial is on the side of a building near one of the wine stores. It works.

While soil conservation would dictate the planting across the hillsides these vines were planted before that was a concern. the care that is given these plants probably relieves the pressure on erosion also.