We visited this producer in Annunziata on the 9th of October 2011.
We were greeted by Walter who is the proprietor of this cantina and escorted to the tasting room. Soon thereafter, arrived a local woman with two winemakers from Puglia.
The first wine presented was his white which I did not taste but Natalya did.
Before we start on the discussion of his reds, we must tell you that we tasted the 2006 Barolos but were offered the 2004, 2005 or 2006 to buy. We took the 2004 as it is known to be a more approachable vintage than the 2006. Thus, this discussion is about the 2006. When we begin to open the 2004, we will update this post.
The first Barolo was the 2006 Rocchettevino which he called his "Barolo di base". It was aged one year in botte. This is not a "big" wine, more of an elegant one for lighter foods or even without a meal. The nose is very very nice. In our opinion, it still needs one year in the bottle.
We then tasted the 2006 Arborina. This was aged 22 months in barrique. It also has a very nice nose, is quite tannic and requires, IOHO, at least two years in the cellar. We bought bottles of this Barolo but, as noted above, the 2004..
We then tasted two of his Barberas, both very good wines.
The next wine was the 2008 Langhe Nebbiolo. It was aged one year in used botte. It also is quite tannic and needs a minimum of two years in the cellar to even out. We bought a full box of this wine.
The last was the 2004 Gattera. This was aged three years in large botte. The Gattera vineyeard is 85 years old so the wines can be considered to be of the top tier of his production. It is also quite tannic and requires at least three years in the cellar. We purchased the 2004 Gattera also.
These wines are highly recommended for those that have time and patience to allow them to reach their full potential.
28 December 2011, we opened a bottle of the 2008 Langhe Nebbiolo for lunch, just to see how it is doing. The bottle was opened at 1240 to drink with our lunch around 1430. By chance, the workman who we asked to fix our piano cottura some months ago arrived. Thus, lunch was delayed. We finally got to taste the wine around 1630. The tannins showed very well as did the grape. As lunch progressed for the next two hours, the wine came around and at the end of the bottle, we realized why we had purchased a full box. It had become one of the best Nebbiolos we had had in some time. We still recommend that it remain in the cellar for another two years but we will try another bottle around this time in 2012 and also try to purchase another box. It is really good grape juice.
25 November 2012 We opened a bottle of the 2004 Arborina for lunch with Chinese food today. It is still (please see previous comment above) a very tannic but very fruity wine. We opened it about a half hour before the first taste and tasted it throughout lunch for about another 90 minutes. We still believe it needs at least another year of cellar time before things begin to balance out but rest assured, it is a fine example of the type of Barolo that we enjoy...big and bold with lots of flavors and enough tannins to balance the fruit. As to our desire to purchase another box of the 2008 Nebbiolo, we spoke with a representative of the cantina at the La Morra tasting who assured us that the last six bottles would be ours when we passed the cantina the morning after. However, that trip was for naught as there was no one there when we arrived and after a half hour, we gave up. Obviously we were quite disappointed.
17 December 2014 For lunch today, we opened the last bottle of the 2004 Gattera. We had prepared a simple meal of chicken, potatoes from our garden and other vegetables. With regret, we must advise you that the Gattera is on its last legs. The wine, if you would have served it to us without any note of what it was, would not have shown as a Barolo. Luckily it was the last bottle in our cellar.
28 October 2011
07 October 2011
Pierangelo Bosco - Borgata Boiolo, La Morra
We visited this Barolo producer on the 9th of October. We suggest that you call ahead for instructions on how to find the cantina as our GPS led us astray.
The production area is brimming with stainless steel tanks while the barrel room is full of new and used french oak.
We got to meet Pierangelo and his wife, Elisa as well as their daughter, Matilde. They told us that they originally sold the grapes they grew. Now, they produce a limited number of bottles of top of the line Barolo. Pierangelo's wife told us that he does this more as a hobby.
We tasted both the 2004 and 2006 Vigna Boiolo Barolo. We also got to taste the initial stages of the 2011, still in the fermentation tanks.
The 2006 is still quite closed in but the 2004 is becoming very approachable. We believe that the 2004 still has a number of years left in the bottle before it is completely ready. The particular bottle we tasted from had been open about four hours. Over the time we were there and with a little help from me in aging it in the glass, we realized that it is a full but quite soft Barolo, not a big one that grabs you and does not let go. It, we believe, is a great wine to serve to friends sitting around the house with a fire in the stove/fireplace. You should be aware that it is still has a bit of tannin in the mouth but it adds to the complexity. We believe that additional bottle aging should bring about a fuller, more complex wine.
We asked about the 2005. We were told that they did not think it was very good so they sold the finished wine. They did this also with the 2007.
We bought a full case of the 2004 and will leave it for at least three years in the cellar. The price was very reasonable.
3 September 2012 We had a nice visit with the family after the La Morra tasting. Pierangelo opened a bottle of his new Barbera d'Alba which had not been tasted since it was put in bottles.
March 2013 We again stopped to see Pierangelo and Elisa. We wanted to taste the 2006 again as well as the 2004. We believe the 2004 may be ready in 2014 while the 2006 is thought to be ready sometime in 2016. As always, we shall report any changes to our estimates.
16 February 2014 We opened a bottle of the 2004 today with a ground chicken, toma and onion plate. We started lunch with a plate of ravioli di carciofi. Natalya made a Chinese cabbage salad to go with it. The 2004 is ready to drink. When we opened it, there was no nose to speak of but there was very good fruit in the mouth. As it progressed, the mouth became more subdued and the nose became more prominent. We suggest that you have more than two to drink the bottle if you open one. There was very little mouth after about 45 minutes but the nose was really nice. Great Barolo!!
24 June 2014 We opened another bottle of the 2004 today with a piadina for lunch. Great wine, ready to drink after a short time open. Suggest that you open one of yours to see how it is faring.
19 December 2014 We really like this grape juice. We made a lasagna today with our sauce of cuore di bue tomatoes and some ground turkey today and made a lasagna. The wine was open just before the lasagna was ready but it did not show until about twenty minutes later. It is a great wine. We will stop to see them in the coming year to see if they have a few more.
15 May 2015 We opened the last bottle of the 2004 today with our lunch. We believe the wine is ready to drink and will stand up to most anything you can serve with it. Have it in your cellar? Try it!!
8 May 2016 We opened the first bottle of the 2006 today. We expected it to be a very big (robust) wine and were not disappointed. The wine is very, very good; as good as we expected it to be when we bought it. It was served with a spicy Chinese dish that we made. We will open the next bottle after some months, possibly for my birthday the end of August. If you have it, try it but it will last for some years more.
25 December 2016 It took us a little longer than we thought to get around to opening the next to last bottle of the 2006 but we did it today with our lunch. We prepared the following: a buffalo milk mozzarella for appetizer and then a slowly cooked duck leg served with oven baked potatoes and some of our apples. First of all, the duck leg came out very well. This is the first time we had ever tried it (as it normally takes two days to cook) but with a new recipe, it took four hours. The Barolo was not as we had been warned. Some time ago (maybe five years), we were told that the wine was ready to drink. Maybe it was at that time but it was really ready to drink today. It was balanced with the nose being of asphalt in the beginning and the tannins poking their heads out on occasion. We had what could be considered a perfect match. Too bad we have only one bottle left. Are we in a hurry to open it? Not really! We believe that it has at least a year left. Try one, you may not be sorry!! Thanx for the great grape juice, Pierangelo!!
10 September 2017 Today we opened the last bottle of the 2006 Bosco Barolo and the last bottle in our cellar of any vintage. We served it with a chicken thigh that was stuffed with oregano, hard boiled egg and dark bread crumbs. We tied it together with toothpicks and then sauteed it on a hot pan with extra virgin olive oil. Once browned, we added some vegetable broth, brought it back to a boil and let it simmer covered for about a half hour. The wine really complimented this spectacular Sunday lunch. If you have the wine, time to drink it. Further time in your cellar would be not be advisable.
The production area is brimming with stainless steel tanks while the barrel room is full of new and used french oak.
We got to meet Pierangelo and his wife, Elisa as well as their daughter, Matilde. They told us that they originally sold the grapes they grew. Now, they produce a limited number of bottles of top of the line Barolo. Pierangelo's wife told us that he does this more as a hobby.
We tasted both the 2004 and 2006 Vigna Boiolo Barolo. We also got to taste the initial stages of the 2011, still in the fermentation tanks.
The 2006 is still quite closed in but the 2004 is becoming very approachable. We believe that the 2004 still has a number of years left in the bottle before it is completely ready. The particular bottle we tasted from had been open about four hours. Over the time we were there and with a little help from me in aging it in the glass, we realized that it is a full but quite soft Barolo, not a big one that grabs you and does not let go. It, we believe, is a great wine to serve to friends sitting around the house with a fire in the stove/fireplace. You should be aware that it is still has a bit of tannin in the mouth but it adds to the complexity. We believe that additional bottle aging should bring about a fuller, more complex wine.
We asked about the 2005. We were told that they did not think it was very good so they sold the finished wine. They did this also with the 2007.
We bought a full case of the 2004 and will leave it for at least three years in the cellar. The price was very reasonable.
3 September 2012 We had a nice visit with the family after the La Morra tasting. Pierangelo opened a bottle of his new Barbera d'Alba which had not been tasted since it was put in bottles.
March 2013 We again stopped to see Pierangelo and Elisa. We wanted to taste the 2006 again as well as the 2004. We believe the 2004 may be ready in 2014 while the 2006 is thought to be ready sometime in 2016. As always, we shall report any changes to our estimates.
16 February 2014 We opened a bottle of the 2004 today with a ground chicken, toma and onion plate. We started lunch with a plate of ravioli di carciofi. Natalya made a Chinese cabbage salad to go with it. The 2004 is ready to drink. When we opened it, there was no nose to speak of but there was very good fruit in the mouth. As it progressed, the mouth became more subdued and the nose became more prominent. We suggest that you have more than two to drink the bottle if you open one. There was very little mouth after about 45 minutes but the nose was really nice. Great Barolo!!
24 June 2014 We opened another bottle of the 2004 today with a piadina for lunch. Great wine, ready to drink after a short time open. Suggest that you open one of yours to see how it is faring.
19 December 2014 We really like this grape juice. We made a lasagna today with our sauce of cuore di bue tomatoes and some ground turkey today and made a lasagna. The wine was open just before the lasagna was ready but it did not show until about twenty minutes later. It is a great wine. We will stop to see them in the coming year to see if they have a few more.
15 May 2015 We opened the last bottle of the 2004 today with our lunch. We believe the wine is ready to drink and will stand up to most anything you can serve with it. Have it in your cellar? Try it!!
8 May 2016 We opened the first bottle of the 2006 today. We expected it to be a very big (robust) wine and were not disappointed. The wine is very, very good; as good as we expected it to be when we bought it. It was served with a spicy Chinese dish that we made. We will open the next bottle after some months, possibly for my birthday the end of August. If you have it, try it but it will last for some years more.
25 December 2016 It took us a little longer than we thought to get around to opening the next to last bottle of the 2006 but we did it today with our lunch. We prepared the following: a buffalo milk mozzarella for appetizer and then a slowly cooked duck leg served with oven baked potatoes and some of our apples. First of all, the duck leg came out very well. This is the first time we had ever tried it (as it normally takes two days to cook) but with a new recipe, it took four hours. The Barolo was not as we had been warned. Some time ago (maybe five years), we were told that the wine was ready to drink. Maybe it was at that time but it was really ready to drink today. It was balanced with the nose being of asphalt in the beginning and the tannins poking their heads out on occasion. We had what could be considered a perfect match. Too bad we have only one bottle left. Are we in a hurry to open it? Not really! We believe that it has at least a year left. Try one, you may not be sorry!! Thanx for the great grape juice, Pierangelo!!
10 September 2017 Today we opened the last bottle of the 2006 Bosco Barolo and the last bottle in our cellar of any vintage. We served it with a chicken thigh that was stuffed with oregano, hard boiled egg and dark bread crumbs. We tied it together with toothpicks and then sauteed it on a hot pan with extra virgin olive oil. Once browned, we added some vegetable broth, brought it back to a boil and let it simmer covered for about a half hour. The wine really complimented this spectacular Sunday lunch. If you have the wine, time to drink it. Further time in your cellar would be not be advisable.
01 October 2011
Chiara Bochis - Barolo
This woman, one of the few female winemakers in Barolo, normally does not accept visitors because of her limited production and the fact that she does most of the work herself.
We had tasted her 2005 Cannubi at a restaurant in Barolo and wanted to buy it so I contacted her and managed to arrange a visit with our neighbors here in Pratomorone.
We went through the cantina and the barrel room, all underground and all new and extremely well kept. She has also applied to the Italian government for biological status for her wines.
We were also impressed by the 2007 Cannubi and her 2009 Nebbiolo. The neighbors bought her 2009 Barbera, also a spectacular wine.
All three of these are now in our cellar.
This past week, we opened a bottle of the 2005 Cannubi. It was quite soft in both the nose and mouth but an excellent example of the grape. We would recommend that you drink this without food or a less spicy offering. You might even drink it with just crackers and cheese in front of the fireplace.
9 September 2012 Today, we opened another bottle of the 2005 Cannubi. This is truly a spectacular wine. True Barolo in the nose, mouth develops more with each pour. Too bad this was the last bottle we had. Highly recommended, buy it if you can find it stored properly in your local wine shop..
1 June 2014 Today, we opened a bottle of the 2007 Cannubi for lunch. I had made a risotto with porcini mushrooms. When I first smelled the wine, I was taken a little aback because it did not have the typical Cannubi nose. However, after a hour, it had morphed into the wine that we know Chiara makes. It was spectacular. It is really too bad that we have only one more. Please remember that it needs a hour open before tasting.
5 February 2015 We are fans of this woman's wines. They were the first that we bought for our cellar that could be aged for a time longer than the following year. Today, we opened a bottle, the last bottle unfortunately, of the 2009 Nebbiolo. What a spectacular wine! We think it is a short time short of its best showing but if you leave it open for a hour, it should be what you would expect it to show. The meal was some of Natasha's ravioli, a piece of buffala mozzarella, some broccoli and a small salad. We need to find a few more bottles of that grape juice!!!!
5 February 2017 Today, with some "leftovers", we opened the last bottle of the 2007 Cannubi for lunch. While you may think that this wine was too good for "leftovers", you should know, if you have read some of our musings, that our "leftovers" are something you might order in some of the world's finest restaurants. Today, we had Natalya's zucca (pumpkin) soup with some lasagna that we made in December and froze (we always make too much). The wine was spectacular, a blend of the fruit of the grape with a light touch of acidity and very soft tannins. Something that an older Barolo should display. Because of the last bottle we opened in 2014 had a lot of stuff on the bottom of the bottle, we decanted it. We were very glad we did. If you have it, take a bottle for a great meal even if it is in your own kitchen but now is the time to drink it. The wine will stand up to most meals except something that has a touch of peperoncini to it.
We had tasted her 2005 Cannubi at a restaurant in Barolo and wanted to buy it so I contacted her and managed to arrange a visit with our neighbors here in Pratomorone.
We went through the cantina and the barrel room, all underground and all new and extremely well kept. She has also applied to the Italian government for biological status for her wines.
We were also impressed by the 2007 Cannubi and her 2009 Nebbiolo. The neighbors bought her 2009 Barbera, also a spectacular wine.
All three of these are now in our cellar.
This past week, we opened a bottle of the 2005 Cannubi. It was quite soft in both the nose and mouth but an excellent example of the grape. We would recommend that you drink this without food or a less spicy offering. You might even drink it with just crackers and cheese in front of the fireplace.
9 September 2012 Today, we opened another bottle of the 2005 Cannubi. This is truly a spectacular wine. True Barolo in the nose, mouth develops more with each pour. Too bad this was the last bottle we had. Highly recommended, buy it if you can find it stored properly in your local wine shop..
1 June 2014 Today, we opened a bottle of the 2007 Cannubi for lunch. I had made a risotto with porcini mushrooms. When I first smelled the wine, I was taken a little aback because it did not have the typical Cannubi nose. However, after a hour, it had morphed into the wine that we know Chiara makes. It was spectacular. It is really too bad that we have only one more. Please remember that it needs a hour open before tasting.
5 February 2015 We are fans of this woman's wines. They were the first that we bought for our cellar that could be aged for a time longer than the following year. Today, we opened a bottle, the last bottle unfortunately, of the 2009 Nebbiolo. What a spectacular wine! We think it is a short time short of its best showing but if you leave it open for a hour, it should be what you would expect it to show. The meal was some of Natasha's ravioli, a piece of buffala mozzarella, some broccoli and a small salad. We need to find a few more bottles of that grape juice!!!!
5 February 2017 Today, with some "leftovers", we opened the last bottle of the 2007 Cannubi for lunch. While you may think that this wine was too good for "leftovers", you should know, if you have read some of our musings, that our "leftovers" are something you might order in some of the world's finest restaurants. Today, we had Natalya's zucca (pumpkin) soup with some lasagna that we made in December and froze (we always make too much). The wine was spectacular, a blend of the fruit of the grape with a light touch of acidity and very soft tannins. Something that an older Barolo should display. Because of the last bottle we opened in 2014 had a lot of stuff on the bottom of the bottle, we decanted it. We were very glad we did. If you have it, take a bottle for a great meal even if it is in your own kitchen but now is the time to drink it. The wine will stand up to most meals except something that has a touch of peperoncini to it.
Le Strette - Novello
We had the opportunity to spend time with Savio at Le Strette. He gave us the family history and we got to see what we thought was a fairly new cantina.
We tasted a number of his offerings along with our neighbors here in Pratomorone. We were especially impressed with the 2007, the only one they made that year. We had it for our one year anniversary.
We also loved the 2005 Bergera Pezzole.
Both were added to our growing collection.
We recently communicated with Savio regarding the 2008 offerings. He said that they would not be available until around May or June but to come up anyway and see how his other wines are progressing. We will do so gladly.
Savio is looking for distributors in both the UK and US. If this is your business, contact him. He makes very good wines.
5 July 2012 As mentioned above, we were impressed by Savio's 2007 Barolo, enough so to make it our Anniversary Wine. And since our anniversary was the 30th of June, we opened another bottle from our cellar. This is a great wine and in need of more time in the bottle. The tannins are very evident as is the fruit. We suspect that this wine will take another year or two to be ready to drink. So as not to be without it, I emailed Savio and had him put another six bottles aside for us. It is a wine that we recommend highly.
6 September 2013 On the day after third anniversary of Natalya's arrival in Italy, we had another bottle of the 2007 Barolo. It is still growing and coming together but is drinkable at this point. It is highly recommended!! Next opening, June of 2014.
19 October 2013 We opened a bottle of the 2005 Bergera Pezzole today. Natalya had made blini with chicken and rice. It is a spectacular wine with the need for at least another six months in the cantina. No wonder Le Strette wins awards from Decanter magazine in the UK.
30 June 2014 As previously indicated, today is our wedding anniversary and, of course, we opened a bottle of Savio's 2007 Barolo to have with the faraona (guinea hen) that we made with rosemary, garlic and red potatoes from our garden and an appetizer of buffala mozzerella with extra virgin olive oil from Pescara. It went very well with the meal! We believe that it has at least another year before it will be really ready to drink but if you have it, try a bottle if you have more than one. If one is all you have, keep watching this blog!
5 October 2014 This being Natalya's fourth anniversary of being in Italy, we opened a bottle of Savio's 2007 Barolo. We had made, in the oven near our garden, a pizza Neapolitan, with our sauce (not from Napoli), mozzarella from water buffalo milk (from Napoli), extra virgin olive oil from Sicily and basil from Liguria. The wine went very well with the pizza but we feel that the wine might be on its last legs so will speed up the consumption of the remaining three bottles. If you have it, try it and make your own decision! In any case, the pizza and wine combination were very good.
5 December 2014 Today is Natalya's birthday. Since we believe that the wine is reaching its last months, we opened a bottle of the 2007 Barolo for lunch today. It has changed somewhat to the point where we believe that is not in its last months. We have pushed the date that it should be drunk for a year. We had a lunch of Dolma with it today. Went very well with them. Next bottle will be opened on the 30th of June, our wedding anniversary.
22 February 2015 We opened the last of our bottles of the 2005 Bergera Pezzole which won a top award from the UK wine magazine, Decanter. We served it with some steamed vegetables, basmatti rice and polpette using my Sicilian grandmother's recipe. Right wine with the right food. Ready to drink. Wish we had more!!
30 June 2015 Today was our wedding anniversary. We opened the next to last bottle of the 2007 Barolo base. We had made a stuffed piadina with a number of vegetables and curcuma for spice. The wine is ready to drink. We will drink the last bottle on the anniversary of Natalya arriving in Italy, the 5th of October 2015. If you have it in your cellar, drink it.
5 October 2015 Today was the fifth anniversary of Natalya arriving in Italy. We opened the last bottle of the 2007 base Barolo to serve with a Sicilian sausage flavored chicken burger. Even the heavily spiced chicken burger did not overcome the balanced fruit, acid and tannin. Regretfully, we believe there is no more at the cantina but the next time up there, we will ask. As we said back in June, if you have it in your cellar, it is time to pop the cork. Bravo, Savio!!!!
We tasted a number of his offerings along with our neighbors here in Pratomorone. We were especially impressed with the 2007, the only one they made that year. We had it for our one year anniversary.
We also loved the 2005 Bergera Pezzole.
Both were added to our growing collection.
We recently communicated with Savio regarding the 2008 offerings. He said that they would not be available until around May or June but to come up anyway and see how his other wines are progressing. We will do so gladly.
Savio is looking for distributors in both the UK and US. If this is your business, contact him. He makes very good wines.
5 July 2012 As mentioned above, we were impressed by Savio's 2007 Barolo, enough so to make it our Anniversary Wine. And since our anniversary was the 30th of June, we opened another bottle from our cellar. This is a great wine and in need of more time in the bottle. The tannins are very evident as is the fruit. We suspect that this wine will take another year or two to be ready to drink. So as not to be without it, I emailed Savio and had him put another six bottles aside for us. It is a wine that we recommend highly.
6 September 2013 On the day after third anniversary of Natalya's arrival in Italy, we had another bottle of the 2007 Barolo. It is still growing and coming together but is drinkable at this point. It is highly recommended!! Next opening, June of 2014.
19 October 2013 We opened a bottle of the 2005 Bergera Pezzole today. Natalya had made blini with chicken and rice. It is a spectacular wine with the need for at least another six months in the cantina. No wonder Le Strette wins awards from Decanter magazine in the UK.
30 June 2014 As previously indicated, today is our wedding anniversary and, of course, we opened a bottle of Savio's 2007 Barolo to have with the faraona (guinea hen) that we made with rosemary, garlic and red potatoes from our garden and an appetizer of buffala mozzerella with extra virgin olive oil from Pescara. It went very well with the meal! We believe that it has at least another year before it will be really ready to drink but if you have it, try a bottle if you have more than one. If one is all you have, keep watching this blog!
5 October 2014 This being Natalya's fourth anniversary of being in Italy, we opened a bottle of Savio's 2007 Barolo. We had made, in the oven near our garden, a pizza Neapolitan, with our sauce (not from Napoli), mozzarella from water buffalo milk (from Napoli), extra virgin olive oil from Sicily and basil from Liguria. The wine went very well with the pizza but we feel that the wine might be on its last legs so will speed up the consumption of the remaining three bottles. If you have it, try it and make your own decision! In any case, the pizza and wine combination were very good.
5 December 2014 Today is Natalya's birthday. Since we believe that the wine is reaching its last months, we opened a bottle of the 2007 Barolo for lunch today. It has changed somewhat to the point where we believe that is not in its last months. We have pushed the date that it should be drunk for a year. We had a lunch of Dolma with it today. Went very well with them. Next bottle will be opened on the 30th of June, our wedding anniversary.
22 February 2015 We opened the last of our bottles of the 2005 Bergera Pezzole which won a top award from the UK wine magazine, Decanter. We served it with some steamed vegetables, basmatti rice and polpette using my Sicilian grandmother's recipe. Right wine with the right food. Ready to drink. Wish we had more!!
30 June 2015 Today was our wedding anniversary. We opened the next to last bottle of the 2007 Barolo base. We had made a stuffed piadina with a number of vegetables and curcuma for spice. The wine is ready to drink. We will drink the last bottle on the anniversary of Natalya arriving in Italy, the 5th of October 2015. If you have it in your cellar, drink it.
5 October 2015 Today was the fifth anniversary of Natalya arriving in Italy. We opened the last bottle of the 2007 base Barolo to serve with a Sicilian sausage flavored chicken burger. Even the heavily spiced chicken burger did not overcome the balanced fruit, acid and tannin. Regretfully, we believe there is no more at the cantina but the next time up there, we will ask. As we said back in June, if you have it in your cellar, it is time to pop the cork. Bravo, Savio!!!!
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