A few years back I ran into this energetic, wild-haired wine producer who introduced me to Nascetta, one of the most intriguing things from Piedmont to find its way into the wine market in the past few years. This talkative producer was Enrico Rivetto from Serralunga d'Alba (in the Barolo wine region), one of the greatest proponents of Nascetta, the forgotten white gem of the Langhe region.
Although Nascetta wines seem to be a recent thing in today's wine market, Nascetta itself isn't. It's a variety that has been long cultivated in the Barolo region – verified by documents that prove its history with the Langhe region at least until mid 1850's. In the past it was used in sweet quality wines, blended with local Favorita (aka. Vermentino) and Moscato (aka. Muscat à Petit Grains) varieties, but little by little its popularity waned. As a variety difficult to cultivate with unpredictable yields, its plantings were reduced drastically after the phylloxera hit the region and the variety was virtually extinct in Langhe after the WWII, surviving in only a few rows of vines grown sporadically here and there.
However, in 1990's things started to change as the variety was rediscovered in 1991 by Elvio Cogno, a wine producer from Novello (also in the Barolo wine region), when he tasted a freak Nascetta bottling from 1986. He started to experiment with this curious, forgotten variety and, little by little, it started to gather some following. In 2010 the efforts by the strong-willed Nascetta-growers were paid off as the variety was finally accepted as an official variety of DOC Langhe so that the wines needn't be labeled as vino da tavola with no designation of vintage or origin.
Nascetta might be a variety difficult to cultivate with unpredictable yields, but since its discovery over a century ago the variety has been noted from the high-quality wines it produces. Although not a particularly expressive variety, it is categorized as a semi-aromatic variety due to the high content of terpenes, especially linalool – the compound responsible for the floral aromas also found in Muscat grapes. The variety is known for its good structure, rather high acidity and great balance between the fruitier notes and the bitterness that seems to be a defining characteristic of the variety. Though many producers age their Nascetta wines in stainless steel, the grape seems to adapt well to both longer skin contact maceration and aging in oak barrels. What the variety lacks is a good marketing force behind it: last time I met with Enrico Rivetto he said that many producers believe in the high quality of Nascetta and also believe that it might be the next big thing to come out of Langhe region, but unfortunately there is very little co-operation among the producers of Nascetta. If the producers would co-operate, they could have their voices heard better, instead of being just lone singular voices lost in the noise. Seeing both how vehemently Rivetto believes in his Nascetta wines and how great his wines really are, I can do nothing but agree. Nascetta really seems to be that white variety that could bring in some welcome difference in the Nebbiolo-Barbera-Dolcetto-driven red landscape of Langhe hills.
I have tasted a handful of Nascetta wines over the past few years. Here are my notes on them:
Rivetto Langhe Nascetta 2013
DOC Langhe
- Rivetto
- Country: Italy
- Region: Piedmont, Langhe
- Grape(s): Nascetta (100%)
- Price: 20€ / 0,75
- Tasted on: October 16th, 2014
3 days of maceration with skins. Vinified with natural yeasts over 9 months in steel tanks.
In the glass the wine shows intense lemon color with pale green highlights.
The wine feels open and quite aromatic with aromas of red apple, hay, almond and honeydew melon. Underneath there are nuances of green herbs, some yellow plums and a slightest lifted touch of nail polish.
On the palate the wine feels quite full-bodied and supple, yet also dry and nicely structured. There are flavors of ripe red apple, yellow plums, some herbs, a little honeydew melon, a touch of honey and some rather intense, chalky minerality that turns a bit to salinity towards the finish. Overall the mouthfeel of the wine is soft and easily approachable, yet also really fresh and far from flabby or tired.
The wine finishes with a mid-length to lengthy, dry aftertaste with flavors of herbs, wet stones, sea salinity, some quinine bitterness and fruity hints of apple, yellow stone fruits and lemony citrus fruits.
91/100
Although my description might make it sound that this is a rich and fruity white, this is not. Rivetto Nascetta is more of a dry, bitter and mineral white only with notably large presence. The flavor profile is surprisingly stony and dry, with less emphasis on the fruit side, making the wine feel unexpectedly complex, balanced and intriguing. Not a big and showy grape variety, Nascetta is in turned here into a lovely, interesting and gastronomic wine that can be not only easily paired with a different variety of foods, but cellared for mid-term as well. Sophisticated and balanced effort, showing good value at 20€.
***
San Silvestro Ghercina Nas-Cëtta 2013
DOC Langhe
- Cantine San Silvestro
- Country: Italy
- Region: Piedmont, Langhe
- Grape(s): Nascetta (100%)
- Price: 14€ / 0,75
- Tasted on: April 20th, 2015
A wine made from the grapes sourced from the comune of Novello, the birthplace of Nascetta at the heart of the Barolo wine region.
The wine has a yellow-green lemon color.
In the glass the wine has a youthful and a bit reticent nose with fruity aromas of yellow plums, sweet apples, some floral acacia notes and a hint of peach.
On the palate the wine feels full-bodied, but with good acidity that gives the wine a lot of structure and even some tart crispness. Flavor-wise there are dry, pure flavors of apple, stony minerality and some apple peel bitterness.
The finish is medium-long, slightly warm and even more bitter than the midpalate with flavors of aromatic herbs, fresh yellow apples, some apple peel notes and faint floral hints.
85/100
Summary: Overall this "Nas-Cëtta" is a nice little wine that works perfectly as an aperitif sipper and a food wine with light antipasti. Despite showing the semiaromatic and slightly bitter characteristics typical of the variety, this seems to be at the end of the day a quite simple and one-dimensional effort compared to the better Nascettas. Though I must admit, the wine was very moderately priced at only 14€ in a restaurant in Castiglione Falletto.
***
Ettore Germano Langhe Nascetta 2013
DOC Langhe
- Ettore Germano
- Country: Italy
- Region: Piedmont, Langhe
- Grape(s): Nascetta (100%)
- Price: 14€ / 0,75
- Tasted on: April 23rd, 2015
The grapes are sourced from a 0,4 ha (1 acre) plot in Alta Langa, planted in 2004. The wine is macerated for an impressive period 5 days with the skins to extract more depth, complexity and structure from this semi-aromatic, yet often rather austere variety. Aged for 6 months in stainless steel and further 5 months in bottles. No malolactic fermentation. Annual production of only 2,000 bottles.
The wine has a deep green-yellow color of a barely ripe lemon.
Slightly reticent, cool nose with lots of understated complecity; aromas of honey, yellow stone fruits, some wet stones, a little ripe lemons and a hint of herbal greenness.
On the palate the wine feels full-bodied and rich with high, structured acidity, yet also with almost oily mouthfeel. Dry, quite intense and complex flavors of minerality, sweet stone fruits, succulent White Transparent apple, mirabelle plums, some spicy complexity, light ripe pear notes and a hint of smoke. Also a slightest touch of tannic grip can be felt, contributing to the structure of the wine.
The wine finishes with a crisp, tightly wound and rather mineral-driven aftertaste with dry flavors of tart green apple and lemon-driven citrus fruits, some greengage, a little astringent bitterness and a touch of wax.
93/100
Summary: This is easily the most impressive Langhe Nascetta I've tasted with remarkable depth, complexity and structure. Apparently the prolonged skin contact seems to suit this variety well. Germano's Nascetta is truly delicious stuff with a lot of cellaring potential. At only 14€ this is a real find. Highly recommended.
***
Diego Conterno Langhe Nascetta 2013
DOC Langhe
- Diego Conterno
- Country: Italy
- Region: Piedmont, Langhe
- Grape(s): Nascetta (100%)
- Tasted on: April 25th, 2015
This wine is made from grapes sourced from plots located at the altitude of 400 meters a.s.l.; the wine is aged for 6 months in stainless steel tanks.
The color is pale watery green.
The nose exhibits bright, fragrant aromas of sweet yellow apple, grass, hay, some stony minerality and hints of gooseberry.
On the palate the wine is quite full-bodied yet nicely refreshing and high in acidity. The flavors are rich, yet not particularly ripe, with notes of wet stones, crisp lemony citrus fruits, sweeter red apple notes with less emphasized nuances of tart green apple, some steely minerality, a little vegetal greenness and a hint of bitterness. There is also a hint of sweeter stone fruit at the tip of the tongue.
The finish is dry and quite austere, but pretty lengthy as well with understated complexity. There are flavors of herbs, stony minerality, almost quinine bitterness, grassy greenness, some grapefuit pith and a little granite minerality.
91/100
Summary: In a nutshell, this is a really attractive little white with very dry, rather bitter and somewhat austere flavors, yet with nice weight and sense of complexity. A wine like this that seems to be lacking in fruit might not be everyone's cup of tea, but I really did enjoy the refreshing qualities, good structure and layered nuances this wine offered. It is a good food wine, but its austere flavors with at times rather pronounced bitterness may take toll on its versatility – it might not be easy to pair a wine like this so that it wouldn't either clash with the food or overwhelm it. Still, a nice little drop that might even age nicely for short-to-medium term. Recommended.
***
Overall Nascetta has taken me by quite a surprise: just two years ago it was a variety I had never even heard before, but only within a year I had managed to find a handful of very different, yet overall positive examples of the variety, reinforcing my positive impression of it. I've yet to taste a barrel-aged version, as they seem rather hard to come by – many producers feel that Nascetta fares best when aged in neutral vessels which don't come into the way of the aromatics of the variety. As this is a notion I can agree with, I'm actually not that keen on searching specifically for a barrel-aged Nascetta; however, should I ever come across a barrel-aged example of the variety, I would gladly taste it – in the name of science, wine journalism and curiosity!
I couldn't help but notice how some producers seem to favor skin maceration times that are rather long in traditional white wine vinification – most likely due to the fact that even though Nascetta is a semi-aromatic variety, a great part of its aromatic compounds are in its skins, not in the juice. This has made me wonder whether Nascetta could be a suitable variety in making orange wine as well? Something not unlike how Ribolla Gialla – occasionally considered a rather undistinguished white variety – turned into something profoundly complex and unique with extended skin maceration in the hands of such people like Josko Gravner and Stanko Radikon. Maybe amber Nascetta wines could be the next "outside the box" wine of Piedmont?
No comments:
Post a Comment