I recently had the chance to taste several wines from this producer; Cristiano Garella is the consulting winemaker.
Link to my blog post Le Pianelle – another great gem from the Alto Piemonte – ItalianWine.blog
thanks for looking
Interesting (and unique) rating system!
What is that tall mountain in the center of the first photo?
1 Like
Is this an offshoot of Le Piane? Seems awfully similar naming.
Granted, it does sound very similar. I thought as much when I saw the name.
Bringing this thread back to life 
Three words: whole cluster Nebbiolo!
A local wine shop hosted Christiano Garella last night, and tasted through Le Pianelle’s 2021 Rosato, and the 2018 Al Forte, Bramaterra and Bramaterra Robino.
The note below for the rosato speaks for itself. The 2018 reds were very good to excellent, though the Robino was what caught my attention. In the course of talking to Christiano to better ground my understanding of Costa della Sesia, he sort of casually mentioned he uses a fraction of stem inclusion and whole berries in his two Bramaterra cuvees. He described it adds a depth of ‘green’ notes, especially in warmer vintages. If I followed correctly, he first tried WC in 2017 and continued in 2018. It also seems in some way he is inspired by Burlotto’s winemaking. Whole cluster Nebbiolo is a sort of unobtainium, and yet here it was right in front of me!
In any case, does the wine deliver? Yes! There was a qualitative step in tannin refinement and aromatic complexity working up the quality (price) ladder in the cuvees. And the Robino was simply a wine that paradoxically, given the long maceration and stem inclusion, was elevated and refined, rather than even more tannic and backward. There are ~900 bottles produced, it’s not cheap, but fairly priced to quality (and scarcity). Probably the most elegant young Nebbiolo I have tasted, and I will be curious in a decade or so to see how I like some of the more elegant producer-cru Barolo/Barbaresco bottlings in my cellar. The Robino will be hard to top, despite its more humble appellation and vintage.
-
2018 Le Pianelle Bramaterra Robino - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Bramaterra (6/7/2023)
At Renegade Wines, Le Pianelle tasting with winemaker Christiano Garella. Nebbiolo with ~20% Croatina and Vespolina from yellow sandy terroir, fermented with a significant fraction of whole cluster/stem inclusion, 42 day post-ferment maceration, if I remember correctly. From a single SE facing exposure in their Bramaterra vineyard.
This is a special wine. Effusive strawberry, violet, spice notes, the gentle herbal tones certainly are suggestive of ripe stem inclusion. A finessed and elegant wine on the palate, delicate red fruits, fresh but not tart, noble and fine tannins, long finish with a mix of minerality, alpine bitter herbs and raspberry. Deep without being dense.
Whole cluster, sandy terroir, long but gentle maceration . . . . this is not an inexpensive wine, but this combination of 'properties' aligns with a short list of well-regarded producers/cuvees. A beautiful, balletic wine, what makes it great is not that it's more of anything, but that everything is harmonious, synchronized. -
2021 Le Pianelle Al Posto dei Fiori Rosato - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Coste della Sesia (6/7/2023)
At Renegade Wines, Le Pianelle tasting with winemaker Christiano Garella. Bursting from the glass, mostly strawberry, lightly floral. For a rose, relatively structured and full bodied, almost creamy textured. Certainly dry, long finish. Drinking well now, will certainly age for several years, not a Provencal style rose, quite a lot going on. Nebbiolo in a lighter frame, excellent.
1 Like
awesome producer. thank you!
That’s right, you had a sampler pack you were coordinating a few months back, that included this producer.
These are indeed kinder, gentler Nebbiolo!
1 Like