If you looking for Langhe vineries then F. Principiano is the first place that comes to mind that might be for you. Depending on vintages I think even some of the Barolo bottling are below 14%.
The whole range otherwise will be within your approved abv in most vintages if not all. The barbera and dolcetto (santA) are some of the best in terms of drinkability, in addition to the Nebbiolo wines.
On a separate note, and not to try to force you to like something you already know you don’t enjoy…
I personally could not tell a 13,5% vs. 14-14.5% fresh tasting Barolo/Barbaresco from the other. The for me great and less heavy Nebbiolo wines hides the alcohol level like few other varieties can.
Have not had Principiano in a long time. Had one a few years ago and wasn’t so impressed at the time. Everyone’s quality keeps going up, so I should keep an eye out to try!
A that’s individual of course but if sharing a bottle with someone then I personally don’t feel any booziness impact from 13.5%–> 14.5% in a wine with freshness. A potent heavy Amarone clocking in at 15.5-16.5%, a half bottle gets quite booze. That’s me of course, though I think the freshness vs the heaviness can amplify the booziness feel.
Haven’t had any of his Barolo in a while myself (2015 was the last vintage)… over the last year I had less “famed” wines like his Barbera (2016), Langhe Nebbiolo (2015 & 2018) and Fresia (2011). Great wines with Barbera passed it’s peak with fruits fading a bit.
Barolo and Barbaresco are pretty big wines. There is no denying that. I can understand that they may not be for everyone but generally more because of the tannic structure than feeling boozy. The combo of the acid and tannins keep them from feeling heavy. It’s not unusual for Burg and Champagne lovers to also put Barolo/Barbaresco up there with their favorites. Southern Rhone lovers tend not to rank Barolo/Barb in their favorites. I’ll agree that there’s more heft than most Burgundy but they really don’t feel so heavy to me compared to the majority of southern Rhone or even most Brunello. Brunello are pretty boozy too but something like Cerbaiona doesn’t feel so heavy even clocking in over 14%. Fino sherry at 15%+ really doesn’t feel so heavy. My guess is if the labels didn’t print the abv, a lot of people would guess alcohol percentages way off from what they actually are. If someone has broad experience with Piedmont are decides the wines are too big, that’s all they need to know but the OP admittedly doesn’t have much experience with the region. I think it’s worth exploring a little more broadly before writing off anything coming in over 14% because you’re dismissing a whole lot of what the best of the region offers. It has nothing to do with “these days.”
Thanks for all the suggestions, folks! Did some buying over the last few weeks and put together a tasting last night. Did one round of Langhe, then a mixed bag second round. Very light note-taking but figured I’d share in case it’s interesting to see where I ended up (and more suggestions are definitely welcome!). I’m now definitely more open to 14% stuff since I loved the Negri Tartufaia and it was 14.1%.
2021 Vietti Langhe Nebbiolo Perbacco - really pretty nose and body. tannins are soft but very present. my favorite of the Langhes
2022 G.D. Vajra Langhe Nebbiolo - way meatier than the Vietti. chunky blocky, boozy. not bad but not my jam
2021 Lapo Berti Langhe Nebbiolo - somewhere in between Vietti and Vajra. ripe juicy jammy, softer tanin
2018 Roagna Langhe Rosso - has a dusty earthy thing going on. very very nice
2021 Giulia Negri Langhe Nebbiolo Pian delle Mole - bigger nose, big ripe boi, dryer chalkier tannin that the others. surprising for a 21 but maybe 21 wasn’t as cool in Piedmont vs France? really nice but definitely big.
2020 Colombera & Garella Coste della Sesia Cascina Cottignano - super juicy fun, high acid, with some chalk gravel on the acid
2019 Giulia Negri Barolo La Tartufaia - shockingly approachable for this young. beautiful fruit, high acid.
2019 Caves Coopératives de Donnas Donnas - extremely corked
2012 Podere ai Valloni Boca Vigna Cristiana - oaky and surprisingly boozy given it’s only 13%. bummer
1996 Cantine del Castello di Conti Boca Il Rosso delle Donne - wine of the night. juicy high acid beautiful fruit and transparency. soft tannin. (checks notes, damnit of course it was also the most expensive bottle by a long margin at $222)
1970 Nervi Gattinara Riserva del Titolare - sadly this was fucked. knew it was a risk but it was only $70 so felt worth rolling the dice on.
Definitely going to try to visit Negri and Vietti. And maybe get up to Boca. Thanks again!
The producers that have probably done the best job of making outstanding Barolo / Barbaresco at low alcohol are Giuseppe Rinaldi & Roagna. You can probably find even lower alcohol Langhe Nebbiolo or Nebbiolo from the regions more in the north, but the quality of those wines is just not the same.
The Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo are coming in consistently at 14%, and I believe it because they feel lower in alcohol than other Barolo. These are light, very finessed wines texturally while packing a punch in terms of intensity of the flavor profile and aromatics.
I’ve seen 13.5% and 14% from Roagna, and the wines are somewhat similar to Rinaldi in my opinion, although Roagna has a much larger lineup of wines at different quality and price levels. I recently had the '13 Paje Barbaresco, which is 13.5% and an incredibly light, delicate wine with beautiful aromatics. It’s also ready to drink IMO. A bit of a simple wine, but really really good. At the top end of the lineup, the '06 Riserva Pira and '15 Crichet Paje I know are both 14% but with complexity and concentration that’s hard to believe.
Most great Barolo is now 14.5% or even 15%, i.e. Monfortino is all in that range in recent vintages, but these two producer are exceptions. I’d also point you to the 2019 vintage in general - most 2019s are low alcohol. Many are 14% even in cases where the producer has been in the 14.5-15.0% range recently (i.e., 2016 Cappellano Rupestris was 15% but 2019 Rupestris is 14%).
I would suggest checking out the thread in the Wine Talk section that’s entitled something like “Traditional vs Modern Barolo.” There are pages of recommendations. The more traditional will probably be more suited to what you are seeking. I concur with all that Rob has mentioned even if Roagna does not quite fit what most would categorize as strictly traditional.
Hard to know if price is a limiting factor for you. Some in the region are fetching pretty high tariffs today that I find more troubling than alcohol levels but there are still many great wines at reasonable prices. Just a couple that I would toss out there: Burlotto (unfortunately price increased a lot since around 2010) and Le Piane. I spent about a half a day at Conti Boca about 10 years ago. Really nice wines and very nice people. You’re kind of out there in the middle of nowhere as opposed to the vineyard-covered hills in Barolo/Barbaresco. Do note that there was a shift in the philosophy and style there sometime around 2012 when they decided to greatly reduce SO2 additions. The newer wines felt softer to me although I think they were only one or two vintages into this new process when I was there so I had a limited snapshot. They pulled out a couple bottles with age, like you had, that were terrific.
Opened a 1997 Podere ai Valloni Boca Vigna Cristiana last night. I’ve had a few other vintages of this that had more Brettanomyces than my liking, but this one was really great last night. Very nice aged Nebbiolo notes with just a bit of saddle leather.
I have always been a moderate drinker, so this has never been an issue for me.