Are they not allowed to use Pelaverga D’Alba similar to Dolcetto and Barbera, or do all other grapes fall into the Langhe category?
No, if the DOC / DOCG stipulations do not allow a variety to be used. And I’m not sure, but Verduno Pelaverga might be the only appellation that allows varietal Pelavergas.
Furthermore, Pelavergas are grown in many parts of Piedmont, but they are normally blended with other varieties and IIRC, Verduno Pelaverga aka. Pelaverga Piccola is a distinct variety not grown much or at all outside Verduno.
But a great thread here! Basically all my favorite Piedmontese grape varieties mentioned in the first handful of posts.
Some of my own observations:
Timorasso is definitely some of the greatest white varieties grown in Italy, probably even in Europe. The best examples are ridiculously impressive and remarkably fresh and structured for their size. They can also easily develop for a few decades, so drinking them with within the first few years is simply sacrilegious. The aforementioned Walter Massa is a producer in its own class, but the higher-tier bottlings of Claudio Mariotto can be also very impressive.
If I’ve understood correctly, Ruchè (or Ruché) and Freisa used to be made into this somewhat sweet and slightly frizzante style, but nowadays, after the modern vinification methods have reached even the bumpkins of Piedmonte, they’ve learned to make terrific dry still red out of these varieties and they can be mighty delicious. Ruchè seems to do anything from a light and playful wine to a taut and tannic one, but they always seem to carry this very floral, Gewürztraminer-ish rosewater aroma. Freisa is probably my favorite Piedmontese red variety with Nebbiolo and Verduno Pelaverga.
Brachetto seems to be the only variety which is still predominantly made into this sweet and fizzy style. I’ve tasted some still and dry examples, but they have been very unimpressive: they smell just lovely, but flavor-wise they seem to be quite hollow, flat and dull with very modest acidity. This variety really seems to call for some residual sugar to flesh out its body.
Arneis is a real chameleon. The wines range from light, crisp and racy that show almost Muscadet-like neutrality to the very textural, waxy and weighty style that might even see some skin contact. Nascetta seems to be a very similar variety, but made on the Barolo side of the Tanaro river. The best Nascettas are among the greatest whites of Piedmont, along with Timorassos.
I’ve yet to taste an interesting Cortese or Favorita. They seem to produce just neutral, dull and boring whites. Also, I’ve never tasted a wine made of Avarengo, but I’m definitely interested in getting my my hands on some.
Somebody also mentioned Fumin. I have probably never tasted a bad Fumin (although I can imagine it’s not a variety that is everyone’s cup of tea), but I think the wines and varieties of Aosta Valley call for a thread on their own, or this discussion will soon spiral out of control! 
As Otto notes, it is ONLY in Verduno that you can grow, produce and label the wine “pelaverga.” Elsewhere it is labeled “Langhe Rosso”.
Anyone had Cavallotto’s Freisa?
La Miraja Ruche. Ripe, fruity, herbal, tannins branch out with air. Very good example. Ferraris is also solid.
Disclosure, I work at a store that sells these wines.
great insights in this thread. I tried a young (2013) Vajra freisa recently, it was powerful and had a lot of depth, didn’t have quite the aromatic complexity/floral tones of nebbiolo to my taste however, seemed like a much darker/heavier wine, but perhaps part of that was the young age.
Really cool to see the Harrington Freisa mentioned, really want to try that, too. I remember reading on the thread on traditional versus modern Barolo producers what someone quoted from Vajra:
Scarpa makes a Rouchet/Ruche, Eataly here in LA had an older version (1998) for what looked like a decent price (<$43). Looks like the US importer is from Buffalo, and interesting to see that they couldn’t call it Ruche because it was from outside the official appellation areas:
http://portovinoitaliano.com/wines/scarpa-monferrato-rosso-rouchet-briccorosa/
Ruche is bone dry and very floral and attractive in the nose
It’s a bargain. Not as deep as Kye but great
I tried Cavallotto’s Freisa at the winery back in 2015 and loved it. Bought a bottle back which I enjoyed with friends, but haven’t quite managed to convince the local importers (YET) to bring any in. Still badgering them though.
G. Mascarello makes an interesting Freisa and G. Rinaldi a very good Ruche (I think they call it Rosae). Vajra’s Freisa can approach nebbiolo in quality and is a much bigger framed rendition than others which, true to the name, can have some bright red, strawberry notes and sometimes a bit of frizzante
Thinking about this thread recently as we had another bottle of 2015 Luca Ferraris “Bric di Blanc” Ruche which was tasty and also a super QPR. This wine had a lovely nose of crushed raspberries, flowers (violets) and spice. Flavors of fresh cherry, raspberry, dried herbs along good dose of acidity. Very drinkable and a super value at the $19.00 price I paid. Went very well with some roast pork shoulder and glazed prawns. Some of these lesser known Italian grapes are not only delicious but also won’t break the bank.
Tom
Nadia Verrua of cascina 'tavijn makes most excellent ruche and grignolio.
Scarpa’s La Selva di Moirano Freisa is fantastic and closely resembles classic nebbiolo in style and structure. I’ve had vintages back to 1999 which were drinking quite well. This is a huge bargain.
I’ve had mixed results with the 2008 G. Mascarello Freisa and have to say that it is mostly disappointing.
I’ve tried B. Mascarello Freisa and it was good but not up to Scarpa quality.
I have a G. Rinaldi Freisa vertical (2009-2012) but have yet to crack a bottle…would love to hear if anyone else has experience with these.
I listened to Fabio Allesandria on I’ll Drink To That today. He talked some about Burlotto’s Freisa and Pelaverga. I need to figure out how I can get a hold of some, along with Fratelli Alessandria and Castello di Verduno. I see a couple places in NY that have some.
Jeff,
We’re a long way from you, but we do import Castello di Verduno’s ‘Basadone’ Pelaverga*, as well as Freisa from Brezza and Cavallotto. And varietal Vespolina from Alto Piemonte, which is very tasty.
(It’s actually labelled just ‘Verduno,’ but it’s 100% Pelaverga Piccolo.)
Montalbera Ruché di Castagnole Monferrato L’Accento was the most floral/perfumed wine I’ve ever experienced.
Mario Andrion of CdV provides a more detailed discussion of pelaverga and it’s history in Ep 383. I am still trying to figure out the stylistic differences between Burlotto, Alessandria, and CdV. It may be necessary to open them side-by-side.
Had the 2015 Cavallotto Freisa last night. Fantastic bottle. I poured Melissa a glass and handed it to her, remarking that it kind of reminded me of licorice. Her response: “No way. This is delicious. Licorice is horrible.”
Eric at Sec has it for $21.
To clarify/elaborate on that, there are two unrelated grapes, pelaverga grosso and pelaverga piccolo, but until relatively recently they were believed to be the same species.
Pelaverga grosso has two DOCs, Colline Torinesi and Colline Saluzzezi, a bit northwest of the Barolo DOCG.
The better known grape is the pelaverga piccolo, grown on a mere 12 hectares around Verduno and Roddi in the Barolo zone. It’s entitled to the DOC Verduno Pelaverga.
Are there any IGT Pelaverga, or Freisa under other, generic names produced by producers in Barolo or Barbaresco?
John, have you ever purchased from Garnet Wines in New York? That’s the only place I see locally that has Cavallotto Freisa.
Can you recommend any other good sources of “odd” Piemonte grapes?