I’m visiting Piedmont for the first time in November. I’m trying to book up appointments. I have two days to visit, and will have a car and more importantly, a wife who is willing to be the DD. I figure I could do six visits over two days, if it’s like Burgundy, 1-2 in the morning and 1-2 after lunch, depending on timing and availability. I don’t know if that’s realistic or not.
Since they are the producers I most enjoy and buy, and I would benefit the most by visiting and learning more, it makes the most sense to me to try to visit the top six producers in my cellar, if available:
Giacomo Conterno
Luciano Sandrone
Bruno Giacosa
Paolo Scavino
Domenico Clerico
Giuseppe E Figlio Mascarello
My question is out of the above, are any not particularly great/insightful visits? Conversely, are there other producers that make for a great visit? I can add that I speak some Italian, and my wife is fluent in French.
I can get into my alternates, but Ceretto, Massolino, Bartolo Mascarello, Vietti and Vajra, would be next on my list. I would be curious to visit Voerizo, A Conterno and Giuseppe Rinaldi for example, but I feel weird visiting and taking up their time as I’m not a customer/purchaser though have tasted and enjoyed their wines in the past.
In my experience doing more than 2 per day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon is very difficult and makes the whole experience stressful. It may work if you manage to get one appointment at 2pm and one at 5pm in the afternoon, but the latter will be quite late and not many will be willing to offer it to you. Of the six you listed I have visited G Conterno and G Mascarello and can wholeheartedly recommend them.
Three visits a day is easily managed, and four if you’re very disciplined and the distances in between cantine aren’t too great. I’ve pulled that off many times.
Having visited the region eight or nine times, I’ve found that the most memorable visits are simply when the winemaker is there and has time to chat. I’ve sometimes had brilliant and just OK visits at the same place different years, depending on availability. November is a busy time in the cellar, and the area is thick with tourists because of truffle season. So you may be less likely to have leisurely tastings.
You’ll find a bunch of recent threads on this topic if you haven’t seen them already. Personally, of your list, I’ve had excellent visits over the years at G. Conterno, Scavino, G. Mascarello, Vietti, Vajra, R. Voerzio, A. Conterno, plus many others.
I had a perfunctory visit with Bruna Giacosa 20 years ago and have never tried again. I think people have said it’s hard to get an appointment there.
We had a wonderful visit with Roberto at G Conterno last year - esp if you want to geek out on things like his custom corking machine. Vajra was another truly memorable visit. The entire family is incredibly warm and welcoming and we spent half the day there - we didnt want to leave. I highly recommend it.
Just got back and was going to do a full report about winery and restaurants.
I got in on a Saturday afternoon after driving from Milan and did an introductory tasting with meats/cheeses at La Vite Turchese in Barolo to introduce my wife an I to the area as recommended by this board. It was great This was followed by an afternoon group (and paid) visit to Vietti.
Sunday most were closed but I believe Ceretto and la Spinetta are open should you be there that day.
Monday and Tuesday were Barolo boot camp with Bartolo Mascarello, Scavino, group tasting at Conterno Fantino and Vajra on Monday.
Tuesday was G. Rinaldi, Elio Grasso, Cavalotto and Sandrone.
Rinaldi, Grasso and Sandrone don’t sell wines on property. I bought something from the others.
All tasting and tours were very good to excellent and for me Grasso and Sandrone (Barabara Sandrone is a wonderful human being)
Giacosa does not take visitors and Gaja requires 300 Euro pp with booking well in advance.
You can do 4 a day and still get lunch if you plan accordingly. Earliest appointment was at 9am (Rinaldi) and latest was at 5pm (Sandrone)
I only had a hurry out of one appointment and I was early to most. I am not saying you should do more than 3 but it is possible with planning.
I would have like to visit Clerico as the facility looked quite nice facility.
The other thing I liked is you can often find Barolo (and Italian wines) on wine lists at restaurants for cheaper than you can buy at retail prices in the US. I bought off a couple wines list to take home significantly cheaper for older vintages than I could find in the US.
I checked a case of wine plus some in my luggage. Be careful on extra baggage fees as Swiss Air destroy my margin
You can’t go wrong with most places and like John said there will be some random variation but probably no disappointments.
It is about the people you meet and if you have some true interest or connection to the wine they will treat you particularly.
There are many threads on the board that helped me and I plan on adding to a previous post that helped me out more of the details on wines of the trip and restaurants.
Thank you for the comments so far, very much appreciated. I am hoping to do 3 visits per day if scheduling permits. I’m trying to line up the producers I really want to visit first if possible and go from there.
I have read that the visit to Giacosa isn’t the greatest since Bruno isn’t there day to day, but I love the wines too much to not try to visit.
Look, I’ll be the first to admit that the place I’m about to suggest is not “well known” by the American market…but their wines are worth checking out and a real value in the region…
We had a great visit with Monchiero. Their single vineyard Barolo were all about €36/bottle…
FYI, if you search for “Vajra,” I think you’ll find that it’s the place where people (myself included) have consistently had great experiences, not to mention great wines. (Be sure to try the riesling if you go.) It’s also interesting to taste there because their Baudana wines, from a property they purchased 10 years or so ago, really show their Serralunga roots, while the wines under the Vajra label reflect Barolo’s terroir.
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