TN: Antonio Vallana e Figlio: extensive vineyard(s) tour and vertical tasting

WINE TALK
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ANTONIO VALLANA E FIGLIO: EXTENSIVE VINEYARD(S) TOUR AND VERTICAL TASTING - The Family’s Cellar, Maggiora, Italia (4/11/2014)

I’ll be publishing an in-depth article that details my visit, but for now, a Reader’s Digest of my 10-hour day. Marina Fogarty, daughter of Giuseppina and Guy Forgarty, was my guide. And though she and I planned my for my visit to their home/cellar while I met her at Vin Italy the week before, I wasn’t expecting, I couldn’t expect, what she had in store for me. Having spent nearly a year of my life Piemonte, I’ve come to know, if only just, the ways, customs and hard-line work ethic of the Piemontese people. For starters, they’re not easy to get to know, preferring to keep things very close to the vest, with exceptions generally (only?) made for life-long friends and family. Next is time, always something that manages to be in short supply for the average Piemontese citizen. Having said that, not only was Marina warm, and open throughout my (full) day with her, but, as any truly great ambassador does, she went above and beyond. In short, I got to visit, boots-on-the-ground, to each one of their many growing sites, from Boca all the way across the river to Gattinara. Those vineyard visits, which included an hour for lunch, lasted from ~ 0900 until 1530, when we finally returned to the cellar for a vertical tasting, a tour of their home/cellar, which included meeting Giuseppina, who may have the warmest, loveliest, most comforting smile about her, but also getting a chance to meet Giuseppina’s mother and Marina’s brother. Francis, the current winemaker.

  • 2012 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Barbera Piemonte - Italy, Piedmont, Piemonte DOC
    [in cantina] Tasted earlier in the week at VinItaly, then again while visiting the estate. Energetic, clean aromas of ripe plums, light spice and dusty soil. Acidity seems low-ish at first, but the back and mid-palates fill out quickly revealing some youthfully tannic bitterness and the overall structure becomes more clear; stemmy, dry and coiled, but shows good promise. Medium finish, correct and more weighty than the Raudii of the same vintage. Should be at its best in 2015/16. 12,5% abv. Great value. recommended

Served non-blind.

  • 2012 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Piemonte Nebbiolo Spanna Campi Raudii - Italy, Piedmont, Piemonte DOC
    [in cantina] This Vino da Tavola displays a light>medium garnet core, and follows with clean, fresh aromas of spice, cedar, cherry and soil; flavors largely follow the nose. Enters light and easy, rewards with medium finish. Another superb value. 12,5% abv. recommended

Served non-blind. Best after 60 minutes aeration in decanter.

  • 2011 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Spanna - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Colline Novaresi
    [in cantina] This follows the 2012 Raudii, with its darker garnet core. Very fresh and open on the nose, with sweet cherries, herbs and soil. Open and appealing, but not high-toned or gratuitous. Medium>medium+ body, with a wonderful fit first attack that moves confidently into breadth and complexity. Firm, fresh tannins show class; nothing bitter here. Focused and pure, with welcome structure to boot. 13,0% abv., drink now or the next 5 years. recommended

Served non-blind; best after 30 minutes aeration in decanter.

  • 2007 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Spanna - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Colline Novaresi
    [in cantina] This follows the 2011 Spanna Colline Novaresi, with its more mature fruit that seems to have come from a warmer, more generous vintage. Sweet red fruits and tar on the nose, with a fresh, invigorating basket of mixed-floral floating above it all. On the palate, flavors of leather, tobacco and tart, hard red candies. The palate lacks some of the power and cut of the nose; this could be in a phase.

– edit: Marina did not like the way the first bottle showed so she went and grabbed a second one. Nothing reductive or awkward here, just very fresh and very correct. 12,5% abv. drink thru 2017. recommended

Served non-blind.

  • 2010 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Spanna Cuvee Bernardo Vallana - Italy, Piedmont, Piemonte DOC
    [in cantina] Striking, crystalline garnet core, clear and bright. Aromas of cherries, soil, minerals; bright and fresh. Lots of tension on the medium(-) bodied palate; crunchy, crisp, and tannic at this stage. With some airtime, complex aromas of mushrooms and forest floor, though it remains light and airy. Forget about these for five years, and enjoy over the following ten. recommended

Served non-blind.

  • 2011 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Spanna Cuvee Bernardo Vallana - Italy, Piedmont, Piemonte DOC
    {in cantina} This ‘shiner’ (i.e. not yet labeled) was nearly a complete opposite of the 2010 CB that came directly before it. Heady, sexy nose of ripe, fresh red and black fruit. Even though the color is no darker than the 2010, this packs way more open and easily approachable fruit. Medium>full entry, brilliant attack, with tannins that seem almost chewy, though the great back-end acidity keeps this in balance and focus. I should grab a case or two to enjoy while the 2010s are resting. recommended

Served non-blind.

  • 2009 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Boca - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Boca
    {in cantina} Only in bottle for about 6 weeks at this point, but already showing really, really well. Ever so slightly darker than the 2011 Cuvée Bernardo tasted just prior, this offers a seriously deep, brooding and penetrating nose full of mushroom cap, savory, spice, molasses and soil. The nose and color kind of portend the palate experience, but not really - I mean wow, this is the Mercedes Benz of entries - sweet, light on the tongue yet packed with fruit; it just gets wider, deeper and denser from there. Full, magical and really quite elegant. In my notes I (double) underlined Great Acidity; one to save up for once it’s released. highly recommended

Served non-blind, aerated to decanter and immediately returned to bottle.

  • 2005 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Gattinara - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Gattinara
    {in cantina} This is one of the wines from the (extensive) tasting that stuck with me the most. Not so much for what it offered on the day, but for the obvious potential that lurks within. A little darker than the Boca served just before. The nose starts out with lovely mixture of red licorice and leather; the entry is full, with plenty of ripe, sweet tannins. Some aromas and flavors of tobacco, mulberry and mushroom emerge after 10 minutes in the glass. This has yet to fully come together, but with the overall structure, and the detailed length on the finish, I think it’s going to be a quite something in 4-5 more years and for a decade+ after that. This is about as good a food wine as I have a right to expect; fantastic. 13,0% abv. highly recommended

Served non-blind.

  • 1996 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Boca - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Boca
    {in cantina} This was really hard to pin down, let alone understand. Guy, the English teacher turned Italian winemaker after marrying Giuseppina Vallana in 1980, started this wine/vintage, but passed before it was finished. I mention that, because, subconsciously or not, this was different than the newer releases that came before, if for no other reason than its overtly rustic, leathery character. The color is slightly bricked, and while the nose is pretty hard to describe, the best I could manage at the time was a tar, roses, spice and red floral all on a saline canvas. Continually shifting in the glass, there’s a lot of entertainment here for circa $20. If I had a few, I’d probably open one every two-three years until they’re all gone. A geek wine, fascinating in its humility. recommended

Served non-blind.

  • 1994 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Boca - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Boca
    {in cantina} Slightly more bricked than the '96 Boca served just before, this opens to reveal a considerably more mature, and ready wine than the aforementioned. Notes of cola, sweet cherries, some soil. But, wow, on the palate, I mean I was not ready/expecting this at all. Full, round, glossy and perfectly seamless. Full on delicious, and though the finish didn’t project that structure that some of the others before it have, this is the first one today that’s truly ready right now. Still full in the middle, this is one to seek out for current consumption. highly recommended

Served non-blind. Aerated to decanter and immediately returned to bottle 2 hours before tasting.

  • 1972 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Spanna Cuvee Bernardo Vallana - Italy, Piedmont, Piemonte DOC
    {in cantina} Fully evolved color of bronze. Sweet cherries on the nose, with accents of toffee and dried herbs. The palate is sweet-ish, the acids bursting with freshness after having several decades of slumber. Still managing some good grip on the lengthy (as in > one minute, maybe closer to 2 minutes). Interestingly, the tension seemed to build with each successive taste, as if it was some kind of slow-release acidity; quite fun. This was quite a treat, and maybe the perfect wine to get me ready for the legendary 1955 Spanna Montalbano that follows.

Served non-blind. Audozed 1 hour.

  • 1955 Antonio Vallana e Figlio Colline Novaresi Spanna Montalbano - Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Colline Novaresi
    {in cantina} Fascinatingly dark color, with just a minimum of bricking. After 2 hours of aeration in decanter, this was poured to my glass, though I was not at all ready for what followed. Still amazingly fresh on the nose, with a repeating confluence of fresh berries, soil and flowers. The palate is full, precise, seamless; the texture/mouthfeel is singular. Still full of grip and tension, the wine clearly has a few decades of excellent drinking still ahead (some more positive evolution, too). Beautiful, complete, with a finish that lasts for minutes. I concluded my note with “hauntingly good”. very highly recommended

Served non-blind.

The diversity of the growing area in/around the Super-Volcano/Sesia Valley region is as diverse as anywhere I’ve ever visited, and in many ways, more so. The Vallana wines, quite brilliant and correct in every way really shined. But it was, perhaps as it always is with great visits - be it with friends/family - the people that made the difference. Marina and her family really made a difference, one that her family and region can be very proud of. %0d%0a%0d%0aIn closing, the chance to drink history, to reach back, through wine, into the lives of the people and place that made/grew the wine, is something that adds bright, beautiful colors to my life, and I’m very grateful to Marina and her family for this opportunity.
Posted from CellarTracker

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I drank a bottle of the 66 Montalbano over twenty years ago and thought it was mind bogglingly good. I would love to try the 55. Thanks for the notes.

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Went to a tutored tasting of their recent releases a year ago and was quite impressed.

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Terrific write up. I’m looking forward to the 05 Gattinara.

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There are several retailers carrying the 1997 Vallana Gattanara; anyone have thoughts on that vintage?

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Great report, Tim, on what was obviously a great day.

I went to a Rare Wine tasting of Vallana with Marina and Francis and had similar impressions of them and the wine:

http://www.finewinegeek.com/tn/2013-05-09_Rare_Vallana_delPosto/

They have had to overcome a lot with the early death of their father, but they are doing a great job. Many of these wines represent terrific values and can be bought by the case even on a budget.

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Tim,

Do they own these ‘growing sites,’ or are they buying grapes?

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Bump for this. Anyone have any thoughts on these? Thinking of picking up a few.

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without looking at my notes, Oliver, my recollection is that all of the grapes are theirs, which is to say the grapes only come from their land. In fact, they’ve a number of ‘unused’ sites too, that will be coming online in the next few years now that they’ve replanted a considerable portion of their sites. These ‘unused’ sites are a mixture of completely undeveloped sites and sites that used to produce and have old, pretty much abandoned vines still there.

Having said all that, the future for Vallana is brilliant. The work and the planning is first rate.

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for those that haven’t been there, and for those that are thinking they’d like to visit:

3 generations under this roof




Marina explains the soil and other geologic diversities created by the Supervulcano




the ‘Quadretto’ training system; requires an inordinate level of work/time to maintain, but Vallana perseveres.

Marina explains the soil diversity; the effects of the Supervulcano are obvious. Very mineral laden; appears hard, crusty, but crumbles like dried clay, almost into powder.

inside the restaurant Trattoria dei Commercianti in Borgomanero (highly recommended)

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I am working on a Vallana page much like my Giacosa and other pages. If folks have pix of older bottles that they’d be willing to let me use, please send them to me. Thanks!

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Tim, great thread. Thanks very much for posting.

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My time with the new regime at Antonio Vallana e Figlio

Antonio Vallana e Figlio, Alto Piemonte, Part I – ItalianWine.blog

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Haven’t had the 1997 but did pick up a half case of the 1998 last year from a reputable NY retailer. 5 of the 6 bottles were terribly marred with Brett, to the point of being undrinkable. Some others on CT seemed to experience similar bottle variation.

Thanks for the great notes Tim. I do love the wines from this house when they are ‘on’.

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Thanks for this, Tim. Such a fine house with wonderful history. I am fan of the wines, both old and new. I am always amazed by the aging curve and mature expression. And the Gattinara is one of the most versatile, best value reds in our cellar. We drink through multiple cases of nearly every vintage.

What a special experience. Thank you for sharing.

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[/quote] Haven’t had the 1997 but did pick up a half case of the 1998 last year from a reputable NY retailer. 5 of the 6 bottles were terribly marred with Brett, to the point of being undrinkable. Some others on CT seemed to experience similar bottle variation. [/quote]

1998, 12 opened, 2 flawed, 1 borderline
1997, 6 opened, 1 borderline

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Thanks for posting. I love this winery. Can I also say the winery building looks vaguely North Korean?

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I can’t speak to the 1997 or 1998, but I can say that we’ve drunk a case or more of the 2006 in the last six months, and, while there has been some bottle variation, no more than typical for any wine and every bottle has been sound.

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I haven’t had any problem with the more recent vintages either. For example, we’ve drunk through quite a few 2005s, which we bought from the same retailer, and all have been in good condition, though definitely on the young side.

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I’ve got an empty bottle of 1954 Campi Raudii in the garage if that’s a gap you need filled. I don’t know if the vintage label is still on it. FWIW the only empty bottle I’ve ever kept!