Antoniolo Gattinara 2008

The 2007 Gattinara is simply stunning. Freshly cut flowers, red cherries and spices are some of the notes that emerge from this elegant, radiant Gattinara. There are no signs of greenness or hard edges anywhere in sight, yet the wine retains the mid-... Robert Parkers Wine Advocate. A Nebbiolo wine from Piedmont in Italy. 2007 Antoniolo Gattinara 750ml

Piedmont, ItalyAntoniolo Gattinara is a wonderful introduction to the Nebbiolo grape from the Gattinara appellation of Piedmont, located far north of the Barolo/ Barbaresco zones in the Alpine foothills close to Lago Maggiore. Its sibling single-vineyard wine, Osso San Grato, in the 2005 vintage earned the ultimate honor for Italian wines, winning Red Wine of the Year from Gambero Rosso, which also awarded the wine its coveted top rating, Tre Bicchieri. Antonio Galloni for Wine Advocate calls Antoniolo "a reference-point producer for first-class Gattinara." Burton Anderson in The Wine Atlas of Italy calls Rosanna Antoniolo "the most dynamic winemaker" in Gattinara. The Gattinara appellation has produced Nebbiolo wines since the 12th century, but its tiny total of 120 hectares is splintered among 100 owners, of whom only 15 bottle their own wines. Antoniolo is truly the benchmark producer with exceptional holdings in the appellation's 3 greatest crus: Osso San Grato, San Francesco and Castelle. This release is always very limited! Galloni rated this wine 90 points, calling it "simply stunning."Antoniolo Gattinara is garnet red in color with a nose of red cherry, violet, leather, tobacco and cut flowers. It is full in body with bright acidity, velvety tannins, and rich flavors of raspberries, cherries, plums, marzipan and spice. Aged in oak barrels for 30 months followed by one year in bottles, this big red will reward several years of cellaring and drink best from 2012-2019. It is long and rich on the finish.Enjoy Antoniolo Gattinara with osso bucco, lasagna, veal chops and aged cheeses.