Piedmont Happy Hour Wine Tasting Thursday September 24th 6pm
You haven’t drunk too much wine if you can still lie on the floor without holding on.”
Dean Martin
If you have been watching my work for the last few decades you’ve never seen me drunk or lying on the floor and if you have been watching my propaganda you know that the Piedmont is my favorite wine region on Earth and that Nebbiolo is my favorite grape varietal.
The Piedmont is home to a bevy of unique grape varietals both white and red. The Arneis varietal is light and refreshing with a light spritz leaving the tongue salivating for food and another sip. Timorasso is the latest high level white varietal being resurrected by some of the top producers, even though the region is a bit of a treck from the village of Barbaresco and Barolo the wines being made from this varietal are being dubbed as the white Barolo.
Then you have international varietals like Chardonnay and Pinot Noir that are turning heads today, but my favorite wines from this region are the ones that are indigenous to this region like Barbera which can be made into a light and fruity red for easy drinking or Barbera can be made to be a cellar worthy red that can age for decades.
Come out and experience over a dozen wines from the Piedmont on Thursday, September 24th for a Happy Hour tasting featuring some great Piedmontese wines. The fee for this tasting is $115 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.
Happy Hour Featuring Piedmont Wines
Thursday, September 24, 2026
6:00 PM
Breakthru
2024 La Spinetta Piccolo Derthona Timorasso Colli Tortonesi Piedmont, Italy
Price: $30.00 Your Price: $27.00
Bouquet: notes of cedar and acaia flowers, enriched by slight notes of petroleum. Taste: a taste reveals inviting acidity, supported by extraordinary structure. Hints of grapefruit and white flowers are in perfect harmony with marked acidity. It has a long and clean finish
2022 Massolino Chardonnay Langhe
Price: $34.50 Your Price: $31.05
The most fanciful scents of ripe fruit and an excellent mineral quality emerge, together with optimal freshness.Flavour: warm and expansive, it envelops the palate with gentleness and character, ending with a lingering aftertaste; undoubtedly blessed with the structure provided by the Langa soils.
2023 La Spinetta Ca Di Pian Barbera D'Asti
Price: $31.50 Your Price: $28.35
Ruby red with purple reflections, Beautiful and complex aromas of blueberry, dried plums and sandal wood. Complex, vibrant, focused wine with refreshing acidity and ripe fruit
2024 Massolino Barbera d'Alba Piedmont, Italy
Price: $28.50 Your Price: $25.65
All estate fruit they have around 55 hectares and they make 100,000 bottles. A good amount of black raspberry, black cherry fruit, pretty floral notes and black truffle like earth, no oak here on average 25 year old vines. Bright and refreshing wine with lots of juicy zesty fruit with bright refreshing acidity and pretty floral notes through the finish. Finish 40+ Very Good + The 2024 produced pure and impeccably balacned wine.
2023 Massolino Langhe Nebbiolo Piedmont, Italy
Price: $34.50 Your Price: $31.05
(90 Points) The 2023 Langhe Nebbiolo is terrific. Aromatic and medium-bodied, the Langhe Nebbiolo is a fabulous entry-level wine in this range. Crushed flowers, cedar, pipe tobacco and sweet dried cherry are all nicely lifted in the glass. What a total delight. Vinous
2022 Gaja Sito Moresco Rosso Langhe Piedmont, Italy
Price: $84.00 Your Price: $75.60
Winery Notes: The nose is dominated by fruit, but also citrus and floral hints emerge. On the palate it’s juicy and the floral notes persist alongside scents of licorice. Subtle hints of cherry and strawberry create a harmonious blend of floral elegance and vibrant fruit flavors.
2022 Massolino Barbaresco DOCG
Price: $61.50 Your Price: $55.35
Massolino’s straight Barbaresco blends fruit from Starderi, Albesani and Serraboella to give a complete picture of the appellation. The 2022 vintage in Barbaresco was warm but balanced by cool nights, so you get generous ripeness without heaviness. In the glass it sits a luminous garnet, with notes of redcurrant, cherry, rose, violets, sweet spices and a stony, ferrous edge. On the palate it’s medium-bodied, silky and energetic, with polished tannins and a long, floral-spiced finish. A classic fine-dining Barbaresco, great both for early drinking and mid-term cellaring.
2021 Massolino Barolo DOCG
Price: $60.00 Your Price: $54.00
(94 Points) The Massolino 2021 Barolo reveals a shiny ruby color and a core of dark fruit. Beyond the plummy fruit is tar, licorice, pressed flower and campfire ash. This wine has a pronounced savory side, yet it all fits squarely into a very delicate and finessed delivery. This is a pretty example of the vintage. Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
2021 Renato Ratti Marcenasco Barolo DOCG, Italy
Price: $60.00 Your Price: $54.00
(94 Points) The 2021 Barolo Marcenasco pours a reflective brick red color and offers a good deal of complexity and clarity on the nose, opening to notes of preserved orange, anise, cranberries, redcurrants, and minty herbs. The palate is similarly focused, with a refreshing energy and spine of acidity, well-defined and coiled tannins, and a zesty feel through the finish. It is a lovely wine from Ratti with a lot of personality that can age gracefully and improve over the coming 15 or more years. I would love to cover more of their wines in the future. (AF) Jeb Dunnuck, Review Date: 05/2025
2022 Gaja Dagromis Barolo DOCG
Price $145.50 Your Price $130.95
The nose shows deep wet earth, warm spice, sandalwood, juniper, red fruit, and subtle savory, sanguine notes. Powerful and concentrated on the palate, it is balanced by bright savory acidity and dense yet polished tannins, finishing fresh with a hint of blood orange. Blend: 100% Nebbiolo
Winebow
2024 Toledana Gavi di Gavi
Price: $35.00 Your Price: $31.50
Bright straw yellow color with greenish reflections, a delicate nose with hints of fresh fruit and white flowers, citrus and bitter almond notes that are enriched by complexity and ageing. Dry and full bodied on the palate, the wine is pleasant, fully integrated, sophisticated and refined.
2022 Vietti Perbacco Langhe Nebbiolo Piedmont, Italy
Price: $37.25 Your Price: $33.53
(93 Points) Some fruit from Roncaglie goes into this wine, along with tidbits from other scattered Barolo vineyards. Aged for two years in large oak barrel, the Vietti 2022 Langhe Nebbiolo Perbacco is not too far off from tasting and smelling like a full-fledged Barbaresco, or even a Barolo for that matter, since it does technically have the DNA of both. The fruit is delivered with fresh, vertical intensity, and the wine's texture is firm and tensile. I like this vintage more than I thought I would. Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
2024 Castello Di Neive Arneis Montebertotto
Price: $24.00 Your Price: $21.60
Top of Form
Bottom of Form
Fresh with an elegant characteristic nose. Fresh and dry on the palate with a hint of almond on the finish. Serve with appetizers, vegetables, fish, rice, pasta.
2020 Castello di Neivi Pinot Noir
Price: $28.25 Your Price $25.42
Light ruby in color, aromas of cherries and cranberries awaken the senses while undertones of earth, smoke, and tobacco lurk under the surface. Delicate tannins and a light body make this a finessed but structured wine.
2022 Cortese Barbaresco Rabaja
Price: $88.25 Your Price: $79.43
A traditional version of the great Cru, this wine is made entirely from Nebbiolo grapes grown in Barbaresco's prestigious Rabajà vineyard, located in the Langhe hills just to the south of Cortese’s winery.
Unfiltered to preserve its richness, this remarkably elegant Barbaresco offers concentrated aromas of raspberries, roses, violets, leather and spice. Full-bodied with robust flavor and firm tannins.
2022 Damilano Barolo Lecinquvigne
Price: $43.25 Your Price: $38.93
"Lecinquevigne" refers to the five vineyards where the Nebbiolo grape for Barolo is harvested.
Damilano is one of the oldest wineries in Barolo. The family business dates back to 1890 when Giuseppe Borgogno started cultivating and producing wine from the grapes from his own vineyards. In 1935, Borgogno’s son-in-law, Giacomo Damilano, took over the operation, giving the winery its name and significantly improving the quality of both the vinification system and the vineyards, turning the winery into a “jewel” of the Langhe area. In 1997, Giacomo passed the winery on to his grandchildren, Paolo, Mario and Guido. Together, they are working to keep and improve the level of the quality of the Damilano wines.
Ruby red in color with orange reflections. An intense bouquet, with tertiary notes of rose, leather, tobacco and emerging notes of violet and tar. The palate is ample and embracing, with prevailing impressions of a soft, persistent, long finish.
2021 Damilano Barolo Cannubi
Price: $103.25 Your Price: $92.93
(95 Points) Well-defined raspberry, cherry, menthol, iron, tar and woodsy aromas and flavors mark this intense, linear red. Juicy fruit and dense tannins square off, both heightened by the vibrant acidity. Shows fine balance, but just needs time. Best from 2029 through 2047. Wine Spectator
Menu
Sauerkraut Balls with Italian Sausage and Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
Porcini Mushroom and Caramelized Onion Pizza
Veal Tonnato on Whole Wheat Crostini
Shrimp Scampi Risotto
Crispy Pollo Ai Peperoni
The fee for this tasting is $115 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.
A brief History of Barolo
Barolo has a long history of wine production, the area was named some 400 years ago and probably came from the Celtic brolio or brol, meaning "wood" or "orchard". The region of Barolo encompasses approximately 3,000 acres of vines situated southwest of the town of Alba, in all or part of 11 communes. First is La Morra, with nearly one-third of the total acreage. Following in decreasing order are Serralunga d’alba, Monforte d’Alba, Barolo, and Castiglione Falletto, and parts of six other villages. One of the most famous and most sought after vineyards in Barolo is Cannubi.
There are two main valleys in the Barolo production zone: the Barolo Valley to the west, and the Serralunga Valley to the east. La Morra and Barolo itself are the major villages in the western valley, which also encompasses Cherasco, Novello, Roddi d’Alba, Castiglione Falletto and Monforte are the major towns; Diano d’Alba and Grinzane Cavour are also included in this district. There are distinct characteristics that are indigenous to the wines of various area: the wines of Serralunga Valley have suggestions of licorice and tar, the Barolos of Serralunga itself display camphor and mint; those from Castiglione Falleto have a pronounced licorice characteristic as well as nuances of spice, mint, dried peaches, and prunes; those from Monforte recall spices, mint hazelnuts, and almonds. The wines from the Barolo Valley bring up underbrush and truffle, as well as licorice. Those wines from the village of Barolo have less of a licorice character but more suggestions of underbrush, truffles, and mint. The wines of la Morra, especially those from the slopes, combine nuances of white truffle, mint, tobacco, spices, cherries, and blackberries and those from Cannubi display motes of white truffles, underbrush, raspberries, and black cherries.
A bit about Barbaresco
Barbaresco is a red wine produced in northwest Italy’s Piedmont region. Made from 100% Nebbiolo, Barbaresco, like its Barolo counterpart, is a highly tannic and acidic wine that needs years of cellaring to reach harmony. Prior to being released in the market, DOCG regulations require that the wines are aged for a minimum of 26 months, with at least 9 months spent in wood barrels; for the riserva bottlings, there is a mandated period of 50 months aging, with at least 9 months spent in wood barrels. Although Barbaresco and Barolo have much in common, traditionally Barbaresco tends to express a more feminine side, while Barolo is characterized as masculine and stately—but certainly exceptions exist. Expressive aromatically, scents of dried cherry, raspberry, licorice and rose petals are typical of the wine.
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