SommSelect Editorial Director David Lynch recommends this more finessed take on the Nebbiolo grape from the oft-overlooked Roero DOCG—Barolo’s low-key neighbor.
Nebbiolo is one of the world’s great red wine grapes, and it’s also one of the most challenging. As you’re lulled into reverie by its perfumed aromatics, a one-two punch of acid and tannin jolt you to attention. Barolo lovers know and expect this, but even the most hard-core Barolo lovers (like me) like to dial down the intensity once in a while. This wine fits that bill perfectly, stripping away some of Nebbiolo’s tannic bulk and letting its more ethereal, Pinot Noir-ish side come to the fore. Made in the Roero DOCG, Barolo’s immediate neighbor to the west, this 2013 from Deltetto is a finessed expression of Nebbiolo and a major value to boot. I tasted it next to a few much-more-expensive Barolo and Barbaresco wines and it more than held its own—not only was it the most pleasant to drink right now, it demonstrated how irrepressible Nebbiolo’s character is, even in its more delicate incarnations. That’s what “noble” grapes are all about!
The Deltettos are the kind of multi-generational farming family I’m always happy to buy wine from: In generations past, they grew peaches and pears that attracted their share of local fame, but since the early 1950s, the focus has been wine—Nebbiolo, the fragrant white Arneis, and a little Pinot Noir and Barbera, too. In addition to still whites and reds, they’ve come on strong in recent years with some extremely good (and remarkably affordable) Champagne-method sparklers as well. Based in the village of Canale, the unofficial ‘capital’ of the Roero DOCG, they are the first family I think of when I think of this (wrongly) overlooked growing zone.
Although it effectively borders Barolo, the Roero zone is geologically ‘younger.’ Its soils are marine sediments of reddish-yellow sand and loam (as opposed to the limestone marls and sandstone of Barolo) and its topography is slightly more open and rolling than Barolo’s tightly packed hills. Roero’s soils have proved especially conducive to the development of aromatics in the famously perfumed Nebbiolo, while also producing wines a shade less tannic than their Barolo neighbors. Another reason for Roero’s comparatively gentle personality is that the DOCG regulations for Roero require only 6 months’ minimum aging in wood barrels (Barolo requires 18).
Traditionally, some Roero producers added a touch (2%-5%) of the aromatic white Arneis to their reds, à la Côte-Rôtie, to add lift, but now the Roero DOCG regulations prohibit that practice. This 2013 from Deltetto is 100% Nebbiolo from two distinct vineyard sites, one planted in 1966 and the other in 1977. The wines are aged in large (35-hectoliter), used oak casks for 18 months (well above the minimum) and spend another year in their cellars aging in bottle before release. Now with a few years under its belt, this bottle is starting to develop some intriguing “secondary” aromas of leather, hazelnut, and tobacco.
In the glass, Deltetto’s 2013 Roero is a bright cherry-red with a hint of orange at the rim, with aromatics that start out very Pinot Noir-y—bright red cherry, raspberry, currant, rose petals—before layering in the inimitable Nebbiolo mix of tar, dried orange peel, dried porcini, black tea, and iron-shaving minerality. The fruit is generous on the palate, nicely supported by acidity and fine-grained tannins—again, this is not the all-out assault of a young Barolo, but rather a subtle, silky seduction. Its importer describes it as “user-friendly Nebbiolo,” which I couldn’t agree with more: Young Barolo can be a little impegnativo (challenging). This is an inviting, easy-drinking Nebbiolo—to paraphrase a classic beer ad, it’s the Nebbiolo to have when you’re having more than one! Just decant it about 30 minutes before serving at around 60 degrees (I like Nebbiolo a little cooler to highlight its aromatics) in Burgundy stems. It’s got the kind of versatility you get from a good red Burgundy—I’d pair it with everything from roasted chicken or salmon to something meatier and richer. Give it a try with the attached recipe for mushroom-stuffed chicken breasts for the kind of “Tuesday night” meal that over-achieves on every level. — D.L.
