If you share my passion for truly handmade and unbelievably rare Italian reds, we have an exciting treat. Since our founding, SommSelect has been trying to get our hands on a significant amount—well, any amount, if I’m being completely honest—of Odilio Antoniotti’s fabled and impossibly scarce Bramaterra. This is among the most pure, soulful, and deeply traditional Nebbiolo-based reds exported from Italy.
I’d happily drink any vintage of it over many far-pricier releases from Barolo and Barbaresco, if only the opportunity presented itself more often. For better or worse, Antoniotti’s Bramaterra remains a sort of “white rhino” for geekier sommeliers and collectors who’ve grown enamored of “Alto Piemonte” (“upper Piedmont”) Nebbiolos. Still, scarcity is only a small part of the equation, here. This gem, from the nearly perfect 2013 vintage, originates from a centuries-old, microscopic, organically-farmed 5-hectare family farm in one of the tiniest appellations in the foothills of the Italian Alps (the region of Bramaterra DOC is only 25 hectares in total). Most importantly, it is delicious juice. Imagine your favorite Barbaresco vinified in a 1960’s-era Burgundy cellar and you’ll start to understand what all the hype is about.
Visiting Odilio Antoniotti and his son, Mattia, in the mountainous Piedmontese village of Casa del Bosco is a remarkable experience. Their home/cellar was built in the 1700s and wine has been produced therein ever since. It is like a museum exhibition that demonstrates how pre-industrial wine was made: grapes are harvested by hand in the adjacent vineyard, then channeled through old grated windows into the family’s basement where they ferment in ancient brick-encased cement vats that are built into the walls. There are no filters, no modern machinery, and almost everything is done by hand, using gravity as the primary force that drives wine from point A to B—then to it’s eventual home in a hand-corked bottle. This simplicity, patience, and attention to detail is obvious in every aspect of the family’s work—and did I mention that each individual wine label is applied by hand with a paintbrush and glue? It’s fascinating, and in tasting overtly “old school” wines like Antoniotti, I often wonder if there is a purity and depth that gets lost when everything is measured, controlled, and touched by machinery instead of human hands.
The 2013 Antoniotti Bramaterra is an overtly rustic, translucent ruby red with a garnet core transitioning to orange notes on the rim. This is what I want my Nebbiolo to look like! Aromatically, it’s a mosaic of dried red cherry, red currant and plum, violets and dried roses, white peppercorns, shattered granite and pipe tobacco. The influence of this vineyard’s unusual porphyry/granite composition is strong, and the “take home message” here is one of profound depth and history—still, this is not in any way a heavy wine. As with many of my favorite Nebbiolo-based reds from the northern reaches of Piedmont, Antoniotti’s Bramaterra is always refreshing and balanced, like a great central Burgundian red. It’s a wine that demands food, and I can think of few more seductive companions than a risotto studded with wild mushrooms. Decant for one hour and serve in large Burgundy stems, and I’d be remiss in not mentioning that this wine is a no-brainer addition to your cellar. Nebbiolo-based reds of this quality, at this price, don’t come along very often. This bottle has at least another 10 years of evolution ahead of it and you won’t regret the experience of witnessing it. I have six bottles destined for my cellar and I encourage you to do the same. Cheers!
