You may recall my story of the frenzy that followed our previous release of today’s wine: Castello Conti’s inimitable Boca DOCG. I’d just returned from visiting sisters Elena and Anna Conti at their small castle in the Italian Alps, when a customer with a well-known penchant for high-grade Burgundy and Barolo sent me an email with the all-caps title, “CONTI.” Shortly thereafter, another “Conti” email arrived from a different client. Then a third—and, soon enough, it felt like the entire SommSelect team was besieged with Conti inquiries!
The explanation was simple: Antonio Galloni (whose opinion I respect) had crowned the Conti family’s just-released 2012 Boca as perhaps their finest ever, calling it one of the top Piedmontese reds of the year, ahead of many more-costly Barolos and Barbarescos. He said he was “totally blown away” and “can’t recommend it highly enough.” It was unusually full-throated praise from one of the more judicious voices in wine. After all this excitement, there was no 2013 Boca released into the US, but I’m thrilled to be sharing the just-released 2014 vintage today! This bottle is on fire today, but with a few more years of age in your cellar, it’s destined to become a legendary wine. The one catch here, of course, is that only around 80 cases of Conti Boca are bottled each year, making it a challenging acquisition even for dedicated collectors and top restaurants. The entire production of all their wines could fit into a small living room! Fortunately, SommSelect has been a strong supporter of the Conti wines for years—which earns us first-in-line status for today’s 2014. Get it while it’s hot!
[**PLEASE NOTE: today’s wine will ship from California the week of Monday, April 1. Limit 6 bottles per customer.]
In the Colline Novaresi region, as in Barolo 90 minutes to the south, the Nebbiolo grape reigns supreme and soils are dominated by limestone and clay. The Conti sisters work a small collection of sites with an unusually high concentration of glacial material. They understand that such unique terroir and years of experience perfecting organic and biodynamic practices means they need not fuss too much in the cellar. There is very little in the way of technology or modern gadgetry at Conti. The small amount of juice produced from their vineyards is fermented in a stainless steel tank. There are two daily punchdowns during fermentation, and after malolactic fermentation is complete, the wine is transferred to old, handmade oak barrels, where it rests until just prior to bottling and release. Despite the simplistic technique, a bottle of Nebbiolo vinified at Conti remains some of the most expressive and beloved wine in this corner of Italy.
Today’s 2014 Boca from Castello Conti is a fire-breathing beast! I have no doubt it will continue evolving well into the 2030s, but anyone brave enough to pull the cork today can expect a wild ride! You can search far and wide in Piedmont, but still never encounter a wine of such barely restrained power and roaring mineral intensity. The fruit is black and palate-staining: black cherries, black currants, mulberries, black truffle, black stone...everything about this wine is dark, mysterious and intense! It’s not a delicate wine for sipping while listening to jazz records. No, this bottle demands food. You will need to engage with it, and you must provide a protein capable of withstanding its dominant tannic structure and brute strength. I came to the table armed with heavy artillery: a gorgeously marbled, reverse-seared prime rib! Rest assured that few food-and-wine combinations can match this epic, elemental pairing, and that the Conti sister’s 2014 Boca is a certified classic that will demand top billing in your cellar for years—if not decades—to come!
