We love what we do at SommSelect. Having a platform to share the world’s most celebrated wines with friends across the US is a dream come true. Still, we always say that one particularly exhilarating aspect of our work is shining the spotlight on our favorite “insider” wines.
These are limited releases cherished by sommeliers around the world—not for their high price or obvious prestige, but because there’s a close-kept secret that explains why they dramatically over-deliver on quality. Take, for example, De Forville, one of the great, ancient dynasties in Barbaresco. Multiple consecutive generations of this family have been farming and vinifying Nebbiolo since the 1800s. During that time, the estate has assembled an impressive treasure trove of Barbaresco’s top premier- and grand cru-equivalent real estate with significant holdings in vineyards like Pozzo, Loreto and Rabajà. De Forville’s young vine, old vine, and single cru Barbarescos are respected go-to’s for many top Italian restaurants and retailers in New York and California. Still, the bottle I most often encounter lurking in friends’ cellars is this wine, the family’s seemingly lowly Nebbiolo d’Alba. The insider secret here is that this bottling comes from one of the family’s oldest vineyards in San Rocco Seno d’Elvio. Piedmont experts will recognize this as a picturesque hillside village perched almost directly between Barolo and Barbaresco. There is no sticker shock or Barbaresco DOCG label with this bottle, but it is undoubtedly one of De Forville’s most limited and special wines. This is a delicious discovery to enjoy today—but an especially clever cellar addition for wise collectors which will drink well over the next decade
The De Forville family began producing wine in Barbaresco in the mid 1800s. Gioachino De Forville made Nebbiolo the family’s focus early on before being succeeded by his son, Vincenzo, who was followed by his nephew, Paolo, who passed the torch to his daughter, Mafalda, who is honored today by her sons and current proprietors, Valter and Paolo. Are you confused yet? In short, De Forville is a small, family business that has endured two World Wars and overcome countless challenges during its 150 year evolution from a rural farm family to a respected winemaking dynasty. This multi-generation commitment to grueling manual labor, tradition and excellence is how remote hillsides become the world’s greatest wine terroirs. It’s also the reason why, for me, the most exciting wines on earth still come from Europe.
Today, De Forville is a mid-size estate by Piedmont standards with a production of 8,000 cases per year. There is a clear line drawn between the family’s modestly priced, fresh and quaffable young-release Dolcetto, Barbera, and Chardonnay, versus the more serious, expensive, barrel aged Nebbiolo-based Barbaresco bottlings for which De Forville is known. But despite the modest price and lack of a DOCG neck band on this bottle, in every way it falls into the latter category. This bottling originates from an extremely old single Nebbiolo vineyard in the village of San Rocco Seno d’Elvio which sits directly between Barbaresco and Barolo DOCGs. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this parcel produces fruit with a darker fruit core, more formidable tannins, and decidedly more Barolo-like character than De Forville’s other Nebbiolo vines just a few miles northeast in Barbaresco. This wine sees an extended maceration on skins, extra aging in Slavonian oak casks and is treated with every ounce of extra care afforded to the family’s $40-50/bottle reserve and single cru releases. Legendary importer and four decades-long representative of the De Forville family says, simply “we consider this wine to be the ‘Barolo’ of the De Forville estate.” I couldn’t agree more— this is an outstanding and extremely serious wine.
In the glass, the 2014 De Forville Nebbiolo d’Alba “San Rocco” shows dark garnet center dissolving into garnet and orange hues at the rim— this is exactly how classic Nebbiolo should appear. This wine is packed with similarly classic Nebbiolo fruit aromas of black and red cherries, cherry blossom, ripe cranberry, and a taught strawberry core. Following a brief decantation, secondary notes of wet and dry rose petals, fine oiled leather, tar, tobacco, fennel blossom and crushed clay begin to blossom. This is a particularly exciting wine to taste blind because it walks a fine line between Barbaresco and Barolo and will confound even the most experienced taster. It’s a joy to enjoy right now alongside a
juicy veal chop—just decant for 1 hour and serve at 60 degrees in large Burgundy stems. As I mentioned above, this wine is also a smart investment opportunity for the Piedmont section of your cellar. With 150 years of experience, the De Forville family has mastered the fine art of ageworthy Nebbiolo and this bottle is no exception. It will certainly evolve and improve for the next decade and—especially with this low price—this is a wine that everyone would be wise to stash away.
