Nebbiolo’s inimitable aromatic range and food-friendly minerality on full display with this wine. One of the best Nebbiolo values we’ve offered!

Ghemme and its surrounding hills (part of the broader Colline Novaresi designation) sits on the eastern bank of the Sesia River, which runs from the glaciers of Monte Rosa down past the towns of Novara and Vercelli to the Pò further south. Ghemme is a gentle plateau above the Sesia with a higher clay percentage than many of its neighbors.

Mazzoni’s small winery is in the hamlet of Cavaglio d’Agogna, in the hills east of Ghemme. Tiziano decided, at the age of 40, to go into winemaking, and now works with 11 hectares of vineyards in and around his home village. He farms following organic principles, and he favors 100% Nebbiolo wines aged in larger, used oak barrels.

After hand-harvesting and destemming the Nebbiolo, Mazzoni’s Colline Novaresi was fermented with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel, temperature-controlled tanks and subjected to a relatively short maceration of 10 days. It was then aged for one year in used, 500-liter French oak tonneaux, and the wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered.

While we’re usually reluctant to compare Nebbiolo to Pinot Noir, here the comparison is deliciously apt. It’s luminous, garnet-red with pink and orange reflections, and a perfumed nose of bing cherry, crushed red raspberries, rose petals, citrus peel, leather, and a hint of pepper. The tannins are finegrained and the acidity is fresh, not sharp; it really goes down smoothly.