We have an exciting bonus offer today that is perfect for October 31st! For many decades, the Ferrando estate has been recognized as the guiding light of traditional winemaking among the steep, Alpine foothills of the Alto-Piemonte. They were the very first estate imported by the iconic Neal Rosenthal, and they continue to form the backbone of that venerable portfolio. Nebbiolo planted on scary-steep slopes of sharp slate and granite stones, in the shadow of Mont Blanc, produces a very different wine than that of its cousins in Barolo and Barbaresco. Overflowing with beautiful, beguiling aromatics and built on a frame of minerality and acidity more than tannin, the “Etichetta Bianca” or “White Label” is always a benchmark for the region, and with the release of the stupendous 2019 vintage this is sure to be one of the top wines in all of Northern Italy. We’ve rushed out the offer to you on this fine Halloween eve in order to beat the press and scores that are sure to be off the charts, and make what is already a very limited wine nearly impossible to find. So don’t hesitate to grab as much as you can; having a good supply in the cellar will make you a wine genius!
The Ferrando family has been producing wine in the remote Northwestern Italian village of Carema since 1900, but it is Luigi Ferrando who has worked tirelessly over the past five decades to make this small estate one of Piedmont’s finest. Today Luigi is joined by his sons Roberto and Andrea, and work continues much as it has for the past century. The Ferrando team works tirelessly on the steep slopes, strewn with jagged rocks, doing everything by hand as mechanization is impossible in these conditions. In the cellar they ferment in steel tanks for about two weeks, then the wine is moved into a combination of large and small oak barrels, mostly neutral, for about 36 months of aging prior to bottling unfined and unfiltered.
The “Etichetta Bianca” is Ferrando’s flagship cuvée, sourced from their historic parcels that are situated along a broad, steep amphitheater in the far Northwestern corner of Italy, in Alpine hills that eventually culminate at the foot of the famous Mont Blanc. The Carema DOCG is tiny, totalling just 16 hectares, and Ferrando owns just 2.5 of those. So, to say this is a small production wine is an understatement. That said, the relative obscurity of this part of Italy meant that Ferrando’s brilliance was largely unrecognized in the U.S., with the exception of a few in-the-know Piedmont lovers and sommeliers. That all changed about 10-15 years ago when both the press and the restaurant world suddenly woke up to the wines of Alto Piedmont in general, and Ferrando in particular. The rest, as they say, is history.
After the cursory four plus years of aging in barrels and the bottle prior to release, the 2019 “Etichetta Bianca” is set to arrive in just a couple of weeks. As mentioned, we were able to secure a small lot on pre-arrival, and can offer it out today prior to what will certainly be glowing reviews and towering scores. This is definitely a wine for the cellar, and will begin to show its full potential only after another five years or so, but if you do want to try one on the young side be sure to give it a good decant of 60 minutes or more. Serve cool, in a large Burgundy stem, and a full spectrum of aromas and flavors will slowly emerge: sweet red cherries, tart strawberries, rose petals, tobacco, mint, turned earth, white pepper, and a touch of blood orange all surrounds a core of slatey, crushed rock minerality. A beautifully vibrant, pale garnet now, it will slowly develop hues of brick and sunset orange, and you’ll want to experience that so be sure to grab enough to enjoy over the next 10-20 years!
