An Absolute Reference Point Wine for Alto Piemonte - Delsignore Riserva 2016

 2016 Cantina Delsignore Gattinara "Il Putto"
 - I Think the Best Wine He Has Ever Made
 - The Classic Delsignore Elegance
 - Combined with the Density of 2016
 - And the Added Complexity and Depth from Additional Ageing
 - A Reference Point Gattinara That Will Utterly Blow Your Mind
 - Nose: Super Perfume, Fresh Cherries, Spice, Smoke
 - Incredibly Detailed and Vivid
 - Outrageous Complexity
 - So Beautiful and Elegant
 - The Work of a Master
 - Palate - Stunning Depth, Density and Focus
 - Remarkable Cherry Fruit and Crazy Levels of Spice
 - Elite Purity and Balance
 - Mid Season Cherries, Sour Cherries
 - Stunning Freshness
 - Only 60 Bottles (Sorry!)

NV (2019) Cantina Delsignore "Duifradei"
- A Passion Project with His Brother
- A Fascinating Nebbiolo Combination with Uva Rara and Vespolina
- Nose Super Gorgeous
- Penetrating, Blasting, Fresh Cherry Fruit
- All Stainless, No Wood
- Remarkably Clean
- Delicious, Great with Food
- But You Get a Really Geeky Aspect 
- Separate Vinification of the Grapes
- A Master Winemaker
- A Wine to Have with Food - But a Brilliant Example of What It Is

- Made by One of Alto Piemonte's Top Winemakers

Alto Piemonte is becoming more popular for a reason. Nebbiolo lovers are realizing that the climate and soils in the region allow for wines that harken back to the aromatically-driven wines that were made in Barolo and Barbaresco before global warming.

Let's be honest - there were no recognized superstars in the region. It was too cool to produce wines of consistent, appealing quality. Of course, that is changing. The Mascarellos and Conternos of Alto Piemonte are making wines today - we just don't recognize them as superstars. Yet.

But today, we have a superstar. And possibly the best wine he has ever made in the best vintage he has grown in. It stinks that we only have 60 bottles to sell. The 2016 Cantina DelSignore Gattinara Riserva "Borgofranco" can be had for $41.99 a bottle on a 3-Pack.

Nose is simply gorgeous. Beautiful mineral, sour cherries, mid season cherries, gorgeous fresh leaves just fallen from the tree in early autumn. As it gets going it gets a super perfume, with moss, other forest scents as well. A superb nose that gives off a super sense of place. Remarkable in its detail and vividness. So elegant. You get that extra density and complexity from the additional barrel age. Awesome spice and a hint of smoke after some air. But it takes time to get there.

Palate has insane fruit saturation and concentration but also remarkable detail. Big, but ripe tannins and such density. Even so, that Delsignore elegance and elite balance is there. Talk about palate staining. Insane acidity, freshness but man what length. It just clings to your palate with such unreal intensity and never lets go. The fruit is just absolutely perfect cherries. Unreal laser-like precision. Incredible density but not in a loud way. The fruit is clean and pure but you can feel the depth as you taste it.

After 2 hours this crossed the crucial 9.5 Delectable barrier for me as the fruit is just unconscious but framed but absolutely sick minerality and tannins have velvetized. Awesome. Really great juiciness that balances the power of the fruit.

This really is a reference point Gattinara. I find Gattinara to have among the most potential for relatively muscular wines in Alto Piemonte. And in the hands of a master like Stefano Dorelli, you can get remarkable wines. On a very simple level, you can drink this off of it's fruit, there is a serious, serious fruit soak. But there is another level to this wine when the secondary flavors kick in. Wine geeks will really appreciate the balance and texture but also the way that the fruit sets the table for the secondary flavors to shine through. Just a remarkable wine and a very different Gattinara from everything I've ever had including Il Chiosso, which I love. The tannic structure is there and will allow this wine to age for medium term consumption.

The second wine is a ton of fun, but a ton of fun made by a great winemaker.

It's the NV (2019) Cantina Delsignore Duifradei for $24.99 a bottle on a 4 pack. As experts in the local Gattinara dialiect will know, Duifradei is the local dialect for Due Fratellii which means 2 brothers. Stefano's brother Marco made this wine with him and it is beautiful.

This a bit of a passion project for Stefano for 2 reasons. First, of course, he gets to work with his brother. But second, he has Bonarda/Uva Rara and Vespolina on his estate but does not feel that they make sense to use in his other wines. So he decided to vinify them separately and use them in this wine; yo get a very unique and geeky expresion of thiese grapes as a result. It is 50% Nebbiolo and 50% these grapes. He also ages this 100% in stainless steel. So you get a remarkable freshness and perfect fruit clarity. It is a wine designed for everyday drinking but also a wine with some great wine geek appeal.

The nose on this is just super gorgeous. You get this wonderful penetrating blasting, fresh cherry fruit. A hint of spice. Man - this is clean. I love the use of stainless on certain wines. You get the best fruit purity imaginable.

The palate is what you'd expect - just searingly fresh cherry fruit. Some spice. A hint of licorice. Terrific acidic balance. So fresh. This is an amazing wine with food. Anything from lighter dishes that you would have with pinot noir (chicken, tuna) but because of the acidic freshness, it can even stand up to a steak should you so choose.

For Italian bureaucratic reasons, this has no vintage on it but the fruit is all 2019 fruit.

2016 Cantina DelSignore Gattinara Riserva "Borgofranco" - $43.99

($125.97 3-Pack) (

NV (2019) Cantina DelSignore DuiFradei - $26.99

($99.96 4-Pack)