Antonello Rovellotti, Colline Novaresi Nebbiolo “Valplazza” For Cheap

Antonello Rovellotti, Colline Novaresi Nebbiolo “Valplazza”

We’ve been over this a thousand times, but perhaps some folks need a refresher—or just a re-load on some excellent, affordable, all-occasion Nebbiolo. Savvy Italian wine lovers know that Piedmont’s greatest wines from the Nebbiolo grape are usually (a) expensive and (b) quite powerful, and often rather tannic, on release. That’s just the nature of elite wines like Barolo, Gattinara, and, in the case of Antonello Rovellotti, Ghemme. The secret-weapon wines, of which Rovellotti’s “Valplazza” is a shining example, are just a step down the classification ladder:

In the Langhe region, where Barolo and Barbaresco are located, the designations “Langhe Nebbiolo” and “Nebbiolo d’Alba” are your ticket to more reasonably priced, easier/earlier drinking wines. In the much-buzzed-about “Alto Piemonte,” the monikers to look for are “Colline Novaresi” and “Costa della Sesia.” That’s it. That’s the refresher. When you’ve got a historic, region-defining producer like Rovellotti willing to sell you a bottle of expertly crafted Nebbiolo for $30, you jump on it, plain and simple. It’s the same premise as trusting a Côtes du Rhône from an iconic house like E. Guigal or a crianza-designated Rioja from a historic bodega. It’s a no-brainer, and in the case of today’s wine, I’ll tell you something else—there’s no shortage of complexity or seriousness in this gorgeously perfumed 2019, just a little less brawn. If ever a wine begged to be purchased by the case, this is it.

Rovellotti is headquartered in the town of Ghemme (also the name of the DOCG wine-production zone), which is centered around a sprawling castle first built in the 1100s; Antonello is the only winemaker still permitted to work in the original structure. His “winery” is little more than a collection of trap doors, lofts, and crawl spaces hidden all over the castle. And while Antonello is a gifted and experienced winemaker, and his vines are among the village’s oldest and most prized. 

Ghemme belongs to the greater Alto Piemonte, the more northerly, “Alpine” part of Italy’s Piedmont region, not far from the Monte Rosa Massif. Clustered around the Sesia River north of the city of Novara, the assorted wine appellations of the Alto Piemonte are prime hunting ground for extreme Nebbiolo values, and Ghemme has proved especially fertile. But there just isn’t much to be had: The geographic boundaries of the appellation are already quite small, but the number of planted acres here is shockingly low; depending on the source, you’ll see the Ghemme DOCG’s total vineyard area estimated at 50-80 hectares (120-200 acres), which is less productive capacity than many single estates in other regions. The soils in the Ghemme area are glacial moraine, interspersed with mineral-laden porphyry rock, red clay, sand, and alluvial gravel.

“Valplazza” is, as noted above, a Colline Novaresi Nebbiolo sourced from Rovellotti’s vineyards in and around Ghemme, aged in tank and bottle for about six months before its initial release (Ghemme wines, by contrast, spend at least 18 months in barrel as part of a three-year aging regimen before release). It is medium-bodied and relatively easy on the tannins, with a bright and appealing mix of fruit and earth. Nebbiolo fans will find all the classic aromatic markers here in abundance: red and black cherry, wild strawberry, cranberry, orange peel, tobacco, tar, leather, rose petals, anise, turned earth, sandalwood, and underbrush. Best of all, it offers up more complexity and sense of place than anyone has a right to expect at this price point. Decant it 15-30 minutes before serving with something woodsy and rich and you won’t miss those pricy Barolos one bit. Enjoy!