Luciano Sandrone Valmaggiore Nebbiolo d'Alba 2018

SKU
LSNE201810 UCAU
  • The 2018 Valmaggiore Nebbiolo d’Alba is a wine of penetrating intensity
  • Robert Parker: 94/100 "The Luciano Sandrone 2018 Nebbiolo d'Alba Valmaggiore shows a very fruity, fresh and accessible side of the Nebbiolo grape."
  • Wine & Spirits: 93/100 "Impossible to resist now."
  • 1 or more bottles
    $95.00
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  • Robert Parker's
    94 points
  • Wine and Spirit
    93 points

Editors notes

The 2018 Valmaggiore Nebbiolo d’Alba is a wine of penetrating intensity and balanced, mid-weight structure. The cooler conditions of the vintage gave us a focused red fruit nose with notes of licorice, hibiscus and wet stones.

On the palate, the wine evokes raspberry and cherry fruit, wisps of spice and rose petals, held together by a middle weight structure of sweet tannins and fresh acidity. The finish has mineral notes to go with the sweet fruit.

Details

Tasting Profile

  • Light (Light)
    Full (Full)
  • Low Tannin (Low Tannin)
    Tannic (Tannic)
  • Sweet (Sweet)
    Dry (Dry)
  • Low Acidity (Low Acidity)
    High Acidity (High Acidity)
  • Aroma
    • Earthy
    • Roses
    • Tar
  • Palate
    • Floral
    • Savoury
    • Tar

Food Pairings

  • Game
  • Pork
  • Red Meat

Critic Scores & reviews

  • Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

    94
    "The Luciano Sandrone 2018 Nebbiolo d'Alba Valmaggiore shows a very fruity, fresh and accessible side of the Nebbiolo grape. This wine is open-knit and inviting with a steady succession of aromas that range from red cherry and plum to rosemary sprig and crushed mineral. On some level, you could call it Barolo Lite, although that does not do justice to the Valmaggiore vineyard in Roero that outperforms year after year. The wine is Barolo-adjacent for sure, but it offers its own bright and distinct personality. It's an exciting, new generation of Nebbiolo."
  • Wine and Spirits Magazine

    93
    "This floral-scented, red-fruited nebbiolo is bright and lifted, its flavors of red cherry and raspberry brimming with vibrant acidity. Notes of thyme and mint further enliven the flavors, making it impossible to resist now—but keep a few bottles in the cellar to track its development over the next several years."

Other vintages

Love this wine? Here's a list of other vintages we have in stock if you'd like to try them as well.

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Locations

Italy

Italy has some of the oldest wine production methods in the world and almost every part of the country is planted under vine. From the Alps in the north to the very southernmost parts of Sicily where Africa is almost in sight, wine is successfully cultivated. In addition to the latitude covered, Italy's many mountains and hills provide a plethora of altitudes for grape growing in various soils and micro-climates. The extensive coastlines along the peninsula that is Italy provide maritime climates for the coastal wine-growing areas. Over 350 grape varieties are 'authorised' in Italy, though up to 550 varieties are thought to be grown.

The classification system of Italian wines has four classes, with the intention of defining a wine's origin a quality. Two of these classes are table wines, whilst DOC and DOCG fall under the EU quality wine produced in a specific region category. Vino da Tavola (VDT) means that the wine comes from Italy. Most of these wines are generally basic table wines that are consumed domestically. Indicazione Geografica Tipica (IGT) denotes a more specific region within Italy, and the resultant will be of higher quality than simple table wines, but won't conform to the rules required for higher certification. Both Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) and Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG) are regionally more specific than IGT, and have stricter rules regarding the grape varieties grown, yields per hectare, minimum alcohol levels and so on. The major difference between DOC and DOCG is that the latter has to undergo a blind-tasting session to ensure the highest quality is achieved. Italy has 32 DOCG appelations, 311 DOC appelations and 120 IGT zones.

Key regions include Piedmont, Tuscany, Abruzzo, Veneto, Sicily and Sardinia. Common white varieties grown are Pinot Grigio, Arneis, Vermentino, Verdicchio, Fiano and Moscato. The red varieties grown the most are Sangiovese, Barbera, Dolcetto, Nebbiolo, Montepulciano, Primitivo, Nero d'Avola and Corvina.

Piedmont

Piedmont (Piemonte in Italian) is probably the finest wine region in all of Italy, and has laid claim to this since Roman times. It has a continental climate influenced by the surrounding Alps and Ligurian Apennines, and is located in the north-west of Italy, bordering both France and Switzerland.

Piedmont has only 1% of the total vineyards of Bordeaux and 15% that of Burgundy. So while a top Chateaux may produce upwards of 35,000 cases a year, leading Barolo producers will often make only 800 cases. More than half of its vineyards are registered with DOC designations and many are in the Apennine or Alpine foothills, from 300-600m above sea level. Most of the wines are produced by smaller family estates rather than larger holdings.

Piedmont has 46 different DOC and four DOCG regions, and produces the largest number of well known, world-recognized, prize-winning wines. The most famous would have to be Barolo or Barbaresco, whose power comes from the Nebbiolo grape variety. The most widely planted red variety is Barbera although Dolcetto, Muscat, Shiraz and Bonarda are also produced.

The white variety most well known is Moscato, which is often made into frizzante (bubbly) wines known as Asti. Cortese is made into the popular Gavi wines, and smaller amounts of Chardonnay and high quality Sparkling are also produced in the far north of Piedmont.

Nebbiolo d'Alba

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