Marco Bonfante
I came across the Albarossa grape in September of 2004, and I immediately fell in love with it: its small berries and its thick, crunchy skins which, when squeezed, stained my fingers with an intense, ink-like color. It was a marvelously sweet discovery. Chewing its skins, I perceived the richness of its tannins. As a wine technician, I realized its potential – because of its high ratio of skin to pulp – for making a wine with great structure, concentration, and longevity.
But that wasn’t enough: I wanted to produce a wine that was different from the reds that are traditionally made in Piedmont.
I took a few days off in Verona to visit some friends who produce Amarone: I wanted to find out about the techniques for drying the grapes (appassimento), the right time to harvest, and what were the most suitable containers and ventilation systems.
And that’s how it all started!!
The Albarossa variety first saw the light in 1938 thanks to Professor Giovanni Dalmasso, who combined genetically Nebbiolo di Dronero, a.k.a. Katus (the flower) and Barbera (pollen) to create a new cultivar. In the 1980s it was vinified for the first time by Professor Mannini of the National Research Council in Turin, who began experimentation at Tenuta Cannona, the Piedmont Region’s center for research into wine production. The first plantings of a commercial nature date from the beginning of the new millennium, while the first D.O.C. (under the denomination “Piemonte D.O.C. Albarossa”) was registered in 2009.
Coming to the present day, our winery has become one of the very few companies producing a wine exclusively from Albarossa grapes, with our flagship product: Albarone.
Meticulous selection in the vineyard is followed by a process of appassimento for a portion of the grapes, to which are added – at the time of crushing – the fresh grapes that have remained ripening on the vines.
For Marco this was a dream that began in 2007, and which has today become a very concrete reality. His objective was to make a long-lived wine, of great structure, which offered a new range of sensations and aromas within the panorama of Piedmontese wine production.
The variety
100% Albarossa
Tasting note
In the glass, Albarone amazes you even with its intense purplish color. The nose offers a spectacular range of scents: ripe cherries, plums, wild berries and spices, as well as a balsamic note. It expresses all of its power on the palate: it is extremely fleshy and tannic, yet rounded, and displays exceptionally concentrated fruit. It is very persistent, with the sweetish taste of ripe blackberries and plums. This wine starts to reveal its real complexity after 5-6 years of maturation in the bottle. If stored at a constant temperature of 12°-14°C, it could be enjoyed even when it is more than 25 years old.
Serving temperature
16°-18°C
Food pairings
Albarone goes perfectly with very richly structured meat dishes such as guanciale (jowl bacon) in a red wine reduction, or stewed veal. An exceptional pairing is with pappardelle with a venison and chestnut sauce. Intriguingly, when aged it can even accompany some desserts, such as a chocolate fondant pudding or chocolate chestnut cake (castagnaccio al cioccolato).
IL CENTRO
2016
In Piedmthont, 2015 was the hottest year between 1958 and now. The high temperatures, which began as early as the spring, transformed into torrid heat in e summer, with rainfall only in August which rehydrated the soil, reinvigorating the vines. When fully ripe, the grapewere healthy, with small berries whose juice was concentrated and rich in sugar.
Latest tasting (in April 2021):
A wine of great structure and high alcohol. An impenetrable, almost black color, with intense purplish highlights. The nose is fruity (blackberries and sour black cherries), spicy and very balsamic, with an extremely attractive citrusy note. It is dry and warming on the palate, with almost sweetish sensations against a background of iron and dark chocolate.
Bottles in stock: 3,800 bottles (75 cl) – 34 magnums (150 cl) – 24 Jeroboams (3 liters).
IL CENTRO
2015
In Piedmthont, 2015 was the hottest year between 1958 and now. The high temperatures, which began as early as the spring, transformed into torrid heat in e summer, with rainfall only in August which rehydrated the soil, reinvigorating the vines. When fully ripe, the grapewere healthy, with small berries whose juice was concentrated and rich in sugar.
Latest tasting (in April 2021):
A wine of great structure and high alcohol. An impenetrable, almost black color, with intense purplish highlights. The nose is fruity (blackberries and sour black cherries), spicy and very balsamic, with an extremely attractive citrusy note. It is dry and warming on the palate, with almost sweetish sensations against a background of iron and dark chocolate.
Bottles in stock: 3,800 bottles (75 cl) – 34 magnums (150 cl) – 24 Jeroboams (3 liters).
Cubi
2014
An essentially mild winter and spring favored an early start to the vine’s vegetative cycle, which then slowed down during the summer because of cool and moderately rainy weather. The mild, dry autumn allowed us to wait for the ideal time to pick, even if the harvest was late, lasting well into mid-October.
A good but not excellent year. The grapes did not accumulate particularly high sugar levels and the acidity remained marked. Thinning of the bunches and careful selection at harvest time led to a vintage with scarce yields.
Latest tasting (in April 2021):
The color is impenetrable and tending towards black, with intense purplish highlights; on the nose, it is very broad and complex, with a range of spicy sensations that includes rosemary, pennyroyal, oregano and incense, enveloped in attractive fresh fruit notes. Its flavor is vinous, visceral and warming, with excellent, still lively yet remarkably gentle tannins; the acid component is intense but well integrated.
In stock: 1,300 bottles.
Sovrapposizioni
2013
Latest tasting (in Aprile 2021): The color is impenetrably deep and tending towards black, while on the nose it offers fresh, intense sensations of plums and candied fruit, menthol, and a hint of vanilla. On the palate it is dry, mellow and rounded, with excellent balance and great complexity. The tannins are present but not invasive, revealing an extraordinary wine that is in great shape and demonstrates a perfectly mature evolution.
In stock: 180 bottles (75 cl) – 107 magnums (150 cl) – 1 Mathusalem (6 liters).
La Porta della Vita
2012
Overall, it was a good vintage, in which all of the summer’s heat is to be found in the glass. The wine has notable concentration, both in terms of fruit structure and alcohol. Thanks to picking the grapes destined for appassimento at just the right time, we succeeded in maintaining a good level of acidity, necessary for providing satisfying balance on the palate.
In stock: 230 bottles.
Stupore
2011
Overall, 2011 was an outstanding year. The initial very rainy months, followed by a warm, dry spring, led to an excellent vegetative reawakening of the vines. The beginning of the summer was variable, but the hot, dry August and September allowed for an excellent end to the growing season. The grapes attained the desired ripeness, so that the time to harvest could be decided on with great calm. The result was a great one for real wine lovers: majestic and muscular, it should be decanted at least 30-60 minutes before being drunk.
Latest tasting (in April 2021): The color is a very rich, intense and concentrated ruby red; the purplish reflections at the rim tell us that it is still a young wine. On the nose it offers sensations of ripe plums, sour black cherries, and redcurrants, along with balsamic nuances and a faint vanilla-like note. It fills the mouth with its fleshiness and warmth, but the alcohol is nevertheless perfectly balanced by the acidity. Its delicate astringency is extraordinarily attractive.
In stock: 180 bottles.
Duo
2010
2010 was a problematic year and the resulting wine was less structured than the previous vintage, and with more marked acidity. The abundant rainfall and below-average temperatures that lasted until June delayed flowering, the development of the bunches and that of the vegetation of the vines. The dry conditions in September, on the other hand, yielded more than satisfactory ripening for the grapes on the vine, and ideal conditions for an excellent appassimento.
In stock: 0 bottles.
Univers
2009
2009 was an exceptional vintage, both from a climatic and qualitative point of view, giving the wine both concentration and elegance. The cold, snowy winter was followed by a mild, dry period thanks to the foehn winds, and then by a decidedly rainy, unstable one that created a lot of moisture in the soil, favoring a slightly early start to the vines’ vegetative cycle. An excellent summer then encouraged – thanks to the mild temperatures – the flowering and development of the bunches, while the rains in the first few days of September gave new vigor to the vines, ensuring excellent completion of the grapes’ ripening process.
Latest tasting (in April 2021): A great wine, in excellent shape and with perfect evolution. Its deep, intense ruby red color and total lack of garnet reflections say a great deal about the longevity of this wine. On the nose it offers faint hints of ripe fruit and intense tertiary aromas of tar and a slight smokiness, with attractive underlying notes of sage and rosemary. The taste is very warm, harmonious, juicy, mellow, and velvety; the wine displays an element of acidity that holds up its fruit and keeps it lively on the palate.
In stock: 15 bottles.
Autunno
2008
2008 was not a particularly memorable year: the wine is well-structured but less harmonious than usual. The acidity is lively and marked, but still well supported by alcohol and fruit. The cold, dry winter and a variable spring with below average temperatures caused a slowing down in the vegetative development of the vines, which was only recuperated in the summer. In the end, the grapes achieved good ripeness, but not without some difficulty.
Latest tasting (in April 2021): ): Its intense ruby red color displays faint garnet reflections at the rim. On the nose one notes a certain amount of evolution, with fruity, olive-like, mineral and ferrous hints. The maturity conveyed by the aromas, though, is not reflected in the taste, which is dry, juicy, very fruity and a little rough. A wine of extraordinary complexity, excellent for sipping and pondering over.
In stock: 30 bottles.
INCROCI
2007
2007 was an excellent year: the winter (the warmest on record) and the spring and summer – mild and generous, both in terms of sunshine and rainfall – produced a very well structured, fleshy wine, which shows at its best after a long period of maturation.
Latest tasting (in December 2017): It does not seem like a ten-year-old wine. Its impenetrable, deep red color still offers faintly purple highlights at the rim. On the nose, it simply explodes with all of its complexity; plums and sour cherries amaze you with their intensity, followed by tertiary aromas of coffee and cacao.
In stock: 2 bottles.
AWARDS
96
1° BEST ALBAROSSA OF ITALY | Albarone Albarossa DOC Piemonte 2015 | PI 96
Yearbook of the Best Italian Wines 2020 – Luca Maroni
91
3° BEST RED WINE | Albarone Albarossa DOC Piemonte 2013 | PI 96
Yearbook of the Best Italian Wines 2017 – Luca Maroni
GOLD
GOLD | Albarone Albarossa DOC Piemonte 2013
The Grand International Wine Awards 2017 – Mundus Vini
91
Albarone Albarossa DOC Piemonte 2013 | PI 91
Vinitaly International Wine Guide – 5StarWines 2017
DOUBLE GOLD MEDAL
DOUBLE GOLD MEDAL | Albarone Albarossa DOC Piemonte 2011
China Wine & Spirits awards 2015 – CWSA
GOLD MEDAL
GOLD MEDAL | Albarone Albarossa DOC Piemonte 2011
China Wine & Spirits awards 2015 – CWSA
96
3° BEST RED WINE OF ITALY | Albarone Albarossa DOC Piemonte 2010 | PI 96
Yearbook of the Best Italian Wines 2014 – Luca Maroni
Altitude: 250 mt above sea level.
The soil, rich in limestone marl, contains a small proportion of loam Westerly exposure.
The microclimate is affected by breezes from the sea that favor the health and ripening of the grapes. Good thermal excursions enable us to have fragrant, fine, elegant wines./span>
Training system: Guyot
Plant density: 5,500 vines per hectare
Harvest: 70% of the grapes at the beginning of September for appassimento; the remaining 30% in the first half of October
Yield per hectare: 30hl/Ha
Vinification
Winery
After harvesting, the grapes are destalked and, following a soft pressing, are put into stainless steel vinification tanks to be cryo-macerated. This process, which lasts around 30 hours, favors the maximum extraction of aromas, color and structure from the fruit. Subsequently, Albarone matures for a total of 30 months in 1000-liter French oak barrels and then, before release, for 18 months in bottle in our warehouse at a constant temperature of 12°C.
Features Albarossa
Color of the skins: Black
Category of wines: Indigenous wines
Year of registration: 1977
Regions in which authorized: Liguria, Piedmont
Preferred sites: Hilly zones with good exposition to sunlight
Period of ripening: Late ripening
Vigor: Highly vigorous
Productivity: High, regular yields
Find out about our next project with Albarossa
Duedidue is the name whose meaning encapsulates the union of two grape varieties, Albarossa and Cabernet Sauvignon, which form the basis for the production of one of the winery’s crus. These two cultivars complement each other, highlighting the characteristics of each of the varieties, just as the Bonfante siblings do. In fact, Duedidue represents – symbolically - Marco and Micaela who, though having totally different characters, complement each other perfectly and work together effectively in carrying on their family’s tradition as wine producers. The first vintage of this new wine will see the light in 2022 and we are already all looking forward eagerly to it.