During the 2023 edition of Vinitaly, I had the opportunity to visit Marziano Abbona‘s stand, a family company based in Dogliani, which has been producing significant wines in the Langhe for three generations.
Although the company produces Barolo and Barbaresco of excellent quality, my attention was focused on the Dolcetto grape variety with two samples of Dogliani D.O.C.G. and on Barbera d’Alba D.O.C.
Most of the company’s vineyards are in Dogliani, between the hamlet of Santa Lucia and San Luigi, at an altitude between 400 and 480 metres above sea level on clay soils; Dolcetto is grown here, from which Papà Celso and San Luigi Dogliani D.O.C.G. are produced. The company has other vineyards on the hills of Monforte d’Alba, 5 km north of Dogliani; in the Rinaldi hamlet; Barbera d’Alba Rinaldi is grown there on calcareous marl soils.
Here is a summary of the characteristics of the grapes used for making the wines tasted:
Dolcetto: this is a black grape variety that can be grown on cooler sites. Fermentation typically takes place at mid-range temperatures to retain the variety’s fresh primary fruit characteristics. Short maceration and soft extraction methods are used to avoid extracting the grape variety’s natural high tannin levels. Ageing typically takes place in stainless steel tanks or concrete vats to preserve the primary fruit.
Barbera: this is a late-ripening black grape variety which is a very vigorous and disease-resistant variety that can be grown in different areas with different aspects; it can produce very high yields and is generally high in acidity and relatively low in tannin.
San Luigi – Dogliani D.O.C.G – 2022
Dolcetto 100%
The grapes are grown in the San Luigi vineyards in the municipality of Dogliani, from plants of 38 years old on average. Harvesting is carried out by hand and followed by destemming and crushing. Fermentation on the skins takes place with wild yeast in temperature controlled stainless vats at 25-28°C for 18 days. Racking and cold stabilisation are used for wine clarification. Maturation takes place in stainless vats until bottling. The wine spends 2 months in the bottle before being released.
- Look: deep ruby.
- Smell: medium aroma intensity of violet, rose, red cherry, black cherry, red plum, redcurrant.
- Taste: dry, medium (+) acidity, medium alcohol, medium body, medium flavour intensity, medium finish.
- Pairing: risotto with chanterelles risotto.
Papà Celso – Dogliani D.O.C.G. – 2021
Dolcetto 100%
The company’s iconic wine is dedicated to the memory of Celso Abbona, Marziano’s father, who planted one by one the cuttings of the Doriolo vineyard, which is in the municipality of Dogliani, from where the grapes are sourced. The plants are of an average age of 55 years, with very low yields of around 49 hl/ha. Harvesting is carried out by hand and followed by destemming and crushing. Fermentation on the skins takes place with wild yeast in temperature controlled stainless vats at 30-31°C for 22 days. Racking and cold stabilisation are used for wine clarification. Maturation takes place in 70 hl egg-shaped cement and clay tanks until bottling. The wine spends 3 months in the bottle before being released. The wine is certified organic. The sample tasted was in a Magnum bottle.
- Look: deep ruby.
- Smell: medium (+) aroma intensity of violet, rose, red cherry, black cherry, red plum, blackcurrant, blackberry, liquorice with minty hints.
- Taste: dry, medium (+) acidity, high alcohol, medium (+) body, medium (+) flavour intensity, medium (+) finish.
- Pairing: braised pork loins with prunes.
Rinaldi – Barbera D’Alba D.O.C. – 2020
Barbera 100%
The grapes come from the Monforte d’Alba vineyards in the Rinaldi hamlet, from vines of 48 years old on average, with yields of approximately 56 hl/ha. Harvesting is carried out by hand and followed by destemming and crushing. Fermentation on the skins takes place with wild yeast in temperature controlled stainless vats at pick temperatures of 30-31°C for 19 days. Racking in oak casks and cold stabilisation are used for wine clarification. Maturation takes place in wood vessels for a few months, then the wine is blended in stainless steel tanks and bottled. The wine matures for approximately 3 months in the bottle before being released.
- Look: deep ruby with purple reflections.
- Smell: medium (+) aroma intensity of black cherry, black plum, redcurrant, and black pepper.
- Taste: dry, high acidity, high alcohol, medium body, medium (+) flavour intensity, medium (+) finish.
- Pairing: turkey nuggets with peppers and radicchio.
Produttore: Marziano Abbona