Nervi Conterno, Gattinara, Valferana 2016

The 2016 Gattinara Vigna Valferana is every bit as impressive from bottle as it was from cask. Rich and resonant, the 2016 is so supremely beautiful as it opens up in the glass. It is a wine of real breadth and textural expansiveness. Rose petal, mint, sweet dried cherry, tar, anise and orange peel are some of the nuances that emerge, but the Valferana is a wine to admire for its total sense of balance. In a word: Lights out. Make that two words.

The 2016 Gattinara Vigna Valferana comes from a site whose name comes from the Italian for "valley of iron," or "Valle di Ferro." The vineyards are a bit lower in elevation (compared to Molsino) in an area that sees a little more rain and a few degrees lower in average annual temperatures. The fruit is harvested later as a result, and that extra hang time is especially appreciated by the Nebbiolo grape that tends to grow in complexity and depth in the longer seasons (like 2016). This wine shows polished and tight tannin structure with a pretty playlist of wild berries, forest floor, tarry smoke, pressed violet and rusty nail aromas that are so becoming to this grape and to the exciting wines of the up-and-coming Gattinara appellation.