Barolo and Barbaresco: The King and Queen of Italian Wine

Kerin O Keefe

Univ of California Press, Oct 17, 2014 - Cooking - 346 pages

Following on the success of her books on Brunello di Montalcino, renowned author and wine critic Kerin OÕKeefe takes readers on a historic and in-depth journey to discover Barolo and Barbaresco, two of ItalyÕs most fascinating and storied wines. In this groundbreaking new book, OÕKeefe gives a comprehensive overview of the stunning side-by-side growing areas of these two world-class wines that are separated only by the city of Alba and profiles a number of the fiercely individualistic winemakers who create structured yet elegant and complex wines of remarkable depth from ItalyÕs most noble grape, Nebbiolo.

A masterful narrator of the aristocratic origins of winemaking in this region, OÕKeefe gives readers a clear picture of why Barolo is called both the King of Wines and the Wine of Kings. Profiles of key Barolo and Barbaresco villages include fascinating stories of the families, wine producers, and idiosyncratic personalities that have shaped the area and its wines and helped ignite the Quality Wine Revolution that eventually swept through all of Italy.

The book also considers practical factors impacting winemaking in this region, including climate change, destructive use of harsh chemicals in the vineyards versus the gentler treatments used for centuries, the various schools of thought regarding vinification and aging, and expansion and zoning of vineyard areas. Readers will also appreciate a helpful vintage guide to Barolo and Barbaresco and a glossary of useful Italian wine terms.

Contents

• Overview of the Langhe showing both Barolo and Barbaresco on either side of the city of Alba: 2
• PART: 7
• Village of BaroloNovello 68: 11
• VerdunoGrinzane CavourRoddiDiano dAlba 197: 14
• FIGURES: 18
• Castello di Barolo: 34
• Example of vineyard exposure in Barbaresco: 57
• PART: 65
• Historic botti at Marchesi di Barolo winery: 73
• Maria Teresa Mascarello: 79
• Giuseppe Rinaldi: 82
• Enzo Brezza in the Sarmassa vineyard: 86
• Luciano Sandrone: 90
• View of Castiglione Falletto: 99
• Giuseppe Laura and Alfio Cavallotto: 102
• Alex Sanchez of Brovia: 112
• Mauro Mascarello in Monprivato: 117
• Sergio Germano in the Cerretta vineyard: 132
• Franco Massolino: 138
• Vineyards after a snowfall in La Morra: 151
• Elio Altare: 159
• Roberto Conterno of Giacomo Conterno: 176
• Giacomo Conterno of Poderi Aldo Conterno: 180
• Elio Grasso: 183
• Claudio Fenocchio of Giacomo Fenocchio: 188
• Ferdinando Principiano: 193
• Fabio Alessandria of Burlotto: 201
• Angelo Gaja: 226
• Aldo Vacca of Produttori del Barbaresco: 233
• Giovanna Rizzolio and Italo Sobrino of Cascina delle Rose: 236
• Renato Vacca of Cantina del Pino: 245
• Pietro Berutti of La Spinona: 247
• Paolo and Valter Anfossi of De Forville: 249
• Bruno Giacosa: 264
• Enrico Dellapiana of Rizzi: 285
• Giuseppe and Pier Paolo Grasso of Pier: 294
• Wineries in Alba and outside of BaroloBarbaresco Villages: 301
• Pio Boffa of Pio Cesare: 303

About the author

Kerin OÕKeefe is the author of Brunello di Montalcino (UC Press, 2012) and of Franco Biondi Santi: The Gentleman of Brunello (Veronelli Editore, 2005). She is the Italian Editor for Wine Enthusiast magazine, and her numerous articles on Italian wine have been published in top industry publications, including The World of Fine Wine and Decanter.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Barolo and Barbaresco: The King and Queen of Italian Wine
• Author: Kerin O Keefe
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Univ of California Press, 2014
• ISBN: 0520273265, 9780520273269
• Length: 346 pages
• Subjects: Cooking / Beverages / Wine & Spirits