Ascheri Barolo Sorano 2007 750ml

Winery: Ascheri

Varietal: Nebbiolo

The name 'Nebbiolo' means 'fog' in Italian, and there is some debate as to the origin of this unusual name. However, many people claim it has something to do with the milky white dust which covers these dark, round grapes as they begin to reach maturity. The Nebbiolo grapes are most renowned for their inclusion in the finest wines of Italy, where they are allowed to age and mellow their strong tannins, producing wonderfully complex wines packed with dense, interesting flavors Most commonly, Nebbiolo wines hold beautiful tones of truffle, violet and prunes, and are highly aromatic and mellow on the palate. Their popularity and fame has helped them become established in several New World countries, where they continue to seduce and fascinate wine drinkers looking for an elegant, sophisticated wine which packs in plenty of wonderful flavors

Country: Italy

For several decades in the mid to late twentieth century, Italy's reputation for quality wines took a fairly serious blow. This was brought about partly due to lack of regulation in certain regions, and too much regulation in others. This led to several wineries in the beautiful and highly fertile region of Tuscany making the bold move to work outside of the law, which they saw as responsible for the drop in quality in Tuscan wines. They believed that they had the expertise and the generations of experience necessary with which to make truly excellent, world class wines, and set about doing just that. These 'Super Tuscans', as they came to be known, quickly inspired the rest of Italy to improve their produce, and now, Italian wine producers in the twenty-first century are widely recognised to be amongst the best in the world. Regulation and law began to change, and wine drinkers across the globe woke up to the outstanding wines coming out of Italy, which are continuing to improve and impress to this day.

Appellation: Barolo

The small appellation of Barolo in Italy's mountainous Piedmont region has become shorthand for almost all that is great about modern Italian red wines. Traditional methods, practiced for centuries in these foggy hills, meet modern production techniques, allowing the wineries of Barolo to produce large amounts of their famous and utterly delicious red wines to display to the world. The region itself benefits enormously from the cool, misty climate the hillsides of this area enjoy, and the mineral rich soils - which are a product of millions of years of tectonic activity - feed the Nebbiolo grapevines of the region, producing beautiful, rich flavors and complex aromas. Today, as in centuries past, Barolo wines are the epitome of Italian quality produce and dedication to excellence.