We are on our way to Chianti via Santa Margherita. Here are some photos. We hope you enjoy them.

I always Leica…  Barolo wine tasting at G. D. Vajra Winery.

On Sunday we had a great tour and tasting, by Elanora who did an excellent job of showing us the winery, answering our questions, telling us the history of the family/winery, and conducting a tasting.  The winery is a medium-sized winery producing very good wines.  It was first established in 1972 using vineyards that had been in the family since the 1920’s.  It is currently run by the Mom, Dad, and three adult children.  One of the sons works at the winery and the other two spend much of their time traveling promoting and selling the wines.  G.D.V.  Wines are elegant with delicate perfumes and purity of flavor that make them stand out.  We were fortunate enough to meet one of these three adults, Francesca Vaira.  She spent time with us in the tasting room and promised to see us one year at The Great Wines of Italy in San Francisco!  She was an absolute delight, outgoing, friendly, and fun to be around.  The winery itself was designed around pieces of art designed by a Monk (Padre Constantino Ruggeri) that passed away several years ago.  He designed several stained glass windows, furniture, and other pieces of art seen throughout the winery.

In all of our visits, I have not attempted to professional critique or rate the wines.  I leave that up to the experts such James Suckling, Robert Parker, Antonio Galloni, Kerin O’Keefe, etc.  I’ve attempted to describe the visit and tasting experience in hopes that our photographs add to the story.  If you plan on visiting wineries in the Langhe, you must request visits and tastings weeks or months in advance.  Most of the wineries are small and run by family members, who are often the ones conducting the tours. A few of the wineries conduct no visits or tasting at all, and some only allow tours and tastings by the wine industry.

I always Leica… visiting Barolo wineries. The Marchesi di Barolo winery is very historic, the name Barolo Wine likely originated there over 200 years ago. They are one of the largest producers in the Langhe, so their facility is sizable. The tour of the cellars was good, but not extremely informative. The gift shop was very impressive, really designer quality. The tasting was adequate, nothing special, but their wines are quite good. It is worth a visit as a contrast to the many smaller producers. We enjoyed our visit.

I always Leica…

Landscape photography with my Leica M 10.

I Always Leica… staying at great hotels.

Our stay at Castello di Sinio was amazing, from the moment we arrived and were greeted by employees with umbrellas and champagne, to the introductions, the breakfasts and dinner, to the moment we departed with gift bags under our arms. Everything was first class. Denise Pardini is responsible for the renovation of the old castle into an exquisite resort. She paid attention to every detail. She was warm, gracious and filled with knowledge of the wineries and restaurants of the area. The food at breakfast and dinner was incredible. Her reputation throughout the Langhe is impeccable — people either know her or hope to meet her. Denise has received The Hotel Manager of the Year Award, World Wide, Andrew Harper and many other awards. When visiting the Piemonte area, consider staying at the Castillo or at least consult her website which has a wealth of information.                              Hotelcastellodisinio.com

PALAZZO FINATI

We stayed two nights in the Castello and two nights at Palazzo Finati in Alba. Palazzo Finati is a wonderful small hotel adjacent to the pedestrian area (TLZ). It allows quick access to the wineries by car, and great access to restaurants, wine bars and shopping on foot. The staff was great, the rooms were very comfortable and quiet. The breakfast was excellent. The hotel enjoys a very excellent reputation in the Langhe and it assisted in arranging some of our winery visits. It is a great place to stay when visiting Barolo wineries, or when just visiting Alba.

palazzofinati.it

I Always Leica… Poderi Aldo Conterno.

Amy and I had the great privilege and honor of meeting Giacomo Conterno, one of three brothers, Franco, Stefano and Giacomo who run the winery today. We were blown away when we were buzzed through the gates and met by Giacomo. He welcomed us into a large beautiful room within the main building. The three of us sat around a large farm table and visited. We got to know each other before he began to share great wines with us. The wines culminated in the tasting a truly spectacular 2009 Gran Bussia Reserva. He is a gentleman, a scholar and a philosopher. The Conterno family philosophy is to make the very best wine each year that can be made from each particular vineyard. Their goal is to share the love of their wine with each person who opens one of their bottles. As part of that philosophy they cut production of over 200,000 bottles/year down to 80,000. Following the tasting we went below ground to see the cellar. It holds the wines but is also rich in history. It has a display of old tools used by generations of his family before him, antique bottles and barrels and a tribute to his late father Aldo. Amy and I will always treasure the two and a half hours spent with him.

I Always Leica… Barolo wine tasting.

Chiara is recognized as one of the first female wine makers in the Barolo region. The Boschis family acquired the wine estate in 1981, with Chiara taking the reigns in 1990. She won a prestigious award for her first vintage and has since received numerous other awards. She comes from eight generations of wine makers. She is intelligent, creative, passionate, and has made a name for herself in the industry.

Nicolette was our tour guide. She was articulate and did a great job of representing the winery. It was a really nice tour and we enjoyed the tastings.

I Always Leica… Barolo wine tasting.

Amy and I just completed our first day of this Italian wine journey. We are in the Piemonte (Langhe) region of Italy. This region is known for Barolo and Barbaresco wines. They are the King of Italian wines, and are made from the Nebbliolo grape. They are intense, beautiful wines with a high tannin content and, therefore, may be aged for many years. We attended an incredible wine tasting at Elio Altare winery. Our hostess was Silvia Altare, daughter of Elio, who was one of the original “Barolo Boys.” In 1976 the wines from the Langhe region were being sold as bulk wine. Elio and some friends set out on a trip to Burgundy to determine why their wines were selling for one dollar a bottle, while the Burgundy wines were selling for twenty times that. They were poor and slept in their car. When they arrived in Burgundy, the owner of the chateau they stopped at did not have much time to spend with them. He was busy loading his Porsche for a drive to Nice, so he could go sailing for the weekend. Elio and his friends knew things had to change in Barolo. They returned to Italy and started a revolution. The revolution is well documented in the movie Barolo Boys. Both Elio and Silvia are featured in that movie. Today, Silvia runs most of the family winery. She is a fantastic hostess, full of knowledge, energy, determination, and is very entertaining. She speaks excellent English, learned from living for a time in Ojai, California. We greatly enjoyed tasting seven of their excellent wines. The group this afternoon was very diverse and interesting, with twelve of us sitting around a large square table. Attendees were a couple from Vermont, a wine maker from Virginia, a man who had driven his Aston Martin from Norway, a family from Jakarta, and a couple from Germany. We thoroughly enjoyed the tasting and strongly advise any visitors to Langhe to request a tour and tasting at Elio Altare Winery. You should email your request at least several weeks in advance.