Nervi-Conterno Gattinara 'Valferana' 2018

The 2018 Gattinara Valferana, is explosive right out of the glass. Supporting veins of tannin carry the core of red fruit, cinnamon, rose petal, blood orange, mint and white pepper. The Valferana is complex and wonderfully deep from start to finish. Valferana is the cooler of the two single vineyard Gattinara that are bottled separately here. The 2018 is a special wine. 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous March 22

There are 20 cru vineyards in the Gattinara DOCG appellation, with Valferana, meaning ‘Iron Valley’, sitting near the geographical centre of the commune at a height of 320 to 370 metres. Although it sits a little lower than Molsino, Valferana doesn’t get as much sunlight or warmth, facing predominantly west, and it is one of the steepest crus. Most vintages, the wine has a tight, focused frame. ‘Valferana’ is the more austere of the two crus, at least initially, with a tightly wound core gifted by Gattinara’ s porphyry-gravel soil; the wine is disciplined with myriad mineral nuances. 18 is more giving up front with some darker fruits showing through the mineral nuanced austerity. We always get some blood orange here and even stone fruit like peach, along with Nebbiolo’s already intoxicating spice punctuated and crunchy red fruits that with ‘Valferana’ can sit in the background until their prettiness is ready to show.