Stockist/Retailer: Dudley Jones Fine Wine

(2014) I know to my cost that this 14.5% abv Nebbiolo from Piedmont is dangerously drinkable! I had intended to have one glass of this after a week's holiday in Spain drinking mostly rather heavier Rioja and Ribera del Duero reds, and the exuberant crunch and vitality of this youthful Nebbiolo was utterly disarming well into a third! A beautifully cherry-ripe, spicy nose leads on to a palate that is vinous and edged with bittersweet liquorice and clove to abundant black fruit. It's full but not at all heavy, and has good balance.

(2014) Along with Barolo, Barbaresco is the other 'great' Nebbiolo wine of Piedmont. This example is a blend from several vineyard plots in the Rizzi estate, which at 90 acres is one of the largest in Barbaresco. Fermented in stainless steel, it spends 12-15 months in 500-litre oak barrels before a final 12 months in concrete and steel tanks before bottling. There's a nicely pale, garnet colour, and quite lifted aromatics suggesting flowers, fresh green seeds and spices, and an elegant cherry fruit. It's not a lightweight wine with 14% alcohol, but the palate does not betray that too much. There is a little vanilla note, also a certain gravelly solidity, and whilst it may not be the most softly seductive of Nebbiolos, it has lovely character and balance.