SOCietà agricola antoniolo

THE WINES

Antoniolo Erbaluce di Caluso DOCG

This ultra-vibrant white dances and tingles. Lively wild herbs mix with candied orange and a sense of pure, breathy lightness. The wine is energetic, gliding along the palate with chamomile lift and a lovely light layer of apricot fruit that gently settles on the tongue. Great fresh wine for fans of alpine-inclined wines. Allocation-only, this expression of Erbaluce from the mighty Antoniolo is a wonderful counterpoint to their stately Nebbiolo wines.

Antoniolo Nebbiolo Rosato ‘Bricco Lorella’

Named by Rossana Antoniolo after her daughter, and current proprietor, Lorella. This wine is aromatically gorgeous with red-tinged nectarine and puffs of pale musk. There is great tension to the juicy-yet-delicate fruit weight. It rises like a gentle wave, adding weight and building to a medium, fleshy body before effortlessly washing to a tingling, acid-buzzy finish. Top flight pink made with fruit from Valferana and Borelle Gattinara Cru vineyards (the same as that for Juvenia)."

"So pretty, floral and pleasantly sweet, the Vino Rosato Bricco Lorella makes itself known with a bouquet of peach skins and pear complemented by hints of wet stone and flowery undergrowth. This soothes with a display of ripe fruits offset by hints of candied citrus, all carried across a wave of juicy acidity. Nothing seems out of place as the Bricco Lorella tapers off wonderfully refreshing but also reverberating with residual acids. This is a gorgeous expression of Nebbiolo Rosato from Gattinara." - Eric Guido, Vinous

Antoniolo Coste delle Sesia Nebbiolo DOC ‘Juvenia’

100% Nebbiolo from the cru vineyards of Borelle and Valferana. Spontaneous fermentation and maceration on the skins for 12-15 days in concrete vats – no temperature control. Maturation in stainless steel for 12 months and refined in bottle for at least 6 months. Occasionally passed in large oak cask for a month before bottling.. This is a delightful, high-toned wine with lifted bright fruits, anise flower, sleek tannin structure and cleansing acidity. Textbook un-oaked elegance. 

"The 2018 Nebbiolo Coste della Sesia Juvenia is fresh, aromatic and beautifully lifted, all of which make it a joy to taste today. Crushed red berry and floral accents abound in a translucent, super-expressive Nebbiolo that drinks beautifully right out of the gate. This is such a pretty red, and a highly affordable introduction to the wines of Alto Piemonte." - Antonio Galloni, Vinous

Antoniolo Gattinara Riserva DOCG

100% Nebbiolo from three of the Gattinara’s most important cru vineyards, Castelle, San Francesco and Osso San Grato. Spontaneous ferment and maceration for 18 days in concrete vats – no temperatute control. Maturation in 25-35HL Slavonian and French oak and refined in bottle for a further 12 months.

"Lorella Zoppis Antoniolo is an energetic producer of Gattinara. Her Riserva is released in a quantity of around 20,000 bottles. The grapes are fermented with their own natural yeasts in concrete, with a maceration of approximately 20 days and spontaneous malolactic fermentation. The wine ages in large 30hL oak casks for 36 months. There's a stunning complexity on the nose of savoury liquorice, smoky woodland, wild strawberry, violet and tar. The attack is relaxing and refined, with firm, dusty, velvety tannins and crisp acidity. It's austere and powerful enough to cellar but with the grace to drink now due to an amazing balance between the supple fruit and the structure. A very classic profile with graphite and earthy depth leading to a great finish." 96 points - Decanter

"The 2018 Gattinara Riserva is seriously impressive, especially considering it is Antoniolo's entry-level Gattinara. Deep, layered and dynamic in the glass, the 2018 has so much to offer. Macerated red cherry, menthol, licorice, spice, cedar and leather fill out the layers. This is all class—the hidden gem in this range.” 93 points - Antonio Galloni, Vinous.

“A flood of sour cherry, Bonox and game meat savouriness, clove, cocoa powder and dark chocolate, a slightly ferrous note through the wine. It drank best around day three, but patience isn’t normally the thing with such wines once open, it unfurls nicely, tightly wound at first and finds a more relaxed stance as air hits the glass. Very potent and dense feeling, barely lifted by alpine herb and cranberry drink-like acidity underlying. A wall of suede tannins from go to whoa. Impressive wine. Drink in decades too. (2015 Gattinara Riserva)” - Mike Bennie, The Wine Front

Antoniolo Gattinara Riserva DOCG ‘San Francesco’

100% Nebbiolo from a 3.5 hectare, single vineyard cru, ‘San Francesco’, planted in 1960 at 390 meters above sea level. Soils are of igneous and metamorphic rocks; granite, quartz and iron, along with mineral sands from old glacial deposits. Spontaneous ferment and maceration for 18 days in concrete vats – no temperatute control. Maturation begins in mostly used French oak tonneaux for 18 months followed by 18 months in 25-35HL Slavonian oak with further refinement in bottle for 12 months.

“The 2017 Gattinara Riserva San Francesco is seriously beautiful. Deep, dark and packed, the 2017 offers up a beguiling mix of cherries in liqueur, spice, rose petal, orange peel and licorice. Time in the glass brings out captivating inner perfume to play off the wine’s deep, imposing structure. In 2017, the San Francesco is wonderfully complex and beguiling from start to finish. Superb.” 96 points - Antonio Galloni, Vinous.

“The 2015 Gattinara Riserva San Francesco is superb. A wine of energy and pure power, the 2015 possesses magnificent depth that only grows over time. The flavors lean towards to the darker end of the spectrum, with layers of spice, orange zest, menthol and licorice woven into a core of black cherry/plum fruit. The 2015 is an intense wine, and yet it boasts quite a bit of detail as well. Time in the glass brings out its more refined qualities, while the long finish is a thing of beauty.” 95 points - Antonio Galloni, Vinous.