La Spinetta (Rivetti) Cà di Pian Barbera d'Asti Superiore with Spaghetti

La Spinetta (Rivetti) Cà di Pian Barbera d'Asti Superiore with Spaghetti

Following the sensational tasting of the Pin La Spinetta (Rivetti) last week, as featured in this blogpost, Rivetti Pin La Spinetta Castagnole Monferrato with Spaghetti, I went to Binny's, our beverage superstore to see if by chance there was any more available to replace the bottle we drank. Sadly, they don't have any or even see it in distribution. I acquired the bottles in our cellar back in 2010 so its not surprising it may no longer be available. The only La Spinetta (Rivetti) label they had in inventory was this one, so I picked up a bottle to try. 

I wrote about the broad Rivetti La Spinetta history and portfolio in that blogpost.

La Spinetta was founded by Giuseppe Rivetti, nicknamed ‘Pin’, and his wife, Lidia in the 1960's. Their children Carlo, Bruno, Giorgio, and Giovanna took over the winery reins in the 1970's, implementing the teachings of their parents, acting on their great respect for the territory, the indigenous vines and the Piedmontese land.

In 1977 the children, with the support of their parents, began the first production of their Moscatos, Bricco Quaglia and Biancospino. These would be some of the first single-cru Moscato to be produced in Italy.

With the success of the Moscato business, they expanded to also focus on red grapes starting with this Barbera Ca di Pian, their first red label in 1985. 

It is 100% Barbera sourced from 74 acres of vineyards in the towns of Castagnole delle Lanze (Piani), Costigliole d’Asti and Montegrosso d’Asti. The age of the vines ranges from six to twenty to forty years.

Today, the portfolio has expanded to over a dozen red labels from Piedmont and also Tuscany that range from a number of wonderful varietals that should be reserved for special occasions, and several, like this one, that provide affordable every day drinking with good QPR - quality/price ratio - typically priced in the $20 to $30 range.  

La Spinetta (Rivetti) Barbera d'Asti Superiore Cà di Pian DOCG 2020

Like our La Spinetta Rivetti earlier tasting, Linda again prepared spaghetti with tangy hearty bolognese sauce to pair with this wine. 

From Asti, Piedmont, Italy - this intensely flavored wine shows us why Giorgio Rivetti is considered a modern master of the Piedmont.

Even at this pricepoint, this label is classified DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita), the highest quality classification designation for Italian wines. The rules for DOCG are stricter than DOC, yields must be lower and the wines must be aged in barrels longer. Also, DOCG requires the wines be submitted for technical analysis and tasted for approval by a government committee before they can be sold as DOCG wines. 

Interesting too, DOCG wines even have a numbered, government seal across the neck of the bottle to help prevent counterfeiting (shown below right).

Also, even at this more modest pricepoint, this is packaged in a heavier more substantial bottle as well. 

Winemaker notes - Cà di Pian is a Barbera with an unmistakable character representing the distinctive terror of the Piedmont. There are intense aromas of blackberry and morello cherries. This wine is truly captivating, yet it remains fresh and extremely versatile.

Maceration and alcoholic fermentation in temperature-controlled vats for an average period of 14-15 days. Malolactic fermentation was done in used (2nd and 3rd passage) French oak barrels, followed by 12 months of aging. Finally, bottle-aged for approximately 3 months.

Today, average annual production is nearly 70.000 bottles.

A nice pizza or pasta wine for simple every day sipping. Bright ruby colored, medium bodied, primarily earthy, dark and tannic as with many barbera wines, but the fruit does come through, expressive rich dark berry fruits with accents of creosote, cassis, cherry liqueur and toasty oak with a moderate long rich finish. 

RM 88 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4192221

http://www.la-spinetta.com/

@LaSpinettaItaly

Rivetti La Spinetta Nebbiolo

Train Day Adventure culminates in lunch at Italian Village featuring wine selection Rivetti La Spinetta Nebbiolo

We took the grand-kids into the City of Chicago for a 'train day' adventure riding all forms of trains around the city to some landmark locations. Our train adventure included Metra into the city, boarding the Elevated CTA at historic Quincy Station, riding the Pink Line to switchback via the overhead bridge on the Green Line, riding around the loop, connecting to the Red Line at Roosevelt/McCormack Place, riding through Chinatown, and switching back in the middle of the Dan Ryan at landmark Sox Park, ending on the Red Line Subway at Monroe Street station, a short walk to legendary Italian Village restaurant, where we dined for lunch.

I've featured Italian Village often in these pages including their historic wine cellar. We visited the wine cellar and met with Wine Director Jared Gelband where he was busy updating the volumnous wine-list with recent acquisitions (shown pictured) - almost a full time job in of itself.

We discussed his planning for an upcoming wine dinner, and planning for a business dinner I am hosting there at the end of this month.

Like a kid in a candy store, I scoured the cellar for a wine selection to accompany today's lunch, for my upcoming business dinner, as well as to spot some legendary wines and favorite selections for future visits.

With such an extraordinary extensive selection, its not hard to find spectacular wines and special finds for any occasion. My short list of such wines for my ultimate wine tasting for the ultimate special occasions might be:

• Grange Hermitage 1990 - special birthyear wine
• Romani Conti St Vivant 1991 - another special birthyear wine
• Konigsgaard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon - one of my all time favorite, memorable wines
• Azienda Agricola Montevertine Le Pergole Torte Toscana IGT 1997 - a classic
• La Tenuta Ornellaia Masseto 2003 - another classic - featured in an earlier IV wine dinner

These wines are pictured below at the bottom of this post.

But back to reality and the task at hand, to select wine for today's lunch to accompany our entrees of my Veal Parmigiana, and Linda and Erin's Eggplant Parmigiana. I chose a La Spinetta Nebbiolo.

We dined in one of their private alcove tables offering a unique intimate dining experience. 

Rivetti La Spinetta Langhe Nebbiolo 2011.

The winemaker's notes for this wine ... "typical light red of Nebbiolo musky aromas of strawberry, tobacco and wild herbs sweet and spicy in the mouth, with good grip and firm acidity to the flavors of strawberry and mint, aromatic and elegant" ...

I found this dark garnet colored, medium bodied, black currant and black berry fruits accented by tones of tobacco, herbs and spice with hints of eucalyptus on a firm acidic gripping tannin finish.

RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1865224

http://www.la-spinetta.com/winespiedmont.html

Italian Village - https://italianvillage-chicago.com/

Rivetti Pin La Spinetta Castagnole Monferrato 2005

Rivetti Pin La Spinetta Castagnole Monferrato 2005

We don't have much Italian wine in our cellar, less than 1%. But when I was seeking a nice bottle to accompany our Angeli's Italian dinner carry out, I pulled this classic decade year old Italian red blend of which I hold a half dozen bottles. La Spinetta produce a line of premium Piedmont and Tuscan wines from traditional varietals in a new world style and flair.

This 'Pin' label is named after the nickname of Giuseppe Rivetti, the patriarch of the family and father of the current producer Giorgio, of the estate La Spinetta, which means 'top of the hill', in Castagnole Lanze in the northern Italian region of Tuscany. The family first purchased 70 hectares of Moscato and Barbera d'Asti vineyards in 1977 and have continued to expand operations through expansion and development since. 

Today, Giuseppe's children — Carlo, Bruno, Giorgio and Giovanna have since taken over the family business, with Giorgio leading, assisted by elder sister Giovanna who is in charge of vineyard production.

Rivetti produced their first red Barbera Cà di Pian in 1985. The first release of Pin occurred in 1989, a blend of 50 percent Nebbiolo, 25 percent Barbera and 25 percent Cabernet Sauvignon. which was revolutionary at that time.  

In 1985 they produced their first Barbaresco followed by Gallina in 1995 and their first Barolo Campè in 2000. In 2001, La Spinetta acquired 65 additional hectares of vineyards in Tuscany where today they produce three different 100% Sangiovese wines. 

The Rivetti brand has grown internationally and today is well known, identified by their distinctive labels featuring a burly rhinoceros, which the Rivetti siblings say signifies quality. 

Origins of the unique wildlife logo illustration come from an ancient woodcut by historic German artist, Albrecht Dürer, who prepared his drawings and woodcut from descriptions and sketches of a rhinoceros gifted to the king of Portugal from India. It was the first animal of its kind in Europe. The Rivettis lament that they fell in love with this ancient wood cut print and the legend behind it. Giorgio Rivetti expressed his great admiration of the celebrated drawing and woodcut. but has downplayed the connection between this animal and the brand. 

Also depicted on the bottles of La Spinetta’s first Barolo Campè vintage, is a pencil drawing of a lion by Dürer, since Barolo is commonly known as the king of Italian reds. The legend continues. 

Pin Castagnole, Neive, Barbaresco Monferrato Rosso DOC 2005

This is a blend of 65% Nebbiolo, and 35% Barbera d’Asti Superiore Bionzo. Barbera and Nebbiolo are the two marquee red wine grapes of northwest Italy. They are often blended together in Piedmont to create modern style wines for the international palate. Nebbiolo, the powerful majestic grape of Barolo and Barbaresco, is blended with Barbera to be more approachable and smoother and balanced, and drinkable at an earlier age. Barbera adds cherry flavors to Nebbiolo’s distinctive strawberry, and the high acidity of both ensure the wine is fresh and rarely flabby.

As good as this was with the pasta and peas with vodka cream sauce, it was even better the following evening with char-grilled Pittsburgh style strip steak, asparagus and baked potato. 

This was dark blackish garnet colored, medium to full bodied, and was remarkably smooth, well balanced and polished. Bouquet and flavors are full forward complex black raspberry, black berry fruits punctuated by tones of oak, cedar, hints of earthy cassis and tar turning to silky smooth polished tannins with an elegant persistent finish.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=395355

http://www.la-spinetta.com/