Marchesi Alfieri

Click for Marchesi Alfieri website www.MarchesiAlfieri.it

”ALFIERA – A WINE OF BREATHTAKING FINESSE” – GAMBERO ROSSO

The Marquess Alfieri family, Lords of San Martino, is part of the history of Italy’s Piemonte Region. The vineyards surrounding their 17th Century Baroque Castle have remained in the family since 1337 and are renowned for top quality Barbera.

Today, the winery is managed by the ”Three Princesses of Barbera” the San Martino di San Germano sisters, Emanuela, Giovanna and Antonella, who brought Mario Olivero’s award-winning skills from the renowned Col d’Orcia at Montalcino in 1999.

ALFIERA Barbera d’Asti 2004/2005 Superiore – The 2005 achieves Tre Biccheri again in Gambero Rosso for the fourth time in the last decade. While the 2004 has the highest rating of all 2004 Barbera d’Asti Superiore in VINUM – 17pts. The 2003 Vintage won Tre Stelli (91-100pts) Veronelli ‘ONE OF THE VERY TOP WINES OF THE APPELLATION.“ The Wine Advocate ”The Alfiera is one of the top wines in the appellation. Dark ruby, very sweet and tarry with jammy berry fruit & mocha notes, it is sizeable in flavor, warm, supple, very ripe & with excellent oak spices which add complexity. The most sought after Barbera, produced in very small quantities from select old vines of 50+ years, aged 12 months in new French oak and 12 months in bottle. It takes one vine to produce one bottle. Only 100 cases for entire USA.

“Winemaker Mario Olivero aims high and the quality of the Alfiera Superiore shows it with dense color and roundness that flows from fruits to licorice and soft tones.” Tre Bicchieri, 2002-8 Gambero Rosso Editore, “The Alfiera, the wine at the apex of the Marchesi Alfieri, confirming the good results of the last years: it presents a beautiful ruby character and an aroma expressing great finesse, with flavor notes of licorice, mushrooms and vanilla. On the palate it is soft, fresh and yielding, with well-integrated dense tannins and a beautiful acid spine that assures length and agreeability.”

LA TOTA 05/06 Barbera d’Asti
From the beautifully combed hills of the La Tota vineyard. . . .The 2005/06 releases show the continued heights that the Barbera grape can reach with its massive, well-balanced complexity that challenges many of the best Superiores. A recent vintage was rated among the top 3 of 40 Barberas in Germany’s VINUM Wine Magazine with Alfiera Superiore taking 1st Place. “The beautifully crafted La Tota immediately won us over with its polished charm. Deep-hued, it yields rich scents of cocoa, ginger and earth over a fruit base. Lingering warmth on the palate leads to a finish that explodes in delicious, cherry-dominated fruit.” Due Bicchieri, – Gambero Rosso 2005. “Look for the super-value Barbera La Tota.” Decanter Magazine. Ten months in oak, six in the bottle before release. Intense ruby color, spicy fruit aroma, full and balanced flavors

SOSTEGNO Rosso Dei Monferrato 2006/2006
Sostegno “sustains” a renowned family name of the Piedmont’s Marquis Alfieri, evoking the long continuity of the vineyards surrounding the baroque Castle of San Martino Alfieri, near Asti, which have been traced back as far as 1337. Rich fruit, full mouth feel with soft tannins, and a memorable finish derive from blending 30% Pinot Nero with 70% Barbera which are vinified separately since each varietal reaches maturation at a different time.

SAN GERMANO Pinot Nero 2005/06
A profound 100% Pinot Noir with dense fruit concentration and long aging potential. It’s unique character is derived from a blend of young and old pre-phyloxera vines of more than 170 years. Limited to 350 cases, it is aged in new French Oak barrels for 15 months followed by 12 months in the bottle. Like the Alfiera — It takes one vine to produce one bottle. The remaining four rows of these Old Vines were planted in 1835 by Camillo Cavour, the renowned statesman and Alfieri relative, who was assisted by French oenologist Oudart in bringing the first Pinot Noir from Burgundy to the Piedmont.

SANSOERO GRIGNOLINO 2006/07
Named for the Piedmont hillside where these grapes are grown, this rare Grignolino varietal, which is indigenous to Asti, has a rich and fresh taste of strawberries and cherries with an Alpine aroma of herbs and flowers. Well-structured with a long finish, this medium-bodied varietal achieves remarkable fruit extraction, eliminating any bitterness that can come from Grignolino pips and softening tannins through a cold maceration process requiring only a very short fermentation of three days. A perfect alternative to Pinot Noir with salmon, veal, poultry and pastas any place you want something a little gutsier than a white wine. “We also liked the Sansoero 2004 for its deep aromas of ripe fruit, notably blackberry and cherry, and its fresh, tannic palate.” Gambero Rosso 2006.

Across from the castle, the Orangery hosts visitors, while wine ages in casks in vaulted cellars below.
*****
”Barbera d’Asti is the new darling. Everyone I spoke to in Piedmont is now freely acknowledging that, in the next decade, the best Piedmontese Barberas will come from this still largely unknown area just north of the famous Barolo/Barbaresco zone. The reason? In Barolo and Barbaresco they (rightly) devote their best exposures to the Nebbiolo grape. But in the Asti area, their best sites go to Barbera.” – Matt Kramer,The Wine Spectator