95 Wine Advocate - A sculpted red, with hints of tea rose, dried thyme and spices accenting a core of baked raspberry and blackberry fruit, espresso, licorice and minerally iron and smoke. Featuring firm, lightly chewy tannins, this fresh and tightly meshed version opens nicely in the glass—sip slowly or decant ahead of time.
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Nino Negri’s winery has been in Chiuro, in the heart of the Valtellina, an area born millions of years ago from the collision of the African and European plates. A true symbol of mountain viticulture, with grapes harvested entirely by hand along the thousand-year-old dry-stone walls. Since 1897 entire generations have shouldered the experience and time-honored knowledge of mountain winemaking, in Italy called “Viticultura Eroica”, “Extreme Viticulture”. And yet, during these 100 years Nino Negri also changed, looking for innovation in their heritage, with one aim in mind: to take Valtellina’s wines as far as possible into the future. Five sub-zones compose the Region, each distinguished by their soil, landscape and micro-climate, leaving an indelible mark on Nino Negri wines.
The winery has its home in the 15th-century Castello Quadrio di Chiuro, and after almost 40 years under iconic winemaker Casimiro Maule, is today run by Danilo Drocco, a native of Alba (Cuneo) and a true Nebbiolo purist, who has led the winery to new heights in quality and international recognition is a 100% Nebbiolo wine from Lombardy, Italy, known for its elegance and complexity. It undergoes a 12-month aging process, with 50% of the wine aged in second-passage barriques and the other 50% in 30 to 50 hectolitre barrels. Key characteristics include a bright garnet hue, notes of blackberry, licorice, and spicy bay leaf, and a dry, flavorful palate with elegant velvety tannins - Winemaker Notes
