Region: Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Piedmont, Italy

Varietal:100% Nebbiolo

Producer: The De Forville story is one of the more quietly remarkable in all of Piedmont. The family emigrated from Belgium to the village of Barbaresco in 1860, immediately planting their flag in Nebbiolo at a time when the grape's potential was still being debated. Founder Gioacchino De Forville was among a group of producers who followed the teachings of Domizio Cavazza, professor at the Royal Oenological School of Alba, in defending and promoting the quality of the wine that would eventually become Barbaresco DOCG. Five generations later, brothers Valter and Paolo Anfosso run the estate with the same stubborn traditionalism that has defined the family from the start — Paolo famously quipping that he doesn't want to run a marketing company, just make great Nebbiolo.

Vineyard & Winemaking: The Langhe Nebbiolo is the estate's entry point into its Barbaresco world, produced from younger vines sourced from within the Barbaresco zone, sitting at the border of the Barolo and Barbaresco districts on the region's characteristic clayey marl soils — ancient marine deposits rich in minerals that give Piedmontese Nebbiolo its structural backbone and aromatic complexity. Fruit is hand-harvested, fermented in stainless steel with temperature control for 10 to 14 days, then aged for one year in large neutral oak casks before bottling. It's the same traditional philosophy applied to the Barbaresco — long maceration, big wood, no shortcuts — just compressed into a more accessible frame.

Tasting Notes: The 2024 is very young, but in the De Forville style expect the Langhe Nebbiolo's signature profile: a ruby red color with garnet edges, and a nose of violet, dried rose, and cherry with hints of spice and earthy mineral depth. On the palate it's dry and structured with Nebbiolo's characteristic firm tannins and bright acidity keeping everything lifted and focused, with a slightly bitter, savoury finish that's the grape's calling card. This is Barbaresco's little sibling — trained in the same school, drinking sooner, asking less.