Vietti Derthona Timorasso 2018
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Robert
Parker -
Jeb
Dunnuck - Decanter
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Winemaker Notes
Hailing from northern Piedmont, Timorasso has long been thought an interesting native varietal with exceptional aging and evolutionary potential. After several years of experimentation and collaboration with local winemakers in the Derthona area of Colli Tortonesi, Luca and Elena Currado are proud to release their first vintage of Derthona Timorasso with the 2018 vintage.
Clear, intense yellow color with green hues. Pear and peach fruit scents. Aromas, of acacia and hawthorn flowers with typical honey notes. In some cases, after 2/3 years mineral notes are more intense and show hydrocarbons. On the palate it is dry, warm, soft and very well balanced, without edges. It has a long lingering finish with a good acidity.
Food pairings: raw meat, fresh cold-cuts, warm and cold appetizers, first courses with strong flavors and meat dishes. After a few years in the bottle, this wine is perfect with seasoned cheese.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This is an exciting new addition to the Vietti portfolio. The 2018 Colli Tortonesi Timorasso Derthona is a compact, medium-bodied wine that offers a large span of neutral aromas ranging from melon and quince to Golden Delicious apple. What sets the wine apart is its silky texture and creamy fruit weight. I happily drank my sample with some take-out spring rolls in spicy sauce. We will surely see more prominent winemakers in Lange who decide to dabble in Timorasso in the upcoming years. This native grape shows promising aging potential and makes for an excellent white wine addition in a portfolio of age-worthy reds.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Another terrific white, the 2018 Colli Tortonesi Timorasso Derthona is based on Timorasso and spent 10 months on lees in a mix of ceramic, steel, and wooden tanks. More honeyed stone fruits, citrus, and dried pineapple notes emerge from the glass, and it has a richer, toasty slant as well. Medium-bodied, textured, and concentrated, it too offers plenty of richness while staying light on its feet and balanced.
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Decanter
Vietti is off to a good start with the estate's first vintage of Timorasso, sourced from vineyards around Monleale. Ageing on the lees for 10 months with regular batonnage lends a subtle earthiness and creamy texture. Hints of quince, chamomile and almond blossom intensify as the wine sits in the glass. The richness is rather reined in and the palate demonstrates pear and wet stone on a lively, steely backbone.
Other Vintages
2021-
Wine
Enthusiast -
James
Suckling -
Jeb
Dunnuck
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Robert
Parker -
Jeb
Dunnuck -
Wine
Spectator
Located in the heart of the Langhe hills, at the top of the village of Castiglione Falletto, the Vietti wine cellar was founded in the late 1800's by Carlo Vietti. The estate has gradually grown over the course of time, and today the vineyards include some of the most highly prized terroirs within the Barolo and Barbaresco winegrowing areaS.
Although they have been making wine for four generations, the turning point came in the 1960's when Luciana Vietti married winemaker and art connoisseur Alfredo Currado, whose intuitions - from the production of one of the first Barolo crus (Rocche di Castiglione - 1961), through the single-varietal vinification of Arneis (1967) to the invention of Artist Labels (1974) - made him both symbol and architect of some of the most significant revolutions of the time.
Alfredo’s intellectual, professional, and prospective legacy was taken up by Luca Currado Vietti (Luciana and Alfredo’s son) and his wife Elena, who contributed greatly to the success of the Vietti brand before their departure in 2023. In 2016 the historic winery was acquired by Krause family. Over the last seven year, they have added a number of prized crus to the estate’s holdings. In 2022 the winery was named Winery of the Year by Antonio Galloni of Vinous.
Vietti is universally recognized today as being one of the very finest Italian wine labels - by continuing along the path of the pursuit of quality, considered experimentation and working for expansion and consolidation internationally.
There are hundreds of white grape varieties grown throughout the world. Some are indigenous specialties capable of producing excellent single varietal wines. Each has its own distinct viticultural characteristics, as well as aroma and flavor profiles.
Set upon a backdrop of the visually stunning Alps, the enchanting and rolling hills of Piedmont are the source of some of the country’s longest-lived and most sought-after red wines. Vineyards cover a great majority of the land area—especially in Barolo—with the most prized sites at the top hilltops or on south-facing slopes where sunlight exposure is maximized. Piedmont has a continental climate with hot, humid summers leading to cold winters and precipitation year-round. The reliable autumnal fog provides a cooling effect, especially beneficial for Nebbiolo, Piedmont’s most prestigious variety.
In fact, Nebbiolo is named exactly for the arrival of this pre-harvest fog (called “nebbia” in Italian), which prolongs cluster hang time and allows full phenolic balance and ripeness. Harvest of Nebbiolo is last among Piedmont's wine varieties, occurring sometime in October. This grape is responsible for the exalted Piedmont wines of Barbaresco and Barolo, known for their ageability, firm tannins and hallmark aromas of tar and roses. Nebbiolo wines, despite their pale hue, pack a pleasing punch of flavor and structure; the best examples can require about a decade’s wait before they become approachable. Barbaresco tends to be more elegant in style while Barolo is more powerful. Across the Tanaro River, the Roero region, and farther north, the regions of Gattinara and Ghemme, also produce excellent quality Nebbiolo.
Easy-going Barbera is the most planted grape in Piedmont, beloved for its trademark high acidity, low tannin and juicy red fruit. Dolcetto, Piedmont’s other important red grape, is usually ready within a couple of years of release.
White wines, while less ubiquitous here, should not be missed. Key Piedmont wine varieties include Arneis, Cortese, Timorasso, Erbaluce and the sweet, charming Muscat, responsible for the brilliantly recognizable, Moscato d'Asti.