Antoniolo. Gattinara Riserva 'Osso San Grato'

Gattinara Riserva DOCG
Grape: Nebbiolo

2017
A remarkable wine that took the joy of a hot vintage and refused the pain: powerful black cherry, bramble and damson fruit, with spice and wild rose, blood and iron on the finish, fine mature tannins and freshening acidity.  14%

2016
Remarkable restraint and clarity, the high mineral content in the soils delivers a fabulous freshness through what is an extraordinarily deep and powerful wine.  Monumental.  14%

Link to Antoniolo producer page

Osso San Grato is one of the more extreme vineyards in Gattinara, a south-facing steep gradient falling from 450-300m.  The terraces follow the contours across the slope (giropoggio) and were created by Alberto and Lorella’s grandfather.  The thin soils are a mix of igneous rock and scarce organic matter.  In total, the vineyard is 6ha, planted entirely with Nebbiolo in the 60’s.  This is regarded as one of the great crus of Gattinara.

A difficult vineyard to access, the work must be completed manually.  The selected bunches are handled as little as possible: de-stemmed, pressed before a spontaneous* fermentation in concrete tanks, where the wine remains until malolactic* conversion finishes in the following spring.  The wine was aged for 3 years in 35hl botti*, new oak is never used for Osso San Grato wines.

Archive
2014 is not labeled as a riserva, it is, and it is a very pretty vintage indeed: fine floral fruit, beautifully fresh and supple with the finest dusting of tannin. A genuine collectors piece, it was a tiny vintage and this is the only single vineyard wine that Antoniolo released in 2014, it is an extremely good wine, silky and delicate.
Production:  2500 bottles (one botti)