Rizzi

Enrico Dellapiana Treiso, Langhe Piedmont, Italy The Rizzi winery was set up in 1974 by Ernesto Dellapiana on his family’s 19th century estate. Over the years, Ernesto and now his son, Enrico, have dedicated to extending and improving the company and its products, both in quantity and quality. At 35 hectares, it is one of the largest, most interesting and important estates in the Barbaresco growing area. The vineyards of the estate are within four great zones of Barbaresco; the altitudes of these vineyards are 220 - 370 meters above sea level. The family’s estate vines are within the crus, “Rizzi,” (within which one finds their prized vineyard, “Boito”), “Pajorè,” and “Nervo.” The family is a specialist in Nebbiolo, creating vibrant, floral and feminine expressions of this noble grape. Soils of the barbaresco region are roughly the same as its neighbor, Barolo to the southwest. The Dellapianas work very traditionally, maturing their wines in large Slavonian oak botti three years and resting the wine in cement an additional year before bottling. One must always keep in mind the painstaking work that is waiting for wine to mature. Five years after a harvest is when these wines are released; painstaking waiting in the cellar is the key to a producer’s work in Piedmont.