1974 Elvio Cogno Dolcetto dai vigneti di Panerole in Novello d'Alba La Morra

Elvio Cogno is a 33-acre estate in the Langhe. The Cogno family history in the area dates back several centuries during which the Cognos always cultivated grapevines. By the mid-20 century the family was also running a beloved restaurant in La Morra and using their own grapes to make wine to serve at the restaurant. The wine was so popular that in the late 1950s Elvio Cogno left the restaurant business to make wine full time. He collaborated with La Marcarini winery in La Morra, and his debut commercial release was a 1961 Barolo. He went on to become one of the region’s most admired winemakers. In 1990 Cogno purchased an 18th century farmhouse and surrounding vineyards, updating both. Today the estate is run by Elvio’s daughter Nadia Cogno and her husband Valter Fissore. The estate produces Barolos and other Langhe wines that are highly praised by wine writers, including the influential Italian journal Gambero Rosso, which notes that “each wine (made at the estate) is better than the last.” Robert M. Parker Jr. has written that the estate’s wines “are consistently excellent to outstanding.” Cogno produces 80,000 bottles annually.

Piedmont’s name means “foot of the mountain” and it aptly describes Piedmont’s location near the Alps, just east of France and south of Switzerland. For admirers of Nebbiolo wines, Piedmont is Italy’s most exalted region, since it is home to Barolo and Barbaresco. Barolo and Barbaresco are names of towns as well as names of the two most prestigious Piedmont DOCGs. Piedmont, with 142,000 vineyard acres, has seven DOCGs and fifty DOCs, the highest number of DOCS in any Italian wine zone. Despite its relatively northern location, its sometimes cool and frequently foggy weather, Piedmont produces mostly red wines. The Nebbiolo grape thrives in this climate and in fact takes its name from the Italian word for fog, “nebbia.” With its rich buttery food, majestic red wines and complicated vineyard system, Piedmont is often thought of as the Burgundy of Italy. As in Burgundy, Piedmont vineyards generally have well-established boundaries, and the vineyards are often divided into smaller parcels owned by several families. Though Nebbiolo is considered the most “noble” Piedmont grape, Barbera is actually the most widely planted grape. Dolcetto is the third most common red grape. White wines in Piedmont are made from Arneis, Cortese, Erbaluce and Moscato. Though Barolo and Barbaresco are the stars of the region, the easy-to-drink, sparkling “spumante” and “frizzante” wines of the Asti DOCG are the most widely produced. There are also Piedmont Indicazione Geographica Tipica (IGT) wines that are often an innovative blend of traditional and non-traditional grapes. This relatively new appellation status was started in 1992 as an attempt to give an official classification to Italy’s newer blends that do fit the strict requirements of DOC and DOCG classifications. IGT wines may use the name of the region and varietal on their label or in their name.