Probably the hardest part of writing anything is starting. But we couldn't have created anything much more superlative about this producer than Wine Advocate's Antonio Galloni, who said in Issue #197, "Walter Fissore and Nadia Cogno continue to do fabulous work. Cogno is one of the very finest estates in Piedmont, yet somehow remains under the radar. Every wine I tasted this year was brilliant, but the Baroli in particular are magnificent."Azienda Agricola Elvio Cogno sits on the top of Bricco Ravera, a hill near Novello in the Langhe area of Piedmont. The cellar is housed in an 18th-century manor farm surrounded by 11 hectares of land, all planted to vineyards. Cogno bought this splendid historic farm in the family village in 1990 and "restored it to its former glory. " The winemaking is generally traditional including fermentations with native yeasts and the use of large neutral casks
(botte) in the cellar. The wines are stylistically 'enlightened old school" as well and typically benefit from time in the cellar, though in this case the warmer 2007 vintage gives it a bit more flesh.
As for 'being under the radar', you have to wonder how much longer that will be the case with critics like Galloni saying things like the above quote and his wines getting very noticeable reviews. This one pulled down a '92' from Advocate a few moths back and a whopping 95 in the April 30 Wine Spectator. Sliding in at under $40 also makes this one quite the deal for the genre, the only downside being that quantities are limited. Give n the wine, the vintage, and the price, it's something BArolo fans should definitely have. Good hunting.
