The Next Generation

I recently tasted the Massimo Pastoris Canavese Nebbiolo La Cucca 2021 and I can honestly say that it is one of the most compelling Nebbiolos under $30 I’ve ever tasted…ever. The nose jumps out of the glass with flowers, spice, tar, a hint of forest floor, red fruits…too many notes! On the palate the wine has a positively silky texture for Nebbiolo, so polished, so drinkable, impeccably balanced, flaunting the finest Pinot Noir-esque characteristics of this grape without any of the harshness or bitterness that we see from its cousins to the south.

In short? An incredible wine that literally made the hair on my neck stand up….at $26.98 this wine is clearly one of the coolest red wines we have in the store and an absolute ‘must’ tasting (and smelling) experience!

From the importer: The Nebbiolo La Cucca leads with elegance over structure, by design, and when compared to Langhe and Alto Piemonte, it’s more aromatically delicate with finely delineated fruit and florals. The denomination is Canavese, even if it’s on the extreme east of the appellation and bears little resemblance to Canavese reds elsewhere in this extensive DOC...The elegance is accentuated with the use of a combination of medium-sized old wood and cement vats. Both Cristiano and Eugenio believe that morainic soils require this “third way” of making Nebbiolo. While Caluso isn’t ground zero for the world’s attention to Piemonte and Nebbiolo, these wines capture its purest essence, making them formidable in style and craft alone.