Prunotto 'Occhetti' Langhe Nebbiolo, Piedmont 2023

Prunotto has been making Occhetti since the 1970s, and it remains one of the estate's most honest introductions to Nebbiolo - the grape behind Barolo and Barbaresco, shown here in a lighter, more immediate form. The fruit is fully Nebbiolo, with all the variety's floral signature intact. The soils do much of the work: surface sand over layers of gravel, clay and limestone, the kind of ground that gives the wine its elegance and soft tannins. After a short seven-day maceration, it ages around sixteen months before bottling - long enough to settle and integrate, gentle enough to keep the perfume. The result is ruby red with garnet edges, all violet and rose on the nose over bright red fruit, and a palate that's delicate and fine-grained rather than heavy. Refined, supple tannins carry it. Serve at 16-18°C.