When thinking about red wines to cellar from Italy, you probably think of Barolo made from the nebbiolo grape, Brunello di Montalcino made from sangiovese, or Super Tuscans like Sassicaia made from cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc. But why not pignolo?
Probably because most people haven’t heard of it. The pignolo grape hails from Friuli Colli Orientali, a DOC in the northeastern Italian province of Udine near the Slovenian border, and only has about 124 acres planted under vine. As a low-yielding and late-ripening grape, it was neglected by local growers and nearing extinction until 1978 when it was authorized for use in the DOC.
Today, it is considered by some as the “grand cru” of Friuli Colli Orientali’s southern Rosazzo subregion. It’s the most full bodied of the Friuli reds with bold, dark fruit and an intensely tannic structure (hence, its affinity for aging). AOC law requires the wine to age for a minimum of three years (from November 1st the year of harvest) but many producers wait ten years or more to release their wines—the bottle of Angoris Pignolo Riserva Giulio Locatelli I found is a 2012.
The Angoris Pignolo leads with dark blackberry bramble, black cherry and ripe plum fruit blended with balsamic scents and slight volatile acidity that mark it squarely Italian. The wine is slightly animalistic, full of wet dirt, black olive and leather. The tannins are finely structured, softened somewhat by the twelve years of age, but still very much present; the wine could age for at least ten more years.
When I first tried this wine by itself, it almost seemed too tannic. This isn’t your easy sipper; it’s best paired with a fattier cut of meat, like rack of lamb, or a charcuterie plate consisting of salty, rich salami. But sometimes you (or maybe it’s just me) want to try something off the beaten path instead of the tried and true. So, I decided to pair it with pasta in a Parma Rosa cream sauce. I even got extra crazy and mixed in some shrimp. The results were…OK. While the rich, milk-and-butter-based sauce did help temper those powerful tannins, the shrimp was too light. Turn on the grill and sear up some lamb or steak instead. And eat some charcuterie and creamy cheese while you’re waiting. At least I saved you the trial and error time!
This wine—and the pignolo grape in general—may be a little tricky to find in the United States. If you’re in the Los Angeles area, there are a couple bottles left at The Wine House or you can try another producer like Ronchi Di Cialla found at Eataly Boston. Wine-searcher is a great source for more pignolo options.
Happy hunting! And if you do try a bottle, please drop me a message to let me know what you think!
Off the Beaten Wine Path 
I’d like a bottle!
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