2007 Le Piane Boca

JancisRobinson.com

• By Julia Harding, MW
  2/17/2012, (See more on JancisRobinson.com...)

  (Boca Le Piane Boca Red) Subscribe to see review text.

• By Antonio Galloni
  New Releases from Piedmont: The Stars Are Aligned (Oct 2011), (See more on Vinous...)

  (Boca Le Piane) Login and sign up and see review text.

Garagiste

• By Jon Rimmerman
  7/16/2010, (See more on Garagiste...)

  (LE PIANE Le Piane) UPDATE: Food Cart I'm about to reveal one of my culinary treasures and (of course) it has to do with flour, water, tomato and cheese – pizza to most of us. In one of the more out of the way locations known to pizza-o-philes, in the Val Valcros of France, lies a food cart in the middle of a grass field with solar panels powering the hot water and part of the electrical. The pizza created here is unlikely but it is among Europe’s finest. Yes, you will have to travel off the beaten path, to the most unlikely place, but it is worth the detour. There is no name, but you will see the large “Overt 18:00” sign by the side of the road, 2-3k’s off the D98 toward the hills (near Chateau Maravenne). The unsuspecting new customer will admire the surrounding vineyards, walk up to the cart, a quick “bonjour” is uttered and the the game ensues... The New Customer bumbles and stutters “uh, I’ll have a pizza” (translated from French – no English is spoken here) - immediately, a pad of sticky notes is tossed at you from behind the cart’s counter, probably at your chest - “write down what you will eat” - you scribble a few pizzas down on the sticky pad and gingerly hand it to him – then he tells you to wait. Do not ask how long the wait is just point to your watch – my wait was 1 hour and 40 minutes. During the wait, you sing songs, fraternize with the other nervous (hungry) patrons, play a game called “pizza points” (guess how many pizza’s he’s made that week – if you are right, he will give you your pizza for free) and generally have an experience that is so Italian, it could almost be in Italy...but it isn’t. It’s in France, in an empty field, which makes it all the more bizarre. Invariably, wine is pulled from car trunks, opened and enjoyed out of paper cups (or straight from the bottle) by complete strangers caught in a new-found embrace, fueled by the longing for buffalo mozzarella and basil. Oh yes, the mosquitoes, swarms of them. Your pizza maker is immune – he’s been bitten so many times, the bites fail to swell at this point. The mosquitoes appear to laugh and thank him for bringing hordes of succulent fresh flesh to their trough every night – as there is nowhere to go, nowhere to hide, you will be treated as Loebels Prime by the local Anopheles and, as luck would have it, the pizza cart is adjacent to a forest (if you can call a huge 1000 degree wood burning oven fueled by local timber a “cart”). When you combine 90 degree heat, 90% humidity and an edge-of-forest location, you have a recipe made in mosquito heaven. Part of the ritual is complaining about it but you will get no sympathy from the pizza maker – he will toss a can of “Off” out onto the grass but be sure not to spray your hands as pizza and “Off” do not make for friendly bedfellows. Each pizza takes 30-45 seconds to cook – as soon as it goes into the 1000 degree oven, it is ready (literally, by the time he places in the correct spot for 15 seconds, it’s ready). Ash smoke goes up like smoke signals beckoning you to your paper-thin pie – if you are not there to claim it, another soul will do so in moments – 10-15 mosquito bites or not. As you prepare for your first bite, it is advised to notice the jar that sits on the countertop, filled with fragments of teeth from unsuspecting neophytes that bite into the tiny Provencal olives only to realize, after it is too late, that they still have pits. No warning from the pizza maker, no signage to ward off enamel armageddon...but also, no lawsuits from those that lost their teeth. In a perfect reminder of how our culture differs, a loss of a tooth here in the Valcros is shrugged off and treated as a culinary badge of honor – in the US, the same experience would be followed by a quick trip to the attorney. It is indeed a different way of life in the South and it makes our own bizarre obsession with getting even (in court or other) appear contrived and artificial – here it is just life...even if it means one less tooth. ...at that moment, my pizza was ready to be cooked. I chose “Les Moustique” as an homage to the obvious. It had an unusual citronella-like herb made from Verbena tossed into the sauce. It was topped by the freshest mozzarella, olives, local saucisson and a touch of spice – he rolled my crust, just like every other, while looking at the table top from the side, hunched over to insure no crust is more than 1.0 millimeter thick – it is so thin, it’s almost difficult to grasp (in a digital and ponderous way) - the pizza was placed in the oven and pulled from the embers in a split second, bubbling and convalescing as my new-found friends gazed in admiration and jealousy. I looked around the grass field, pulled the pizza to my waiting palate and took a bite. It was heaven on earth...or, heaven in a Provencal grass field but tonight one bite sent me to the stars. - Jon Rimmerman ***************** Le Piane Dear Friends, With great admiration, allow me to present a new core producer for us and one I believe most of you will warmly embrace as a cornerstone for your cellar. If you are a fan of the Old World’s most interesting and complex examples, Le Piane is a new discovery that will entice for years to come. Set in one of Piedmont’s forgotten corner’s this historic property ( http://www.bocapiane.com/gb/region/hp-gb-region.htm ) has been resuscitated with great care and the help of nearly 70 different wine lovers that gave Christophe Kunzli small amounts of money in an attempt at “funding” his pursuit of a dying wine and region. Situated in the most eastern of all growing districts in Piedmont, near Lago d’Orta and at 1200-1800 ft in elevation (just below the Alps), Le Piane was a gamble of passion and pride that has paid off with renditions of Nebbiolo and Vespolina that will tug at your heart. From Christophe: “Our vineyards are situated in the middle of Monte Fenera’s nature park. We have revived the almost forgotten wine region of Boca in the hills of northern Piedmont, next to the Alps. For hundreds of years wine from Nebbiolo grapes has been produced in Boca, known as one of the top classical wine regions in Europe until the end of the 19th century.” A decade has passed since Christophe first made the attempt at revival and Le Piane has finally come of age. To characterize the wines of the estate as transcendent would be accurate but they are also as transparent as a suddenly still mountain spring. In general, Le Piane “Boca” (the flagship wine) is the elegant, sophisticated seductress and the Le Piane “Le Piane” is the muscle-bound bully that will teach you a thing or two about any subject and dare you to challenge its position. Both are rewarding and educational – both are worth the experience and then some. Both wines are VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED as a coming out of sorts that is only the beginning. This parcel is directly from the winery cellar with perfect provenance: 2005 Le Piane “Boca” DOC (Boca) - Christophe: “To make this Boca DOC, Nebbiolo is blended with some Vespolina Grapes. After three years maturation large wooden casks, we receive a complex and elegant wine with excellent ageing potential. It is storable for decades. The mineral composition of the porphyry soil together with the characteristic structures of the Nebbiolo grapes enable »Boca« to develop into a full, expressive wine. Its smart flavour resembles well-matured wood berries and pomegranates and has hints of tobacco and liquorice. Power and a silky elegance will develop in the mouth into a fascinating play with a slightly noble/bitter lasting length. The vast complexity allows new facets to be discovered again and again.” (I will add that it is an immensely elegant and textural wine that smells like a great Barolo from a vintage of yesteryear, 1978 comes to mind. It is a glorious example that combines the best of the Cote de Nuits with something like Serralunga. With only 13% alcohol, Barolo lovers that crave less heat in their Nebbiolo will adore this – JR) This wine was recently awarded a (you can see Le Piane’s boatload of awards here: http://www.bocapiane.com/gb/opening/hp-gb.htm ) 2007 Le Piane “Le Piane” DOC (Colline Novaresi) - Christophe: “High percentage of Croatina grapes from very old vineyards (up to 100 years old ) on the high hill sites (500m) of Montalbano, Santuario and Traversagna. It was our innovation to make high value Croatina wine from the best grapes. By aging the wine for 2 years in both small and large barrels we have managed to reduced the rustic tannins and give the wine high concentration with earthy and berrylike aromas. The wine ages well within 10 years. The wine is concentrated, full of ripe berry notes with spices and tobacco aromas” (this wine is going to have a legion of followers – it is powerful, akin to Monforte with a unique mountain aspect that is like breaking through a chiseled mass of stone and wild flowers. Deep and dark in color with fascinating tannins and length, this is a wine of its place that will not be easily forgotten by the taster. Christophe considers 2007 a perfect vintage – JR) For reference on the style, here is last year’s Tanzer review for the 2006 (Ian d’Agata) - keep in mind the comment above on 2007 as a perfect vintage by comparison: Please give us your maximum up to 12/each wine and we will allocate accordingly To order: niki@garagistewine.com This parcel is set to depart the cave – it will arrive in the late summer (please check OARS for local pick up after Labor Day). It will ship during the Fall shipping season. Out of state orders will be held for free under ideal storage conditions (56 degrees/70%humidity) until shipping is possible. Locals may pick up at their leisure. For current local pick up and arrival/ship information, please see your OARS link below (at the bottom of this offer) - don’t know how to access your OARS? Simply click the link and see your account. You can also paste the link into your browser. If you are having trouble with your link or your account, please contact: support@garagistewine.com NO SALES TO RETAILERS OR WHOLESALERS Thank you, Jon Rimmerman Garagiste Seattle, WA Italy9851 Italy9852 Click here to view the status of your orders in O.A.R.S.