Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.4

Took around two hours to really open, but once it did this became gorgeous. The nose blossoms with deep cherry fruit, roses, chestnut and layers of spice, especially cardamom, clove and cinnamon, with that unmistakably old-school Alpine Nebbiolo character underneath. The palate is incredibly juicy and beautifully balanced, with concentrated cherry fruit, excellent freshness and a very elegant, silky texture. Serious depth without heaviness, lovely purity and a long, increasingly expressive finish. Stunning Valgella, and flirting with 9.5 as it continues to unfurl. Stunning tiny berry fruit intensity and terrific length. High class tannins with a skoche of rusticity. — 3 days ago

Gabriella Landgraf-Neuhaus

10

Really delicious light red. Still surprisingly full bodied and darkly fruity — 23 days ago

Timothy Eustis

Wine Director, Red Lion Inn

9.4

Bright acidity. Replay few tannins. Way more an Irish. Tart cherry. 2019. An herbaceousness that is v compelling. Lovely. — 6 months ago

Matt Perlman

9.4

More open knit than the Sassella, total deliciousness and high toned elegance — 7 months ago

romo

9.2

First bottle three years ago had more energy. Went sour on day 2. — 7 months ago

Seth Masterson

9.2

Delicious Chocolate over dried fruit notes with nice dry floral notes. A very nice nebbiolo without face ripping tannins- a good sipper but also would pair well with the lighter side of Italian foods. — 9 months ago

Jenna Lloyd

9.0

i loved this - perfect with sausage and fennel pasta — 4 years ago

Benjamin Hickey

9.3

Light but has depth and persistence — 5 years ago

Vanessa

9.5

Melt my heart. This wine is stunning.

ARPEPE Sassella “Rocce Rosse” Riserva 2013—an outstanding expression of Nebbiolo from the Valtellina Superiore DOCG.

🏔️ Valtellina is a northerly district in Lombardy, Italy, bordering Switzerland. It boasts a majestic alpine mountain-scape w/ terraced vineyards perched on the steep slopes of the Alps, surrounding an oasis of sunshine on the valley floor.

Valtellina is famous for its perfumed & elegant wines made mostly from Nebbiolo (locally ‘Chiavennasca’).

🍷 This 2013 is 100% Chiavennasca from a site at 400-500 meters elevation in the Sassella subzone.

🍒It offers pronounced aromas & flavors of dark cherry, bright raspberry, mulberry, pomegranate, fig, strawberry rhubarb, potpourri, black tea, star anise, fennel, peat, olive tapenade, vanilla, cardamom, nutmeg & forest floor.

😍 On the palate, it is lifted & ethereal w/ mouth-watering acidity & velveteen tannins that support a lingering finish. A BEAUTIFUL wine. — 9 days ago

with Deked1

Daniel Bloom

9.3

At first open, this on the nose has a distinct caramel/barrel(botti?),odor that my wife also noted as unique. ( we’ll try to remember exactly) Then i plopped it out for 2 plus hours and with lots of air, this bloomed into a savory, brownish leaning with red underpinnings Barolo cousin. Lighter indeed, but many of the same fruit and secondary notes are there. The tannins are very gentle, and with a meal lighter in heavy proteins it fits well. We had Tortilla Espanola,,Sardines, cheeses, veggies.
There’s something almost brandyesque here…teasing at it but rewarding, especially on the nose that sense of rusty red coming up from below.
Motalli is always very interesting, I’d like more acidity, but that’s trifling.
With Randy.
Thanks, @fassselections — 2 months ago

Marc Karetsky

9.5

Love this maker. Classic Nebbiolo. — 7 months ago

Jason Sliwa

9.1

Really elegant and a nice surprise find - never had Sforzat before. — 9 months ago

Phil Kessling

9.2

These are some of my favorite Mountain Nebbiolo. ArPePe actually ages the Riserva before releasing. — 10 months ago

John W

9.6

I’ll stand by my June 24, 2021 rating. Consistently great. — 5 years ago

Zach D

9.6

I thought it would be fitting to pop this as it was harvested Oct 17 2017, exactly 9 years ago. Still very fresh strawberry compote, fresh and dried roses, fresh porcini, tar on the nose. Excellent acidity, depth, silky tannins on the palate; confirming everything on the nose. Great length. Fantastic wine, possibly at its apex if you like a balance between fruit and earth. — 13 days ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

Stunning, vividly three-dimensional nose of red cherry, tar, roses, sweet spice, desiccated leaves and orange rind, with extraordinary complexity and purity right out of the gates. The palate is juicy, complete and deeply terroir-driven, with explosive tiny-berry fruit intensity, painful concentration, unbelievable finesse, velvety sweet tannins and tremendous length. Still needs around 30 minutes to fully knit together, but the depth, clarity and architecture are already remarkable. — 2 months ago

Matt Perlman

9.3

This is, as expected, the more structured between the Sassella and the Grumello of the same vintage, but on this night actually preferred the latter. — 7 months ago

Fabio Franchella

9.3

Wieder mal ein Sforzato. Dies, nachdem ich mich bei den letzten etwas „sattgetrunken“ hatte. Dieser…ist….anders. Harmonisch, elegant balancierend zwischen klarer himbeerfrucht, leicht animalischen noten und….alk (16%!!). Traumhaft gut eingebunden. Also…den hier…würde (nicht nur) ich auf eine insel mitnehmen ;) — 7 months ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of two days. Gorgeous on both days. The 2019 Grumello “Rocco de Piro”pours a brilliant, ruby color with a transparent core and a slightly watery rim; medium viscosity with no staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with gorgeous notes of cool, fresh raspberries, roses with babies breath, Alpine herbs, cedar chest, and rocky earth. On the palate the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+ and the texture is silky. Such a beautiful and elegant expression of Chiavennasca. Drink now through 2034. Thanks for the assist @Lyle Fass — 9 months ago

Chris Buggy

9.1

Beautiful. Nice bright cherry and dark fruit, balanced tannins. Restrained Nebbiolo, a pleasure to enjoy. — 5 years ago