vigneti massa

“He had a vision for a variety nobody wanted, worked in obscurity for years, rescued the grape, and doesn’t talk about himself but about the territory of Colli Tortonesi.”

Domaine Overview

Year Founded: 1879

Winemaker: Walter Massa

Location: Tortonese hills, Piedmont

Size: 30 hectares

Grapes: Timorasso, Barbera, Croatina, and Freisa
Farming: organic practices

Production: About 13,000 bottles/year

It is undoubtedly the sound and fury of Italian sommeliers: Massa’s Timorasso. Modigliani curves (this wine is full bodied) focused by the angled faces; some fruit, a warm minerality, and all carried by an acidity that recalls a heavyweight with agile footwork. It’s hard not to get worked up about Walter Massa’s wines. When you get lost going there, start asking people 100 kilometers out; they all know and love him, from the gas station guy to the producer next door.

The zone of the Colli Tortonesi is composed of various soils (clay, chalk, stone, sand) and is perched around the nearly-abandoned hilltop town of Monleale Alto, around 200-300 meters altitude. Walter is quite the host, and this sleepy place comes alive through his passion. Walk down and then back up the steep vineyards and into the cantina, have lunch with his mom and his family, uncork say 12 bottles from various years, make nice with the journalists and kids running around, nudge an older aunt because you’re dizzy with joy, ask Milan’s top wine rep how he sells so much, smile and thank the vineyard workers having lunch, praise the two women who personally took care of the new vine planting… it’s a whirlwind of nonchalance and serious wine.

The whirlwind continues as Walter returns from the cellar, triple-fisted with a ‘99 Croatina, ‘02 Barbera Monleale, and a Timorasso whose age you have to guess. You can only say “No!” in disbelief and then nod Yes! in awe of being in one of Italy’s great lands, and in the presence of a man in touch with that land — a man who is half circus conductor and half prophet, grounded in his sometimes crazy-seeming vision. His feet are roots; his arms spring shoots; his fingers offer you another glass or point out something in the vineyard.

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The Wines

Vigneti Massa 'Piccolo Derthona' Timorasso

When Timorasso is vinified, you get lots of complexity and structure (from alcohol and from tannins – skin contact and thick skins!). Yet there’s plenty of acidity to keep things fresh and a definite counterpoint of what we call ‘honeyed minerality.’ When Timorasso is young, it can be really tight. As it ages, it loses some of its baby fat, and riesling-ish, petrol-like notes emerge. As far as terroir, Walter vinifies each vineyard separately (or tries to if he has enough tanks) and bottles a small portion of three of the vineyards separately.

Vigneti Massa Barbera 'Monleale'

The top Barbera from the leading producer in the Colli Tortonesi (southeast Piemonte), and one of a handful of truly age-worthy Barberas. All the classic Barbera cherry and raspberry fruit, with the grape’s high acidity honed into a tightly-knit complexity. One of the few Barbaras that age and become more complex. This is an “important” Barbera with the structure and complexity to accompany stronger dishes, including stews and game. It’s also a perfect vino da meditazione — i.e., a wine to open at the end of a meal and drink slowly with a good cheese, good friends, and good conversation.

Vigneti Massa Croatina 'Pertichetta'

Complex, tightly wound nose (even with some time in bottle). Ferrous, with a taut roasted cranberry presence. Clean and precise, with Assam tea tannins and notable length. Very serious. Pertichetta is the diminutive form of a local Piemontese dialect word for hectare (from pertica, a unit of measure for both length and area that dates back to Roman times). Use it as you would a Barolo or Barbaresco. As with serious Nebbiolo, the tannins are notable when the wine is young (i.e., three or four years old), so pair it with meat (especially braised meat) or aged cheeses to help tame those tannins. Or wait a couple of years and marvel at how serious Croatina unwinds, relaxes, and improves.

Vigneti Massa Timorasso Cru 'Costa del Vento'

We often say that Timorasso is like Ali: “Float like a butterfly (baroque fruit and honeyed minerality) and sting like a bee (lots of well-integrated acidity)”. Costa del Vento is the first and probably most famous and awarded of Massa’s three Timorasso crus. It has framing acidity but is more baroque and lush than the other crus. Stone fruits, sweet herbs, minerals. Timorasso is one of the longest-aging white varieties in Italy. In fact, the wine often needs an extra year or two in bottle before it becomes expressive and fun to drink. Good vintages easily age five to 10 years, and we’ve has bottles going back to the 1980s that remained alive. It’s especially fun to pour this wine blind for your friends who love aged white Burgundy or Riesling.