If your childhood was like ours, you learned in grammar school that a bigamist is a fog over all of Italy. Actually, the fog that rolls over the hills of northern Piedmont at the foot of the Alps in northwestern Italy is a nebbia.
The cool damp nights due to the fog and the sunny days in Piedmont are just right for ripening grapes that produce some of Italy's finest red wines. Because they depend on the fog for their characteristically high acidity, the grape variety is called nebbiolo.
The primary red wines of Piedmont are Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbera and Dolcetto. Both Barolo and Barbaresco are made with nebbiolo grapes. Wines made with these grapes are often high in alcohol and acid and have substantial tannins, which are complimented by intense fruit flavors. They are dark wines that taste of chocolate, licorice, raspberries, truffles and violets.
The wines are long-lived and require aging to develop and soften before they are drunk. Barolos should spend one to two years in oak or chestnut barrels and another year or two in the bottle before they are drunk.
Like most tannic red wines, Barolos improve greatly in the first few years, and then the law of diminishing returns sets in: Even if they last for many decades, they don't get much better. At about eight years, many of them spoil.
One of the better Barolos is Beni di Batasiolo at $38. Or try Boroli Barolo also at $38, a nicely balanced and medium-bodied wine with cherry flavors, tamed tannins and a soft finish. Famiglia Anselma Barolo, at $45, tastes of berries, has firm tannins and is full-bodied with a long finish. Vietti Barolo Rocche, at $65, has the taste of raspberries and a silky finish. For an inexpensive introduction to Barolo wines, try Pio Cesare at $25 a bottle.
Barbaresco is a very old wine made from nebbiolo grapes. It was mentioned by Livy (59 BC to 17 AD) in his "History of Rome." It is said that the Gauls were attracted to Italy by the wine of Barbaritium, from which Barbaresco is derived. Until the middle of the 19th century, the nobility in Turin (who spoke French) preferred Barolo.
In 1894, Professor Domizio Cavazza introduced new vinification techniques, and Barbaresco wines took their place with Barolos as one of the fine wines of Italy. You can try Barbaresco Pio Cesare at $25 a bottle, described as fine with soft tannins and a generous amount of alcohol.
Nebbiolo also is sold as a varietal wine, and you may find it on the shelves of your local wine store or the wine list at your favorite Italian restaurant. If you decide to choose it, you can expect a dark colored tannic wine that is high in acid with lots of fruit flavor. Because of the acid, the wine goes well with spaghetti marinara or penne with sun-dried tomato-and-basil sauce.
Barbera grapes may have originated around Monferrato in Piedmont. They now account for 70 percent of the Vino da Tavola (table wine) of the region. The wine is low in alcohol, naturally low in sugar and naturally high in acid. These grapes are ideal for vineyards in hot climates because hot days tend to cause excess sugar, and warm nights tend to cause low acid levels in most grapes. Barbera grapes are grown in hot climates worldwide. These wines are a deep, ruby red color and low in tannin with pronounced acidity. To sample a Piedmont Barbera, try Marchesi di Barolo Maraia at $10.
Although Dolcetto is a favorite of connoisseurs, newcomers to this wine also will find it particularly enjoyable. Dolcetto grapes ("little sweet ones") make up the everyday lunchtime wine of northern Italy.
The most famous variation is Dolcetto D'Alba. It has a bright reddish-purple color that fades as it ages to ruby red. This is one of the few Italian red wines that is drinkable when it is released. The wine can last a few years in the cellar, but it is best drunk immediately.
Dolcetto is a great compliment to spaghetti with red sauce or grilled portobello mushrooms. In fact, it goes well with any foods that are naturally high in acid. Try Marchesi di Barolo's Dolcetto at $15 with your next tomato-and-mozzarella salad