Nebbiolo is the noble grape of Piedmont, documented near Turin as early as 1266 and named, most likely, for the nebbia — the autumn fog that settles over the Langhe hills as it ripens, latest of all, into late October. Pale and quick to brown, it deceives the eye: behind that garnet edge lies a wine of ferocious tannin and searching acidity.
Tar and roses is the classic phrase for its scent, joined by dried cherry, licorice and truffle. It gives Barolo and Barbaresco their power and their decades of life, yet it is stubbornly a grape of place — demanding the right south-facing marl of the Langhe and rarely convincing when transplanted elsewhere. Difficult, austere in youth and sublime with age, it is one of the world's great and least portable red varieties.