2018 Aldo Conterno Nebbiolo Il Favot Langhe Piedmont

Wine collectors call Bussia one of the greatest vineyards in Italy. The Conterno family calls it home.

Il Favot, the estate where the iconic Conterno family lives and works, is located smack-dab in the middle of Bussia, one of Barolo’s most treasured terroirs. It’s a place where hillsides of sandy soil swirled with calcareous marls produce Nebbiolo wines of elegance, restraint, and fantastic aromatic definition. 

When Bussia’s vines hit middle age, they go into Conterno’s revered Barolos, like the renowned Bussia and ultra-prestigious $600+ Granbussia. But when these vines are young—no older than 15 years—their produce goes into Il Favot.

This is basically Conterno Barolo, just geared toward earlier drinking. A one-week maceration extracts plenty of color but less tannin, and after 18 months in new barriques, the wine is a youthful expression of Bussia’s famed richness. Incredibly food-friendly, it showcases dried strawberry, red plum, and candied raspberry aromas accented by fresh rose and anise seed. Fresh herbs, pine, and tobacco make their way to the palate with phenomenal integration and harmony. 

Founder Aldo Conterno, nicknamed “the King of Barolo,” is known universally as one of his generation’s greatest winemakers. He left the family winery—Giacomo Conterno, run by his brother—in 1969 due to stylistic differences. While still working in a traditional vein, he wanted to experiment with shorter macerations and French barriques for wines like Il Favot.

This was Chef Menes’s pick to go with homemade pasta with white truffles. “Conterno wines to me are always elegant, refined, and ready to enjoy,” he said. “This makes a perfect fit for the intoxicating aromas of white truffles.”

• Fruit Intensity
• Oak Intensity
• Body
• Acidity
• Tannin

• ABV 14.00%
• 1 hour
• Now – 2033
• % Nebbiolo
• Serving temperature – 62°
• Cork