Malvirà, Roero Nebbiolo

As Barolo prices climb steadily upwards, the top wines of neighboring Roero look better and better. I don’t mean to suggest that you only buy Roero wines when you don’t want to spring for a Barolo—that would be an insult to a region that produces wines that are every bit as evocative and age-worthy as their more-famous neighbors. What I’m saying is that Roero reds are better than ever and make more sense than ever, as exemplified by this sensibly priced flagship from the great Malvirà estate. One of the things about tasting a lot of wine in a short period of time, as we do for this site (and as most sommeliers do in restaurants), is that some wines need a little time to show their best—which they don’t always get. Malvirà’s 2017 Roero, their flagship, may have suffered that fate had we not known them to be an elite producer. On first pour, the wine was mesmerizing aromatically but a little stiff and reticent on the palate. But, seeing that it was Nebbiolo (a tannic variety), and Malvir