La Bruciata: Moscato & More

A couple of years ago Oscar Bosio, who is best known for his Moscato, contacted me via Facebook and asked me to stop at his stand at Vinitaly. I did, for what I thought would be a quick stop, only to discover he makes all sorts of wines, all worth thinking about. This year I didn't make it to his stand, and he kindly sent samples to me.

La Bruciata Langhe Arneis DOC 2011
Lot AR04.12
Pale slightly greenish brassy yellow with brilliant brassy reflections and white rim. The bouquet is intense, with pleasant citrus, a mixture of citron and tangerine, mingled with some minerality and underlying slightly mentholated heather, all supported by sea salt. On the palate it's bright, with lively mineral laced brambly citrus that reveals heathery vegetal accents as it flows into the finish, which is long. It's quite refreshing, with considerable backbone, and will work very well with summer foods, including fried fish or meats, and also has the wherewithal to age nicely for at least 2-3 years; while its freshness now is nice if I had a case I'd set a couple of bottles aside, because they could provide a pleasant surprise.
90-91

La Bruciata Langhe Chardonnay DOC 2011
Lot CH 04.12
Pale brassy green with brilliant greenish reflections and white rim. The bouquet is fresh, and rather lemony, with some underlying sea salt and slight crisp green apple, and an underpinning of heather from a cut field in summer. On the palate it's softer than the Arneis, with rather languid lemony pineapple laced fruit supported by bright acidity and slight minerality that flows into a fairly long tart finish that gradually releases fairly acidic Delicious apple notes. It's a wine that will work nicely as an aperitif or with more delicate dishes -- I wouldn't serve it with fried meats or fish -- and I would drink it now to enjoy its freshness.
2 stars

La Bruciata Aivè Vino Bianco
Lot 2.10
An aivé is the opposite of a Sorì, in other words a north-facing slope, and this is a Moscato from north-facing slopes, bottled still. Because it's still -- the rules governing the appellations don't foresee a still dry Moscato -- it's a table wine, and therefore doesn't have a vintage, but from the lot number we can deduce that it's a 2010. Pale brassy yellow with brilliant brassy reflections and slight greenish highlights; white rim. The bouquet is elegant, with rich sugary Moscato notes mingled with menthol and heather, and rather voluptuous yellow peach, while there's also a slight counterpoint of sweaty blonde that adds complexity and depth. Particular. On the palate it's  crisp and bright, with considerable minerality supported by mineral acidity that has slight heather notes as well, and flows into a long mineral finish. It's quite tight, and much brasher than the Chardonnay, and to my way of thinking better defined, but you have to like tarter defter wines to enjoy it. If you do you will, and it is quite distinct from the more common International varietal wines..
88-90

La Bruciata Moscato D'Asti DOCG 2011
Lot MO 10 11
Pale greenish brassy yellow with fine abundant perlage, quite a bit for a Moscato. The bouquet is rich, but not overly sweet, with some honeydew melon  and slight heather supported by the sweetness that honeydew melon  can have. Quick to write but harmonious. On the palate it's full and sweet, with elegant honeydew melon  fruit that has enough acidity to keep from being cloying, and creamy fullness from the sparkle, which is quite soft, and it all flows into a fairly long honeydew melon  laced finish. Quite pleasant, and will be perfect at poolside on a hot day, or with frieds outside as the sky darkens and the stars come out. A good Moscato can be a great delight, and this one is.
90-91

La Bruciata Dolcetto D'Alba DOC 2011
Lot DO 04.12
Lively slightly purple cherry ruby with brilliant ruby reflections and cherry rim. The bouquet is classic Dolcetto, with a mixture of red berry fruit and bitter almonds supported by some greenish brambly accents. Zesty. On the palate it's light-medium bodied, with lively bitter berry fruit supported by bitter almonds and quite a bit of sea salt, while the tannins are dusky and bitter, and have a nice bite to them. In a word, scrappy, and if you like the style it will work very well with simple grilled meats, for example burgers or ribs or chicken (the latter seasoned with herbs, not sweet sauces). It's one of those wines that will go very fast in the proper setting, and you will need a second bottle.
2 stars


La Bruciata Barbera D'Alba DOC 2010
Lot BA 04.11
Lively almandine ruby with black reflections and some almandine in the rim. The bouquet is warm, and fairly rich, with red berry fruit supported by brambly strawberry acidity and by some mineral notes that have a touch of struck granite to them, and that gain in intensity as the wine opens. On the palate it's medium bodied, with decidedly brambly fruit supported by considerable sea salt and some balsamic savory accents, coupled with fairly bright mineral acidity and tannins that have a slight burr to them. It's rather old style, especially in the balsamic cast, and if you are looking for ripe red fruit, and smooth softness, it's not going to work for you. If you instead like scrappier wines with a bit of bite to them, it will work very well with simple grilled meats or light stews, and go quickly.
2 stars

For more information, check La Bruciata's Site.

Tasted at Vinitaly: Oscar Bosio

Oscar Bosio is best known for his Moscato, and when he contacted me via Facebook, asking me to taste his wines at Vinitaly, I expected it to be a quick stop. Big mistake, because he makes more than I realized, and Maurizio Fava, who helps him sell his wines, wanted me to taste everything.

Here we go:

Oscar Bosio La Bruciata Langhe Chardonnay 2010
Lot CH 4 11
Pale brassy green with brilliant brassy reflections. The bouquet is fairly rich, with greenish accents and fairly intense minerality mingled with sea salt and some apple fruit. On the palate it's bright, and fresh, with pleasant white berry fruit supported by fairly bright citric acidity that leads into a clean fairly bright finish with pleasant minerality. Not at all overripe (which makes sense considering the vintage) and pleasant.
2 stars

This had been just bottled, so Maurizio had me try:

Oscar Bosio La Bruciata Langhe Chardonnay 2009
Lot CH 03 11
Elegant greenish brassy yellow with brilliant brassy reflections. The bouquet is elegant with rich warm white fruit, pineapple supported by sunny acidity and some greenish vegetal accents. Beautiful bouquet, and it's in part the additional time in bottle, and in part the vintage. On the palate it's full and rich, with languid honeydew melon supported by savory accents and deft loquat acidity that flow into a clean bright savory white berry fruit finish with a loquat and honeydew melon underpinning. Very fine, in an elegant, richer key.
90-92

Oscar Bosio La Bruciata Langhe Arneis 2010
Lot AR 04 11
This Arneis was Bruno Giacosa's; when dante Scaglione, who used to work with Mr. Giacosa, joined Oscar he brought the vineyard with him. The wine is pale brassy white with greenish reflections, and has a fairly intense bouquet with minerality and spice supported by heather and deft citric accents. Quite pleasant, and theminerlaity is quite refreshing. On the palate it's bright, and quite mineral with lemo9ny citric fruit supported by minerality and sea salt, and flow into a very long clean mineral finish with savory underpinning. Very nice, and will work well as either an aperitif or with fish.
90-91

Oscar Bosio Aivé Vino Bianco
Lot 2.09
This is a Vino da Tavola and therefore doesn't have an official vintage, though the 09 in the lot number does tell its age. An aivé is the opposite of a Sorì, in other words a north-facing slope, and this is a Moscato from north-facing slopes, bottled still. It's pale brassy white with brilliant brassy reflections and has a rich bouquet with classic Moscato aromas of honeysuckle, honey and white berry fruit mingled with very ripe yellow peach and honeydew melon. Very fine. The palate is full and rich, with bright slightly sweet lemony fruit supported by tangerine and honeydew melon , and by savory accents that flow into a clean bright finish with savory honeydew melon acidity that gradually settles into minerality. Quite pleasant and offers an excellent alternative to the more usual aromatic dry white wines (e.g. Sauvignon); it's well worth seeking out if you like richly aromatic whites, and will also work well with aromatic or spicy foods, including curries either Indian or Thai.
88-90

Oscar Bosio La Bruciata Moscato D'Asti 2010
Lot MO 12 11
Pale brassy yellow with brassy reflections, greenish highlights, and fine white perlage, The bouquet is rich, with honeysuckle, sugars, and some savory notes, and though this may sound one dimensional, it's remarkably harmonious. On the palate it's quite elegant, with rich honeysuckle and fleshy yellow peaches supported by peach acidity and sweetness, and flows into a long sweet finish. Great finesse on the palate, and this is because it's less sweet tan the average Moscato, and as a result is fresher and more pleasant to drink. It will work very well with creamy or dry desserts, and will also be a fine wine to sip on a summer evening.
90-91

Oscar Bosio La Bruciata Ermengildo
This is a Vendemmia Tardiva da Uva Autoctone di Langa, in other words "from late-harvested indigenous grapes;" the grapes in question are Moscato, cut and left to dry in the vineyards for an additional 3-4 weeks after the regular harvest. Due to the concentration of the grapes, fermentation times are quite long. The wine is named after Oscar's father, and is am elegant gold with brilliant gold reflections and white rim. The bouquet is quite intense, with honeysuckle and vegetal accents laced with orange and lemon blossoms, and supported by tangerine acidity. Beautiful nose. On the palate it's full, with rich, powerful sweet Muscat fruit -- It's like Moscato raisins with bitterness to balance the fruit, while there's not quite so much acidity and it flows into a clean sweet sugar-laced finish. I'd have expected a little more acidity on the palate given the nose, but minerality steps in and does so well, and it flows into a long, reather bittersweet finish. Very pleasant and will work well with flavorful cheeses, for example Stilton.
88-90

Oscar Bosio La Bruciata Il MosChin
Lot 80Q309
This is aromatized with quinine and a mixture of 42 herbs and spices; it's white with brilliant brassy reflections and some greenish highlights. The bouquet is powerful, with rich quinine and elegant spice, nutmeg, cloves and more, supported by deft sweetness that confers considerable complexity. A great lot going on. On the palate it's rich and full, with powerful quinine and other aromas supported by sweetness and greenish bitter spice that flow into a long sweet spicy finish.
91-2

Note: Maurizio says this is a progenitor of Vermouth, which was made with Moscato until the big industrial winemakers decided Moscato was too expensive to put to this use. Serve it very cold as an aperitif, or slightly warmer at the end of the meal.

We closed with a red:

Oscar Bosio La Bruciata Barbera D'Alba DOC 2008
Lot BA 03 10
Deep black almandine ruby with black reflections. The bouquet is bright with lively red berry fruit supported by sour berry fruit acidity that's just as lively, clean spice, and some greenish accents. On the palate it's light and fresh, with zesty sour cherry fruit supported by sour cherry citric acidity and by slight tannins that flow into a clean sour berry fruit finish, Classic Barbera and a wine you will set out and drink with grilled or fried mats and vegetables. A perfect summer wine.
2 stars