2017 Aldo Conterno Il Favot Nebbiolo Langhe 750 ml

You can count on one hand the number of Monforte d’Alba estates that have been as influential or acclaimed as Poderi Aldo Conterno, and you won’t need every finger. For decades, Aldo Conterno crafted “wines that are deeply expressive and impeccably executed,” according to Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, and this 2017 Il Favot Nebbiolo is a rich, elegant successor to the estate’s towering legacy. 

Out of all the remarkable bottles in the Conterno portfolio, this is the one that they named after their family home and winery, “Favot,” showing their deep personal connection to the wine. It’s treated accordingly, receiving an 18-month aging regimen in 100% new French oak, enhancing its depth and richness. You’ll rarely find estates giving their Langhe Nebbiolos that kind of lavish treatment. Then again, Poderi Aldo Conterno isn’t your average estate.

The late Aldo Conterno was a true visionary, striking a balance of traditional and modern winemaking methods, producing profound yet accessible wines that earned him the nickname “King of Barolo.” Wine Advocate called him a “transformative figure” who “forever changed the region,” and his namesake estate is equally formidable, with a trophy case that includes multiple 100-point bottles and pages of top scores from the world’s foremost critics.

The 2017 Il Favot beguiles with a medley of floral and spicy aromas—cherry, raspberry, tobacco, and cacao—before accessing depths of dried red flowers, licorice, and black tea tones on the palate. A superbly structured wine, its tannins are grippy, polished, and fine. James Suckling touted it as “like a baby Barolo,” but this is no little brother. With its pedigree and distinguished terroir, the Il Favot boasts its own prestige-worthy power and grace. 

It comes from the same terroir as Conterno’s renowned Bussia ($93) and 100-point Granbussia ($470) Barolos. The same vines, in fact. It’s harvested from vines under 15 years old that, as they age further, will go on to produce the Bussia and Granbussia. So it’s no wonder that this Nebbiolo knockout possesses such grace and sophistication. 

The estate’s world-famous vineyards roll up the hillsides in the Bussia cru, one of the most important areas in Monforte d’Alba, a village known for wines of exceptional power and concentration—even by Barolo standards. The chalky soils here boast an absolutely perfect mix of clay and calcareous elements, evoking mouthwatering fruit and contemplative floral tones in its wines. 

Aldo purchased the land in 1969, although the Conterno family had been making wine in the Monforte d’Alba region since 1920. After Aldo revolutionized the area in the ‘70s and ‘80s, he began to turn the operation over to his three sons—Franco, Stefano, and Giacomo. During an economic boom in the 90s, instead of expanding, the trio actually shrunk the estate’s production, focusing not on volume, but on continuing to produce wines of singular, superlative quality.

Vinous once said, “The Conterno family embodies so many of the human values that make Piemonte such a special place.” Unwavering dedication, attention to detail, bold innovation—they’re all present in this 2017 Il Favot, a striking wine from one of the region’s greatest estates.