Wine or Wineries in Torino?

[SandyCat]

Hi All,

I don't know very much about wine at all, but I have a friend who is getting married in Torino and I thought it would be an excellent gift to get her some bottles of wine from local wineries. I don't mind dropping some good money on them, as long as the wineries are reliably great! Anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

[dsp2011]

Correction on the website for Barale Fratelli - it has an "i" at the end vice "e" and there should be no period when pasting into search engine... The following link should work:

www.baralefratelli.it

[SandyCat]

This is all great stuff, everyone! Super helpful. Thank you!

[DavidT]

As far as what wineries in this region produce the best wines, you should go to the Wine board and ask for recommendations on Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbera and Dolcetto wines.

Also be aware that many, if not most, wineries in Italy are not able or prepared to welcome visitors and do not have tasting rooms. Instead, I would recommend visiting some of the regional enotecas, where you can sample to wines from 5, 10 or 20 wineries in one sitting.

[TheTorinoAgent]

Sandy your idea is to just bought them some wine or orgnize something like an "apertivo" for them too?

[SandyCat]

Just buying a few bottles or a case there...

[TheTorinoAgent]

I would go for one of these:

Gastronomia Gallo - Corso Sebastopoli 161, Torino

Le Vitel E'tonn- Via San Francesco da Paola, 4, Torino

Vineria Tre Galli - Via Sant' Agostino, 25 Torino

and in case in Tre Galli and in Le Vitel E'tonn even eat...

[dsp2011]

We are currently in Torino and followed DavidT's info above and visited the Grinzane Cavour. His email has the website. Once in the website, this enoteca provides several wineries that are specifically selected for their wines. We selected a few wineries and made appointments for visits. One or two could not accommodate on such short notice or to meet our schedule. Our trip was totally awesome and we found one winery that we really liked - Barale Fratelli. Their website is www.baralefratelle.it. We had a nice tour of their enoteca to include tasting, bought several bottles of wine, and got the scoop on potential buys and shipping to the U.S. It was well worth the trip. Thanks to DavidT's recommendations!!

[TheTorinoAgent]

if you're still in Torino and would like to eat some piedmontese cusine try this place:

LA VIA DEL SALE

Via San Francesco da Paola, 2

Torino

Tel. [phone]

[VILLAFAVOLOSA]

I agree with David T that you will be able to find great Piemontese wines in just about any enoteca in Turin. But if you do have the time you should go to the Langhe (one hour south of Turin) and buy directly from the producers. The Langhe offers some of the best wines in the world (Barolo, Barbaresco, Nebbiolo, Barbera and Dolcetto) and the scenery is breathtaking. Cheers.

[Villasampaguita]

As David says, Torino is not in a wine producing area, but the capital of the Regione is close to the famous wine areas of Piedmont, the Langhe, Monferrato and Roero hills. You can get to Asti or alba in less then an hour by train from Turin, but it would be better to rent a car as the wineries are in the smaller towns and countryside.

If time is short, go to EATALY in Turin (http://www.eataly.it/) - they have an enoteca stocked with a huge collection of Piedmont wines and a wine tasting bar.

[DavidT]

While there are no wineries in the city limits of Torino, some of the greatest wines in the world (Barolo and Barbaresco) are produced in the Langhe region, 30-50 miles or so southwest of Torino. I am sure there are some excellent wine shops in Torino that offer those wines.

In the Langhe region, there are several enotecas that allow you to taste (and purchase) the wines of anywhere from 10 to 30 nearby wineries. If you have the time, visit the enoteca in the castle outside the village of Grinzane Cavour. It is a beautiful building in a scenic setting.

http://www.castellogrinzane.com/

[DavidT]

If you do a web search for "enotecas in or near Turin, Italy," you should find the names and addresses of at least half a dozen enotecas/wine bars in the city. Chances are you will be able to taste and purchase a wide variety of wines from the Piemonte region at any of these places.

[AprilTwoCats]

If you visit an enoteca and like wines from several vineyards, can you order a "mixed case" to be shipped to the US?

[DavidT]

Sorry, but I do not know if any of the enotecas can or will arrange for wines to be shipped to the U.S. I do not think it would make a difference whether you order a mixed case of several wines or a full case of one wine.

[Villasampaguita]

No most enoteca's or at least the ones I know of, will not ship to USA - too many complications in US liquor laws. However if you bring the wine to the Mail Box Etc, outlet in Alba, they do arrange shipping of small quantities through a distributor, but it is very expensive, like around 150 euro plus for a 12 bottle case

[AprilTwoCats]

Thank you, DavidT and Villasampaguita. I didn't know it would be that expensive and difficult to ship. In the past we've brought home a few bottles at a time, in our luggage. Good to know this well ahead of time.