Ep. 240 Danilo Drocco (Nino Negri Winery) on Nebbiolo Chiavennasca and Sforzato di Valtellina

In this podcast, Monty Waldin interviews Danilo Drocco, winemaker at the Nino Negri winery near Sondrio, in the Valtellina valley in Lombardy. Danilo tells Monty all about the Nebbiolo grape, which also goes by the local sobriquet of “Chiavennasca,” and the Valtellina terroir featuring vineyards planted on steep dry-walled terraces which date back to the Roman times (including their single vineyard Sasso Rosso) and winds such as La Breva blowing from Lake Como and contributing to drying the Chiavennasca grapes to make Sforzato. Danilo also talks about the winery which was founded in 1897 and also buys grapes from 200 local small wine growers, thus keeping the local economy alive. Danilo and Monty also discuss Nino Negri’s top wines, Valtellina Superiore and the Sfursat (or Sforzato di Valtellina), as well as the top markets for the winery. Tune in to learn more about local food matches, such as the pizzoccheri pasta and local cheese types Casera and Bitto!