Massimo Clerico, Nebbiolo, Lessona DOC

If there is one lesson that is common amongst all the great red wines of the world, it is that nothing can substitute for optimal bottle age. You can decant a young wine to soften it up, and there is certainly no shame in enjoying a bright and fresh young Beaujolais—but nothing can awaken one’s soul like a complex and layered red whose tannins and hard edges have been melted away by time.When you encounter a wine in this truly sublime state of maturity, you recognize it immediately. Your palate comes alive, every dish tastes more delicious, and perhaps even your friends who usually don’t like Burgundy or Italian wine will abruptly change their tune. This bottle is such a wine, and we have reserved all that remains on the West Coast.While the alpine hamlet of Lessona is renowned amongst collectors for the quality and near-infinite cellar potential of its best Nebbiolo-based reds, its reputation is also severely limited by its own microscopic size. This is one of the smallest wine produc