Made with Moscato grapes and aged more than 12 months in oak casks, this has a light gold hue and mild, lightly herbaceous aroma. Plenty of almond and oak lead the palate, followed by baked pear, cooked banana and almond sweetness. The finish is long and distinctly floral, framed by verdant herbal notes, hinting at fennel and tarragon.
by KN, Wine Enthusiast , 2024
But it also has a soft and subtle side that craft distillers pull from even the ugliest purple mashes leftover from the winery. These are still very high proof but they exalt the flavors in the grapes. Unlike aggressively name controlled wines like Champagne or spirits like Tequila or Mezcal, Grappa can also be made in the United States where many winemakers and distillers are finding great success.
Mazzetti d'Altavilla is a historic grappa factory of Piedmont which, since 1846, has distilled only grape marc produced in this land, coming from the noblest grapes of Piedmont, including Barolo and Barbaresco. The close link with its land is one of the core values of the company's philosophy.
Mazzetti d'Altavilla, now in its seventh generation, is situated in the small village of Altavilla Monferrato (in the province of Alessandria) in the heart of Piedmont's hills. The production is carried out from the main product, that is grappa, in its different variants: ‘young’ grappa, ‘aged’ grappa, and Reserve. Altogether, fifteen vineyards of Piedmont are distilled separately in order to create the single varietal grappa.