Gian Luca Colombo – Segni di Langa

Roddi, Langhe, Piemonte

Gianluca Colombo doesn’t want you to see his hand. Despite working for years as a sought-after vigneron in various storied subzones of Barolo and beyond, he seeks not to display wines of “his” style, often stating that “only the vineyard, the vintage, and the grape should speak”, and, “I never want to cover Langa with the barrel.” Neither do his bottles display the marketing banners of organic wine, despite always working organically: Colombo says that respect for the earth should be a basic expectation. Thus the only “treatment” his wines undergo is maniacal care in the vineyard, and, in the cellar, simply attention to detail.

While many have declared that Colombo makes classic wines that recall Piemonte’s greatest traditions, he follows traditions when they make the best wine, bucking them whenever they don’t. For instance, he knows that in testing for ripeness, no machine could compete with the simple human perception of taste; at the same time, he ferments many of his wines at 10 degrees cooler than what is traditional for the region, in order to skip excessive tannin in favor more the gentler development subtle aromatic compounds. In other words, he doesn’t fly under any flag. Declared Italy’s best young winemaker in 2014, Colombo keeps his heart and brain in balance, creating transcendent wines that destroys forever any possible false dichotomy between artist and scientist.

Colombo did celebrate the long-awaited first bottlings from his own estate by marking each label with his fingerprint. Wines include a transcendently fragrant and drinkable Nebbiolo, an elegantly delicate Pinot Nero, and a deeply expressive Barbera made from venerable vines.