Gattinara wine is Nebbiolo grown in the hills between Vercelli and Novara, a corner of Piedmont most drinkers drive straight past on the way to Barolo. It’s a DOCG red made chiefly from Nebbiolo — locally called Spanna — with up to 10% of the local grapes Vespolina and/or Uva Rara allowed in the blend. In the 19th century these hills grew more Nebbiolo than the Langhe and the wines were rated higher than Barolo’s. By the end of this you’ll know what Gattinara actually tastes like, how it differs from Barolo, and whether it earns a spot in your rack.
What kind of wine is Gattinara?
Gattinara is a dry red DOCG made from Nebbiolo grown on volcanic soil above Vercelli, blended with up to 10% Vespolina and/or Uva Rara. Expect firm acidity, dry tannin and aromas of red cherry, rose and tar, plus a smoky mineral streak that comes straight from the ground it’s grown on. It sits at a lower, gentler alcohol than most modern Barolo.
I used to sell this as “a cheaper Barolo” and I was wrong to. It’s its own thing. The old-style wines here were lean and rigid — nervy acidity, bone-dry tannin, built to soften over decades rather than years, because growers historically struggled to get Nebbiolo properly ripe this far north. That’s why Vespolina and Uva Rara got folded in: fleshier, earlier-ripening grapes to plump out a wine that could otherwise turn austere in a cool vintage.
The wines being made now are a different animal. Riper fruit arrives earlier, tannins are rounder, and you still get that tangy mineral thread and moderate alcohol (trade tasting notes put good examples around 13–13.5%) at a time when plenty of Barolo is pushing 15%. If you like Nebbiolo’s perfume but find big Barolo a bit much on a Tuesday, this is worth your attention.
The Gattinara wine region — and its Alto Piemonte neighbours
Gattinara sits inside a cluster of tiny historic denominations collectively called Alto Piemonte, on the northern edge of the region, roughly 100 miles from Alba. The Sesia river divides Gattinara, on the Vercelli side, from Ghemme, its DOCG neighbour across the water in the Novara hills. Both are minuscule: Gattinara’s vineyards covered around 111 hectares in 2020, Ghemme’s about 83.
That’s a huge fall from the 19th century, when this was the more fashionable Nebbiolo address in Piedmont. Vines were grubbed up through the 20th century as growers chased easier crops, and it took DOCG status — Gattinara in 1990, Ghemme in 1997 — to slow the decline. A wider umbrella, Coste della Sesia DOC, was added in 2004 to give the wider zone some safety net.
Around these two sit smaller cousins worth knowing by name even if you never buy them: Bramaterra, Lessona, Boca, Fara and Sizzano, all Nebbiolo-based, some allowing a splash of Croatina alongside Vespolina where Gattinara and Ghemme don’t. The soils across the zone are volcanic, which is where that smoky character comes from — most obvious in Bramaterra, but present in good Gattinara too. Hail is the real menace here now, and more growers are netting vineyards against it, but a warming climate has quietly worked in the region’s favour, giving Nebbiolo the ripeness it used to struggle for.
If Barolo, Barbaresco and Brunello are already familiar ground, our guide to Italy’s great reds: Barolo, Brunello and Chianti, explained is a good place to see where Gattinara fits into the wider picture.
What is the difference between Gattinara and Barolo?
Barolo is 100% Nebbiolo grown on calcareous marl around Alba in the Langhe. Gattinara is Nebbiolo grown on volcanic soil roughly 100 miles northeast, with up to 10% Vespolina or Uva Rara allowed in. The practical result: Gattinara tends leaner, more red-fruited and lower in alcohol, made in a fraction of the volume, while Barolo is bigger, more tannic, and built for longer, richer ageing.
| Gattinara | Barolo | |
|---|---|---|
| Soil | Volcanic | Calcareous marl |
| Blend | Nebbiolo (Spanna) + up to 10% Vespolina/Uva Rara | 100% Nebbiolo |
| Vineyard area | ~111 ha (2020) | Far larger, spread across the Langhe |
| Typical alcohol | Around 13–13.5% | Often 14% and up, sometimes 15%+ |
| Character | Leaner, tangy, smoky-mineral | Fuller, more tannic, longer development |
Neither is “better” in the way that headline suggests — they’re answering different questions. If you want the fuller story on how Piedmont’s two most famous Nebbiolos compare to each other, we’ve laid that out in Barolo vs Barbaresco: same grape, different souls, which covers the ground Gattinara sits just north of.
How to serve Gattinara well
Give it air. Young Gattinara benefits from thirty minutes to an hour in a decanter or a big-bowled glass, the same as you’d do for a younger Barolo — the tannin softens and the rose-and-tar perfume opens up rather than staying locked in. Serve it at a proper cellar temperature, not fridge-cold; too cold and all you taste is the acid.
There’s a pairing born right there in the vineyards. The valley floors around Gattinara grow Carnaroli rice, and the local risotto — finished with a glug of the wine itself — is a genuinely lovely match, the wine’s acidity cutting straight through the starch and butter. Away from that specific dish, think game, mushroom risottos generally, and hard aged cheeses; anything with a bit of umami and fat gives the tannin something to work against.
Production rules here lean on extended wood and bottle ageing before release, a holdover from the days when these wines needed years to unwind — worth knowing if you’re tempted to open one the night it arrives rather than letting it sit a while. If building a proper ageing shelf interests you, it’s worth comparing notes with which Australian and New Zealand wines are worth cellaring — different climate, same instinct: buy structure, then wait.
Is Gattinara a good wine?
Yes, and increasingly so. Quality has climbed as a warmer climate delivers riper fruit without losing the tangy acidity and moderate alcohol that make northern Nebbiolo interesting, and trade coverage now regularly lists Gattinara alongside Barolo and Barbaresco as a serious alternative rather than a curiosity.
The catch is availability. Gattinara wine in the UK is still a specialist buy rather than a supermarket shelf regular — the total vineyard area is so small that big volume was never on the cards. That scarcity cuts both ways: prices sit below equivalent-quality Barolo, but stock turns over less predictably, so if you find a vintage you like, it’s worth buying more than one bottle. Vintage matters more here too, given the marginal, hail-prone climate — a cool, difficult year shows more in Gattinara than in a warmer Langhe vintage, so it pays to ask what the year was like before you commit. The same instincts we cover in how to buy wine like a merchant: labels, ratings and value apply directly — read the vintage, not just the label.
Questions customers ask us
What is Italy’s best red wine? There isn’t one answer — Barolo, Barbaresco, Brunello and Gattinara are all genuine contenders for different reasons and different Tuesdays. Gattinara’s case is value and perfume rather than sheer power.
Is Ghemme the same as Gattinara? Close cousins, not twins. Ghemme sits across the Sesia river in the Novara hills, requires a minimum 85% Nebbiolo rather than Gattinara’s blend rule, and its vineyard area is smaller still, at around 83 hectares.
How long should I keep a bottle before opening it? Depends on the vintage and the producer’s style, but these are built to reward patience more than most modern reds — if in doubt, let a cellar rest do some of the softening for you rather than reaching for the corkscrew on day one.
The merchant’s last word
I spent years pointing people to Barolo the moment they said they liked Nebbiolo, and I still love Barolo. But Gattinara scratches a different itch — leaner, more savoury, a proper glass for a mushroom risotto rather than an occasion. If that sounds like your kind of Tuesday, come and browse the italy cellar and let’s find you a bottle worth the wait.
