The Cogno family has been producing fine Italian wine for four generations, but it wasn’t until Elvio Cogno set out on his own in the 1990s, after working for esteemed producers like Marcarini, that the Cogno family gained its real steam. Over the last thirty years, the Cogno family has worked quietly, practicing viticulture that is thoughtful and making four different biotypes of Barolo.
They’re growing Naschetta—some of the only producers in the Piedmont region dedicated to the grape. Elvio’s daughter Nadia and her husband Valter have since joined and the family is making exquisite, exciting, and entirely memorably iterations of Barolo. One of my absolute favorites remains the 2023 pre-phylloxera barbera. It’s the last year working with the vineyard, which is this wild, 100-year-old barbera vines. They’ll be replanting it, but do you want to wait 100 years? There’s a rich, lively concentration and a purity of fruit which can only be born from such storied vines. $99
Kate Dingwall is a sommelier and wine writer. Her work frequently appears in Wine Enthusiast, Eater, Forbes.com, Decanter, Vogue, and Food & Wine, and she pours wine at one of Canada’s top restaurants.
