Nicholas Altare loves the land, the countryside, and his work. He has the good fortune to find himself with an estate handed down from generation to generation, and to have found a mentor in Barolo producer Ferdinando Principiano. Until 2015 his family held agreements to sell the estate’s harvest to other producers. “It was heartbreaking to see my grapes sold to others and then with the help of Ferdinando Principiano I decided to try and vinify the first grapes in 2015.” Nicolas Altare’s home and estate is in San Luigi, a village in Dogliani in the heart of the Dolcetto Dogliani DOCG production area. Winters bring cold, wet weather and thick blankets of fog. Summertime is warm and sultry with the potential threat of strong thunderstorms.