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A Note from Sergio

"U Baccan" means the patriarch, boss of the family, or leader. He's a forgotten figure in Liguria today, but he was once what held the family together and was respected by everyone. Like the cowboy in America, the "U Baccan" is more than a concept; he's a true cultural icon. When a family gathered to eat at a restaurant, he would order food and wine for all-no one would dare complain and everyone ate everything. The meal, and his orchestrating of it, was a ritual to reinforce that the family would stay together, work together, and enjoy together. Of course, the table was the centerpiece of that ritual, and wine was always on the table, and that wine always was Pigato.

Pigato defines Liguria. It grows well, but it's the grape's unusual salinity that makes it work for this region that seems to almost tumble into the sea. But until Riccardo Bruna came along in the 1970s, started his winery, and began releasing his wines in the '80s, you'd be hard pressed to find a bottle of Pigato outside of Liguria, at least one that wasn't a quaffer. Bruno more or less made Pigato into something serious with his Pigato U Baccan. It was the wine he believed in, and he-a stubborn, dynamic Ligurian patriarch-served it to the world.

As you probably know, I've relocated my family from New York to Camogli in Liguria, and so I write this piece looking down toward the sea, thin late-December mint-yellow light slanting across my desk. Living here, I get the importance of U Baccan, a figure that in this digital age at first seems out of date. It's not. Male or female, "The Boss" is the person who makes families-blood families or not-work as a unit. It's an idea that is as robust, vital and necessary, and remembering it is a way of bringing the past into the present.

This week, I'm really happy to offer you two of Bruna's wines, including the 2009 Pigato U Baccan. New Year's is as much about honoring the past as it is about toasting to the future. Once the merriment of the holidays recedes, open a bottle and toast the person who held your family together. We all have at least one-and we all have the chance to become one. Here's to you and your U Baccan, whomever he or she may be.

My Best,

Featured Wines

Bruna
Pulin 2008, 750ml, $51.49
Like the quiet, interesting stranger who stands in the corner at a party, Bruna's Pulin draws you in. This unique blend comprised of Granaccia [Grenache], Syrah, and Barbera holds a bevy of soft red fruits, a streak of minerality, a handful of earth, and a bonus herbal sachet. Profound, contemplative, and rare, Bruna makes its Pulin only in the best vintages. Drinking now.

Bruna
U Baccan 2009, 750ml, $54.28
Bruna crafts only 180 cases a year of its flagship U Baccan, a varietal Pigato, making this one of Liguria's most sought after wines. U Baccan, "the Boss" in local dialect, exhibits bunches of heather, herbs, and tropical fruits and possesses a surprisingly complex, tangy palate. Crafted with almost no technological intervention, this is a wine whose honest, mellifluous palate will charm anyone. Drinking now to 2015.

Rocche dei Manzoni
Pinonero 1995, 750ml, $59.95**
If you've ever had the yen to taste what a Piemonte Barolo master might do with Pinot Noir, Rocche dei Manzoni's Pinonero delivers. An intriguing style of Pinot, this wine displays notes of red berries, rose bush, and oak, wrapped in soft, silky tannins. Just 500 cases are produced of this Piemonte take on Pinot Noir, and very little makes it to the US. Drinking now.

Forteto della Luja
Moscato d'Asti Piasa San Maurizio 2010, 750ml, $20.99
A super yummy, young and frisky Moscato d'Asti, this wine offers an explosion of lychee, citrus, custard and baked apple. From its golden color to its persistent bubbles, it's a treat for all five senses, and it makes a sophisticated accompaniment to dessert. Drinking now.