Daniele Ricci Io Cammino da Solo 20202 Review: One Hundred Days on the Skins and a Timorasso with a Stubborn Soul
There are easier ways to make Timorasso than leaving it buried in terracotta amphorae for a hundred days. Daniele Ricci knows this perfectly well. He simply has no interest in taking the easy road.
Io Cammino da Solo — I Walk Alone — is one of the most uncompromising orange wines of the Colli Tortonesi, a formidable interpretation of Piedmont’s great white grape. Amber-coloured, intensely savoury and almost ferociously textured, it exchanges the crystalline delicacy of conventional Timorasso for something darker and more visceral.
Candied orange peel, saffron, aromatic herbs and a curious resinous note emerge from a wine whose greatest achievement is its structure. The tannins are pronounced, the acidity vigorous and the finish bitter enough to make an impression. Yet beneath this imposing architecture there is genuine fruit, a powerful saline streak and an unexpectedly elegant rhythm.
This is no fashionable orange wine made simply to look unusual in a glass. Ricci has been pursuing this style long enough to know exactly what he wants.
The Basics
- Producer: Daniele Ricci – Azienda Agricola Ricci
- Wine: Io Cammino da Solo
- Vintage: 2020
- Appellation: Colli Tortonesi DOC
- Region: Piedmont, Italy
- Production area: Costa Vescovato, Alessandria
- Grape: 100% Timorasso
- Vineyards: San Leto area, approximately 290–300 metres above sea level
- Soils: Calcareous clay and Tortonian marl
- Viticulture: Certified organic
- Harvest: Manual
- Fermentation: Spontaneous, with indigenous yeasts
- Skin contact: Approximately 100 days in buried terracotta amphorae
- Ageing: 12 months in used, untoasted chestnut barrels, followed by bottle maturation
- Fining and filtration: None
- Alcohol: 13.5% ABV
- Style: Dry, skin-contact white wine
- Bottle size: 750 ml
- Serving temperature: 12–14°C
Daniele Ricci: The Maverick of the Tortona Hills
Daniele Ricci works in Costa Vescovato, among the marl-covered hills of southeastern Piedmont, where his family acquired farmland in 1929.
This is Timorasso country, although it took several stubborn winegrowers to convince the rest of the world that the grape deserved serious attention.
Daniele took over the family operation in 1986, gradually developing a style that rejected conventional winemaking formulas. Organic farming, spontaneous fermentation, prolonged skin contact and unconventional ageing vessels became central to his work.
He was hardly alone in questioning industrial winemaking, but few producers have pursued macerated Timorasso with such determination.
The vineyard soils are particularly interesting. Tortonian marl, a mixture of clay-rich sediment and limestone, characterises much of the area. Its capacity to retain moisture and support slow ripening helps produce grapes with substantial concentration and acidity.
Timorasso already possesses a formidable natural structure. Unlike the gentler Cortese of Gavi, it can develop impressive breadth, phenolic complexity and remarkable longevity.
Ricci takes those qualities to their extreme conclusion.
Rather than simply preserving the grape’s fresh, incisive character, he extracts another dimension from its skins, giving the wine the tannins and density normally associated with red-wine production.
How It’s Made: One Hundred Days in Terracotta
The grapes are harvested by hand and fermented with indigenous yeasts in terracotta amphorae buried underground.
The skins remain in contact with the fermenting wine for approximately one hundred days. That is an extraordinarily long period for a white grape, even by the standards of traditional orange wines.
During maceration, the wine extracts phenolic compounds, pigments and tannins. These transform both its appearance and its texture, adding an astringent framework that conventional white vinification would largely avoid.
After pressing, the wine spends approximately twelve months in used, untoasted chestnut barrels, followed by prolonged bottle ageing. The importer documents a further two years in bottle before release.
Chestnut is an unusual choice in contemporary winemaking. It has a different tannic character from oak and can contribute to the wine’s development without the familiar vanilla and toasted aromas associated with heavily charred barriques.
The result is a remarkable construction: the acidity and aromatic identity of Timorasso, the tannic grip of extended skin contact and the savoury complexity of long maturation.
Ricci does not clarify or filter the wine before bottling.
The technique is audacious, but technical audacity is worthless if the finished wine tastes like a collection of winemaking experiments. Fortunately, Io Cammino da Solo has considerably more to offer than an eccentric production method.
Tasting Notes
Colour: Deep amber with copper and burnished gold reflections. A striking, almost autumnal colour, with a slightly hazy appearance.
Bouquet: Candied orange peel and dried apricot emerge from an intense, brooding nose. Saffron and ginger follow, introducing an exotic spicy character, while thyme and a faint resinous note bring a sharper, more balsamic dimension.
There is something almost oriental about the perfume, although the wine never collapses into sweet, overripe fruit. A discreet suggestion of salted caramel adds richness, while the darker herbal undertones preserve an attractive austerity.
The bouquet is expansive, provocative and far removed from the familiar floral delicacy of conventional white wines.
Palate: Powerful, dense and uncompromisingly dry. The opening has considerable fruit, but the tannins arrive quickly, giving the wine a firm, almost red-wine-like grip.
Candied citrus and ripe stone fruit provide substance, while the acidity cuts relentlessly through the broad texture. Ginger, dried herbs and a touch of saffron emerge as the wine develops, followed by an assertive phenolic bitterness.
There is nothing flimsy about the structure. The tannins are substantial, the palate almost chewy, and the savoury concentration demands attention.
Yet the wine does not become cumbersome. Its acidity remains vigorous, creating a fascinating contrast with the dense, mature fruit. That tension gives the wine its most impressive quality: a sense of energy beneath the considerable weight.
Finish: Long, dry and remarkably persistent, with bitter orange, resin, ginger and a firm tannic echo. A saline sensation lingers after the fruit has disappeared.
Our Verdict
Io Cammino da Solo is a magnificent, stubborn Timorasso, with formidable structure, an extravagant spicy bouquet and enough acidity to prevent its hundred-day maceration from becoming an exercise in excess.
Its tannins and persistent bitterness make it a demanding wine. Those expecting the fragrant simplicity of an ordinary Piedmontese white may find it almost confrontational.
But there is genuine depth behind its rougher edges. Ricci has not sacrificed the identity of Timorasso to the fashionable aesthetics of orange wine; he has pushed that identity into unfamiliar, compelling territory.
A distinctive, ambitious bottle that deserves a large glass, a substantial meal and a little patience.
Price
€43.60 for a 750 ml bottle, according to the current retail listing. The price is not tied to an identifiable vintage in the photograph.
Food Pairings
Paella, vitello tonnato, chicken curry, pulled pork, empanadas, hamburgers.
