Verduno Pelaverga: Barolo’s Peppery Cousin Meets Seared Tuna
- 15 hours ago
- 5 min read
Updated: 14 hours ago
If you didn’t know better, Verduno Pelaverga sounds like an Italian aristocrat. A rather obscure one, admittedly. Maybe a forgotten opera composer. Or some old Piedmontese bloke who wears a linen scarf all year and will happily spend twenty minutes explaining how truffles should be shaved over risotto.
It really doesn’t sound like a wine.
But it is. Verduno Pelaverga DOC comes from the village of Verduno in Piedmont, and the grape is Pelaverga Piccolo, a rare local variety. Even the name has that very Piedmontese ring to it. Elegant, slightly grand, and not terribly helpful if you’ve never seen it on a wine list before.
And then there’s Barolo.
The two are, in a way, relatives. They come from the same part of Piedmont and have a connection to the Nebbiolo family, but that’s about where the similarities start to get interesting.
Because Barolo is the rich cousin.
Barolo got the big reputation, the expensive real estate and the rather impressive wardrobe. He’s the one everyone knows. Pelaverga stayed in Verduno and carried on doing its own thing.
Which is quite something when you consider where Verduno actually is. This is Barolo country, after all. Verduno is one of the 11 communes where Barolo can be made, so there has never been any shortage of temptation to plant Nebbiolo instead.
But the old Pelaverga vines survived.
Someone decided they were worth keeping, even when there were probably easier ways to make money from the land. I rather like that.
And the wine itself is nothing like the big, brooding Piedmontese red you might be expecting.
For starters, look at it. It’s pale. Really pale. Almost translucent. It has the sort of colour that makes you check the bottle twice to make sure you haven’t picked up something much lighter by mistake.
It also looks rather refined. Almost delicate.
Then you sniff it, and things get more interesting.
White pepper is the signature, but there’s also wild strawberry, raspberry and violet. That peppery note comes from an aromatic compound called rotundone, the same compound responsible for the distinctive peppery aroma you find in some other wines (cool-climate Syrah, Grüner Veltliner, Mourvèdre and Vespolina).
It’s fragrant and fresh, with that lovely little peppery kick. Nothing heavy or brooding. It’s much more playful than that.
On the palate it stays pretty light, somewhere around light to medium-bodied, with silky tannins and bright acidity. There’s enough structure to remind you that this is still a Piedmontese red, but it doesn’t make a big performance of it.
Barolo would probably arrive at dinner in a dinner jacket.
Pelaverga would turn up in a linen shirt, a silk scarf, sit down, and start talking to everyone.
And honestly, it’s a very easy wine to eat with. I like it slightly chilled, particularly with antipasti, charcuterie, pizza, poultry, tomatoey pasta and mushrooms. That peppery side also makes it surprisingly good with spicier food, as the wine has that little bit of swagger.
So no, Pelaverga was never going to become another Barolo.
And perhaps that’s for the best.
They’re from the same corner of Piedmont, with an old family connection through Nebbiolo, but somewhere along the way one cousin got the fortune and the other got the personality.
I know which one I’d invite to dinner.
There is one catch: you have to find the stuff.
Pelaverga is made in tiny quantities, so it isn’t exactly sitting on every wine-shop shelf.
Comm. G.B. Burlotto
Comm. G.B. Burlotto is one of the names to look for, and the winery has long been associated with keeping this old local grape alive when it could very easily have disappeared.
Comm. G.B. Burlotto been making wine since the 19th century, but Pelaverga was never the star. It was often planted alongside Nebbiolo and rarely bottled on its own, so it slowly began to disappear.
Then, in 1972, Gabriella Burlotto planted a dedicated parcel of Pelaverga in the Massara vineyard. That small decision helped save the grape. Today, winemaker Fabio Alessandria works with Pelaverga from sandy, chalky sites around Verduno, keeping the winemaking gentle and letting that lovely peppery fragrance do the talking.
So perhaps Pelaverga found exactly the right family. It’s an old Piedmontese grape, slightly eccentric, easily overlooked — but quietly stubborn enough to survive.
Serve it slightly chilled, around 12–14°C, with prosciutto, salami, anchovies, pizza or tomato-based pasta. Its bright acidity and peppery freshness make it particularly good for warm-weather drinking, a red for when your brain says rosé but your heart stubbornly says wine with tannins.
Picked the bottle up at Metrovino in Calgary.
A uniquely brilliant food pairing for Verduno Pelaverga is smoky grilled bonito or seared tuna sashimi. Because this rare Piedmontese red wine naturally contains high levels of the aromatic compound rotundone - giving it a distinct, punchy white-pepper and floral signature alongside bright red cherry fruit - its light body and silky texture bridge the gap to rich, meaty fish without clashing or metallic bitterness.
Thin slices of sushi-grade tuna, quickly seared until the outside is beautifully browned while the centre stays cool and completely raw.
Pepper Sesame Crusted Tuna Sashimi
Serves: 2–4 Prep: 10 minutes Cook: 1–2 minutes
Ingredients
450 g (1 lb) sushi-grade Ahi or Bluefin tuna, cut into a thick rectangular block
1 tsp (5 ml) sesame oil
½ tsp fine sea salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp (15 g) white and/or black sesame seeds
1 tbsp (15 ml) avocado seed oil
To serve
Soy sauce, Ponzu or Yuzu
Mayonaise / gochujang mayonnaise
Wasabi
Pickled ginger
Thinly sliced spring onions
Micro greens
Method
1. Dry the tuna
Pat the tuna very thoroughly dry with paper towels. This is important. A dry surface gives you a much better sear.
2. Season
Rub the tuna lightly with sesame oil, if using, then season with salt and pepper. For a sesame crust, press the tuna firmly into the sesame seeds until all sides are coated.
3. Get the pan seriously hot
Heat a cast-iron or heavy skillet over high heat until very hot. Add the oil and heat until shimmering and just beginning to smoke.
4. Sear the tuna
Place the tuna in the pan and sear for 10–20 seconds per side. Use tongs to quickly sear the edges as well. You want a thin, cooked crust around the outside while the centre remains completely raw.
5. Slice
Transfer the tuna to a board and let it sit for about 1 minute. Using a very sharp knife, slice it thinly across the grain.
6. Serve
Arrange the slices on a plate and serve immediately with soy sauce, wasabi and pickled ginger, if you like.
A little tip
The secret is heat and speed. Get the pan smoking hot, make sure the tuna is completely dry, and don’t hang around once the fish hits the pan. Ten seconds can make a surprisingly big difference when you’re trying to keep that beautiful ruby-red centre.
Happy sipping and savouring!
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