For the Justerini & Brooks buying team, the annual Piedmont trip is one of the most eagerly anticipated. Protected by the Alps to the north and the Mediterranean to the south, Piedmont is a very special place.

Arriving from busy Milan, spirits lift as the Langhe hills loom into view. It is a striking landscape. Atop winding country roads, medieval villages cut a sharp silhouette, hopping across steep, jagged valleys and awe-inspiring vineyards from one hilltop to the next. It was good to be back.

Of course, we were here to taste the wines. This time our focus was the latest 2013 vintage releases from Barolo, Barbaresco and Alto Piemonte. A week in mid-March under dry, sunny skies was just the climate for strolling vineyards and tasting in cellars. Growers were happy too – a spell of fine weather signalling the arrival of spring and budburst in a few of the earlier ripening vineyards. Our schedule was busy; twenty estates in four days - with the great and the good - and some new faces too.