Five days in Barolo: A visit at Azelia with Lorenzo Scavino

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This is part of five days that my wife Natasha and I stayed in Monforte, primarily for the purpose of visiting some of my favorite Barolo producers. I was very pleased as our trip was coming together as we were able to arrange visits with all of my top choices. For further exploration, see also my write ups of visits at: Giacomo Conterno, Giuseppe Mascarello, Cappellano, Giuseppe Rinaldi, Vietti, Comm. G.B. Burlotto, and Bartolo Mascarello. Yes, it was an amazing five days...
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Azelia was a bit of a flyer for me. They were the only winery on this trip that I wasn't already a massive fan of, but not only that, I can't actually recall ever having had one of their wines before. They were, however, a strong recommendation of Ed at E&R Wine Shop in Portland, who works directly with Azelia. I think Ed is understanding my tastes well enough these days and his recommendation certainly carries weight with me. The research I did in advance indicated that like Vietti, these guys seem to have a mix of modern and traditional practices, and they are coming a bit back to center in recent years. As Ed describes them, "They are not old school... they are not new school... they are just good school." Great! Let's dive a bit deeper...

We arrived to the wonderful grounds at 3pm on Saturday and were greeted by the latest generation, 24 year old Lorenzo Scavino. It was quite fun being here just hours after our visit to Cantina Mascarello, as many of the views expressed are nearly diametrically opposed (things like good vine age and why, fermentation length and why, green harvests and why).

Lorenzo explained that originally this was a typical farm of the region, with cows, horses, fruit trees, and grapes... grapes for wine was just a small production for the family but people began coming for their wine, so little by little they began increasing production until they did only grapes and made all their own wine, which was rare for the day (as opposed to selling the fruit). They have been making and bottling wine since the 1920s, though, so they are one of the very oldest producers still around. Interestingly, this is the only Barolo producer I'm familiar with that is not named after the family (Scavino). It used to be until the 70s, but at that time his grandfather named it Azelia, a typical flower in the vineyard. They also used to have peacocks, which is why they were used on the label. The estate holds 16 hectares and produces around 80,000 bottles a year, 85% of which is exported, with the largest single market being the US. They make four Barolos in most years, a normale (which is a blend of top cru sites), and three single vineyards: Bricco Fiasco, Margheria, and San Rocco (which is a monopole of Azelia and only 1.5 hectares in size).

In special vintages, they produce a Riserva wine from Voghera Brea, a tiny cru for which they hold just .9 hectares, with vine age of 80 years! That small vineyard yields just 3,000 bottles. They've only released a 2000, 2001, and 2004 of this wine, though a 2007 and 2010 are coming. In years it's not put out by itself it's added to the normale. This wine is usually released 7-8 years after harvest.

After some brief history, we began a tour of the facility. Firstly Lorenzo showed us this amazing clock that his great grandfather made in the 1930s. Every part of this mechanical clock is made out of wood, including the gears. He says it needs winding every day but keeps excellent time. Impressive.



Next we walked into a room which housed four 33HL blending tanks, which currently hold the 2011 Baroli. They also had a bunch of unlabeled, bottled 2009 Barolo which has been in the market for over a year. I inquired about it and Lorenzo explained that they always hold back a certain amount of every wine to release at a later date. They do this for every vintage of every wine they make. The oldest they've been releasing to the market are wines about 10 years old (recently stuff from the late 90s). Pretty cool that they do this, as this is an expensive proposition. Also interesting, all these bottles are stacked particularly carefully and are just lying without external support, over 6 feet tall stacks! Bottles are amazingly strong.



The next room is where the Dolcetto, Nebbiolo and Barbera go after alcoholic fermentation. They reside here through malolactic fermentation. These tanks are custom made for this space, since it's so tall, with vats 40HL all the way up to 60HL. Everything in this facility is done to optimize the space they have.



We didn't actually see the alcoholic fermentation room for some reason, but Lorenzo described it. They have "special shaped" stainless steel tanks where all the seeds stay in the bottom, because they never want to extract the "bad" tannins from the seeds which are bitter and harsh. "We want a very soft construction." For Dolcetto, Nebbiolo, Barbera, alcoholic fermentation on the skins lasts 8-10 days, and Nebbiolo for Barolo go up to 18-20 days. All of the Barolos have malolactic fermentation conducted in wood, the same type as their destiny: Normale, Margheria, and Barolo Riserva in botti, Bricco Fiasco and San Rocco in barrique. All of the barrique for Barolo is French oak, lightly toasted, 20% new and 80% second use. They use third and fourth use barrique for Barbera. They use lots of different coopers, 5, from France.





The botti used here come both from Austria and Slavonia, and is all unvarnished. Lorenzo said varnish "insulates the wood, and the oxygen can't transpire through the wood anymore." He says this is like having it in steel. The botti here is replaced every 10-12 years, which is the shortest time I've heard anywhere! Amazing they go for this massive expense that often. And interesting the contrast here between the likes Roberto Conterno, Mauro Mascarello and Maria Teresa Mascarello, all having wood 40-50 years old. At one point Lorenzo noted how "previously" unknowing wineries used wood for much longer. "At that time they used to use the barrels for 50 years because they thought that until they had wine leaking from the barrel they were good. But of course you have a lot of sediment after sometime which attach to the surface of the wood which means you don't have oxygen exchange anymore."

Fun to hear the differences, and surprising he phrased it that way since I'm sure he's aware these other famous producers still use much older botti today. I believe Conterno, Mascarello, and Rinaldi all commented that they often use barrels until they leak at the seams, and those folks are making some pretty damn fine wine. At Azelia though they never scrape the wood to revive it and remove those deposits. He didn't really say why, but I know this is done at these other traditional houses every 10 years or so, and they commented that the barrels perform just as new once this is done. It does seem weird to me... it's like throwing your car away once it needs a wash.



Next to the room with the botti is the private aging cellar, where they keep the best bottles, the best vintages, for the family. They do no temperature or humidity control in this area. 1932 is the oldest vintage they still have, with many other amazing old vintages from the 1940s, 1950s, to present. Lorenzo commented that the oldest he had was a WWII area wine from the 1940s. He describe aromas of dried fruits, dried flowers, lots of truffles, dark chocolate, and still plenty of sweet tannins. All of the corks here are original; they have never recorked anything.



Also here were some labeled wines from 1971, before the Azelia name took hold. These were labeled, "Alfonso Scavino e figlio". Interesting that there's not a single bottle of Barolo tracked in cellartracker with this name. I wonder if these pre Azelia bottles can ever be sourced... doubtful considering the lack of noted bottles in CT, but surprising considering the family's long history here.



After our tour we walked back into the entry room, which Lorenzo said used to be a typical farm room that had cows and horses in it! The family has lived here for nearly 100 years, and still lives directly upstairs. Thus, "we are always working!" The whole grounds here are amazingly meticulous, clean, detailed and intentional, so I asked when the renovation took place. There were always changes through the years, but the major one was finished about 15 years ago.

As we sat down to taste some wines (out of the wonderful Zalto stemware), Lorenzo mentioned we'd be tasting the three basic wines plus 2004 Barolo and 2003 Barolo Margheria. He said he picked these as he's had them recently and really wanted to show us how they were evolving. He said the 2003 was tasting really good today so "I wanted to show you the evolution" possible with his wines. I later see that 2003 was the very first vintage of Margheria, as it's their latest vineyard acquisition.

Lorenzo will be the 5th generation in the family to produce wine here, and he is the only child. I said, "Oh, no pressure or anything!" He laughed and agreed, but later said he never really felt pressure, as his parents know full well that you must have your own passion to do this. Amazingly, it's common in this area for kids to decide at a very young age whether they want to pursue oenology. Lorenzo made that choice at 13 and began attending oenology school in Alba at 14! The program is 6 years, so by the time he was 20 he was fully educated and working full time with his father at Azelia. I asked when his father was going to retire, and as is the typical answer in these parts, "He will never retire!" He will always be working, Lorenzo said. His father has now worked 35 harvests and he's still learning every year. His grandmother, owner of Bricco dell'Oriolo where the Dolcetto is from, is 84 years old and she's still working the vineyard and directing the workers, showing them how it's done! He said nothing stops her, and even on 100 degree days she's running up and down the vineyard.

We had a great conversation about vine age and pruning in the vineyard, mostly because it was interestingly completely opposite to the philosophies employed by Maria Teresa Mascarello which we heard about just hours before. First, the vine age. At Azelia the minimum vine age for their Barolo is 45 years! Recall that at Cantina Mascarello they don't like to let vines get older than 40 years because they believe at that age the vines produce wines that are too concentrated and cover the beauty of the fruit, disallowing balance. At Azelia, on the other hand, they encourage these old vines and Lorenzo says they NEVER replant until the vine actually dies naturally. Amazing.

At Azelia they "always" employ a green harvest in July and August, trimming back 35% of the clusters (remember by contrast Mascarello never employs green harvests). They keep the Nebbiolo vines to 4-5 clusters per shoot on the upper end. Lorenzo says this allows for uniform ripeness, which wouldn't be possible without cutting back. In a fantastically counter point of view, Mascarello believes their lack of cutting back (which causes over-ripening) is what "balances the crop load" and allows them to ripen at the same time, taking advantage of the fall ripening season, which Nebbiolo needs. Fascinating how they each believe opposite inputs provide them with the exact same desired outcome. Lorenzo's father was one of the first in Piedmont to introduce the green harvest 35 years ago. Everyone thought he was crazy at the time, basically they viewed this as just throwing away money. But in the end "everyone" was very satisfied when tasting the wines once mature and found it worth it. Apparently not "everyone," though. :-)

Lorenzo also said that the only difference between the way they used to make wine decades ago and now is the use of barrique. That would be very surprising, as that that implies their macerations were always the length they are today... Seems improbable considering they now use roto-drum fermenters. On that subject, Lorenzo says it takes these fermenters 30 minutes to do one rotation. He says this is very gentle, softer than doing it by hand, and the skins are never even broken. Nice to hear it's not so vigorous.
I briefly inquired about 2013, which Lorenzo commented it's really too early to tell what kind of vintage it will be based upon taste. However, on paper it looks very positive. They harvested October 26th in 2013, so quite late. He suspects the vintage may be more powerful and structured than 2010. He describes 2010 as classic, but it'll be more approachable from the beginning due to the ripe tannins. He says 2010 is close to 2004 on release in that they were both approachable. He says 2010 has the power of '06 but the aromas, the flowers of '07.

• 2012 Azelia Dolcetto d'Alba Bricco dell'Oriolo 90 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Dolcetto d'Alba

  This vineyard is outside of the Barolo district, in Montelupo Albese (directly east of Castiglione Falletto), at 600 meters of altitude. Typically the highest hills in Barolo are 200 to 300. Usually Dolcetto is planted at the lowest (worst) spots in the district. Lorenzo says this location is very good for the aromatics of the wine. The old vine age allows the fruit to be more concentrated despite the altitude. The altitude and full exposure allows the tannins to be sweeter and rounder. The old vines allow it to be more spicy. Lorenzo believes the wine can age 4-5 years. This vineyard was owned by the family of his grandmother, so his father really wanted to keep this vineyard. There are 2 hectares planted to Dolcetto.
  
  13% alcohol listed on the label. These vines are 45 years old... pretty impressive for Dolcetto. The aromas are quite rich and forward, with nice volume of fruit and some rose notes. Very sexy palate texture for a Dolcetto. Soft, mellow, and rich fruit. Moderate spice to go with that creamy red fruit. The elegance and palate texture is something you usually don't come across in Dolcetto. Really nice richness dials up on the finish, coupled with integrated acidity, rich minerals, and a nice impression of tartness. Very nice blossoming of acid on the finish, which Lorenzo commented is due to the limestone and sandy soils. Crazy balance and completeness... the finest Dolcetto I've had on release.

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• 2012 Azelia Langhe Nebbiolo 90 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Langhe DOC

  Part from Castiglione Falletto and part from Serralunga d'Alba, everything vinified together. This is aged only in stainless steel, as they particularly wanted to differentiate this from the Barolo and make it bright and crisp. The DOC allows you to add up to 15% of other varieties, but this is 100% Nebbiolo, made from 15-25 year old vines, their "young vines." All their Barolo vines are 45-80 years old. He says this will age 10-15 years, but when drinking young it's more aromatic.
  
  This dials in at 13.5% alcohol and is quite light in color. The aromas are rich and floral, with some fairly clean, lightly dusty red fruits poking through. Soft palate, but it does get fine grained tannins dialing in. Moderate fruit is present, but 10 seconds after it enters the tongue the fruit really begins to dial up. Fairly elegant for a Langhe Nebbiolo. Rich acids attack on the finish, with lovely, pretty bright raspberries coming in immediately following. Very enjoyable. It's puckering after several sips. I asked Lorenzo how these age and he simply commented that the tannins begin to recede after a few years, but the fruit blossoms even more. That'd be quite lovely! We'll see...

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• 2011 Azelia Barbera d'Alba Vigneto Punta 88 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba

  Punta is very close to the winery, within the Barolo district. Punta means "top of the hill" and indeed that's where this is, facing full south. Vines are 60 years old. Again talking about green harvesting, Lorenzo comments that if you have too many clusters the wine would be unbalanced because it'd be too acidic. "Heat is essential to decrease acidity." Very interesting hearing him talk this way, as the lower acidity is one of the reasons I hate heat in vintages. :-) This wine ages for one year in used barrels (3-4 years old). He says this wine can age 10-15 years. Lorenzo also recommended we try making the typical Piedmontese dish, Vitello tonnato, with this wine for the perfect pairing. We will have to do that!
  
  As this is within the Barolo district they could plant Nebbiolo here and produce a Barolo, but they find the site is ideal for Barbera. The aromas are rich, soft, but thick dark cherry is present. Soft and clean, this really smells beautiful, and only gets better as it sits in the glass. Soft, elegant palate entry, with really pretty tart fruit, with nice intensity and great balance. Rich acid on the finish, which is soft and tart, with pretty dark fruits and lovely balance with the acidity. Light oak is noticed at the end as well.

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• 2004 Azelia Barolo 91 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  This is a blend of 6 different vineyards, vinified all together. It came in at 14.5% alcohol. This was quite dark in color, which Lorenzo comments was due to the warmth of the vintage. The aromas are also very dark, but beautiful. These aromas are dark cherry, dark graphite and some licorice and anise. The palate is soft on entry, and quite smooth, with more rich anise and graphite. Fine grained, rich tannic profile, becoming quite nice and integrated. The finish is tart, with dark fruit and rich smooth tannins. Puckering and tart, as the finish is mostly structure. Still, lovely stuff, but I'm thinking it's still improving from here. Lorenzo also agrees that while this is drinking well now, it's still quite young. 91+

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• 2003 Azelia Barolo Margheria 89 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  In Serralunga d'Alba, Lorenzo describes the soils here are very clay heavy with a lot of limestone, causing very structured, powerful Barolo but at the same time very elegant, offering many minerals on the nose due to that clay.
  
  Their vines here are now 55-60 years old. The color is quite dark compared to the 2004 normale, however it's also a bit thinner looking, nearly see through, with some browning edges. The aromas are heavy and dark, with a little stewed fruit. Some salinity and tart gravel. The palate entry is soft, tart, and puckering, offering notes of licorice with some tannins but not much depth. It does actually feel quite stewed on the palate as its held, but there's an interesting balance of puckering acidity. Tons of acid and tannins on the finish, which feels smooth on small sips, but a little overpowering on large sips. Some nice fruit is present, but again it's fairly stewed. This wine's still together, but really I see no reason to continue to age it as it may be drying up. Overall, it's feeling very 2003 like, though I will admit it's not as steamy as many at this stage of development.

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We had a lovely visit with Lorenzo, and really enjoyed the wines we got to try. I do wish we were able to try the 2010 Barolos though, as that's what's hitting the US soon. That said, I appreciated him showing us some older vintages. I saw enough in the 2004 Barolo to be impressed, and while 2003 is certainly not a vintage I seek to acquire, despite my lack of fondness for this particular one it still showed me enough to not hold it against them considering the vintage. I really do appreciate the large difference of opinion held here vs. some of my favorite producers. While I know those very traditional producer's wines evolve beautifully as I've had 40 year old renditions, I will certainly be curious to see what happens with these Azelia wines. I did see enough on our visit though to go fairly heavy in on the 2010 Barolos, which have been getting excellent press. Glad to have found another interesting producer, one of the few that straddle that modern/traditional line with grace to my palate.

Start the trail again at Giacomo Conterno...