La Festa del Barolo 2023
The Pool, NYC
Tasted Saturday, February 4, 2023 by Eric Guido with 225 views
Introduction
The producers of Barolo will tell you that 2018 was a fresh vintage, a term often used to describe cooler years. The problem is that in the recent past, as I’ve also experienced in Montalcino during 2018, fresh vintages are starting to become synonymous with difficult years as well. A large amount of rain in May and June, one of the worst times to have rain so close to flowering, wreaked havoc on the vineyards. This also created a need to be super vigilant, maintaining the health of the vines. In the end, this was a variable year that created many pretty expressions of Nebbiolo, and some found harmony through a balanced structure. However, there are many more wines that simply come across as lacking depth or possessing tannins that will outlast their fruit. That said, as I’ve always believed, it’s best to choose producers over vintages.
2018 Comm. G.B. Burlotto Barolo Monvigliero
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The 2018 Barolo Monvigliero is a total charmer, wild and exuberant in the glass with a burst of exotic florals, fresh picked strawberries and sweet spice. It washes across the palate with silken textures and tart wild berry fruits energized by zesty acidity. The 2018 finishes structured yet long with a primary concentration that lingers, as nuances of licorice and red currants fade. This comes across as quite youthful today, yet with the balance to mature beautifully in the cellar. It’s a completely atypical expression of the vintage, as well as one of its most impressive wines.
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2018 Vietti Barolo Cerequio
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The 2018 Barolo Cerequio has come a long way since I last tasted it; dusty and floral in the glass, with a lovely blend of violet and lavender accentuating crushed black cherries. This hovers across the palate, seeming weightless at times yet impactful, with masses of tart red fruits and exotic spices that saturate. Fresh acidity maintains balance, as fine tannins grip the palate and leave inner rose and a primary staining of concentration to linger long. This is so powerful, yet also beautifully balanced.
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2018 Francesco Rinaldi e Figli Barolo Rocche dell'Annunziata
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The Barolo Rocche dell’Annunziata was a highlight of my recent flight of 2018s, lifting from the glass with vivid black cherries complemented by autumnal spices and hints of shaved cedar. This is lifted and juicy in feel, with bright red berries and crisp acidity that adds energy throughout as rosy inner florals form toward the close. Nuances of licorice and balsam herbs linger through the long and lightly structured finale. This is a remarkably pretty expression of Rocche dell’Annunziata, which is refined for three years in large casks.
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2018 Piero Benevelli Barolo Mosconi
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Benevelli is a new name for me and a very pleasant surprise, as the 2018 Barolo Mosconi lifts from the glass with a pretty bouquet of bright cherries and strawberries complemented by dusty roses. This is soft-textured with a pure and savory mix of red fruits underscored by saline minerality. It finishes with fine tannins balanced by crisp acidity, as a tart wild berry concentration lingers. The 2018 is a beautiful expression of Mosconi fruit that comes across as completely classic, even from this difficult vintage.
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2018 Elio Altare Barolo Unoperuno
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The 2018 Barolo Unoperuno is dusty and floral in the glass, mixing dried strawberries with roses and sweet smoke. This flows across the palate like pure silk, cool-toned and incredibly fresh, with tart wild berry fruits and inner violet florals that cascade throughout. The 2018 finishes gracefully and hauntingly long with nuances of dried blueberry that linger on and on. The Unoperuno could use some cellaring to help its aromatics to blossom. Otherwise, it’s an incredibly charming wine. Unoperuno, a blend of Altare’s vineyards, translates to “one by one”; it’s a Barolo that is produced through hand sorting where each berry is destemmed by hand. What a beauty.
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2018 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo Brunate
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The 2018 Barolo Brunate is hauntingly dark and floral, with spicy red and black fruits complemented by a hint of dried blood orange. This is silky-smooth and energetic, with vivid black cherry and exotic spice motivated by stimulating acidity. It finishes with incredible length, leaving a coating of fine-grained tannins, along with violet and rose tones that slowly fade. The 2018 Brunate is a beautiful expression of the vintage, which should drink well relatively young. Frankly, it’s hard to put the glass down.
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2018 Paolo Scavino Barolo Monvigliero
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Dusty and floral in the glass, the 2018 Barolo Monvigliero opens with a burst of crushed stone, dried roses and wild strawberries. It flows across the palate, silky yet savory, with herbal-tinged red berries motivated by brisk acidity. This tapers off with nuances of lavender and violets, as fine tannins gently tug as the senses. The 2018 is a remarkably pretty expression of Monvigliero fruit. It hails from a single-hectare parcel that was planted in 1968. Elisa Scavino did a fantastic job here.
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2018 Parusso Barolo Mosconi
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The 2018 Barolo Mosconi is wild and dramatic, blending an intense mix of dusty cherry, spiced blood orange and shavings of cedar. It’s round and pliant, yet full of energy, with vibrant acidity energizing its tart wild berry fruits as a hint of pine resonates toward the close. It leaves a staining of primary concentration, along with a coating of fine tannins that gently tug at the palate. The 2018 needs more time to integrate, yet it possesses a beautiful balance that will reward cellaring. Of note, during my recent tastings, this was the bottle that invoked the most positive feedback from fellow tasters, which was mostly focused on how pleasantly unique it was.
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2018 E. Pira & Figli (Chiara Boschis) Barolo Mosconi
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The 2018 Barolo Mosconi is vividly fruit-focused and exotic, with a burst of wild strawberry and cherry accentuated by hints of mint and sweet spice. It’s silky-smooth with cooling acidity and crisp red fruits that give way to a caking of chalky minerality. The 2018 finishes grippy yet fresh with a lingering spiciness.
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2018 Fratelli Alessandria Barolo Gramolere
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The 2018 Barolo Gramolere is unexpectedly rich and fruit-focused on the nose, with crushed black cherries, shavings of cedar and dried roses forming its bouquet. It’s soft-textured and pure in style with mineral-tinged red fruits and savory spice. The 2018 tapers off wonderfully fresh with an almost-mentholated sensation, as grippy tannins are nicely balanced by a twang of residual acidity. This may not possess the usual power of Gramolere, but instead impresses with its graceful character and balance. Well done.
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2018 Luciano Sandrone Barolo Aleste
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The 2018 Barolo Aleste wafts up with a darkly alluring bouquet of crushed black currants offset by lifting hints of cedar and mint. This is a soft-textured yet cool-toned effort, with tart wild berry fruits motivated by brisk acidity. It finishes grippy and full of tension with a reverberation of raspberry under an air of inner rose.
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2018 Oddero Barolo Brunate
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
A delicate mix of roses, earth tones and wild strawberries wafts up as the 2018 Barolo Brunate opens in the glass. This is pure class, finessed with cooling minerality and crisp red berry fruit. It finishes with a coating of grippy tannins, leaving a completely classic feel, as hints of licorice and hard red candies slowly fade. The 2018 is incredibly pretty, yet it will require time to come fully into focus. The Brunate of Oddero hails from one of the higher elevations of the vineyard, planted in soil rich in blue clay and stones. I'm so happy to see so much positive change from this estate over the last five to seven years.
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2018 Giacomo Fenocchio Barolo Villero
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Dark and mineral in the glass, the 2018 Barolo Villero wafts up with notes of crushed stone and dusty dried roses. It’s soft and round on the palate with juicy acidity that motivates its tart red fruits. Nuances of licorice and a hint of dark chocolate linger, as this finishes with youthfully grippy Villero tannins and a bit dry. I'd prefer more balance from start to finish.
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2018 Castello di Verduno Barolo Vigna Massara
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The 2018 Barolo Massara lifts from the glass with a delicate and pretty blend of violets, roses and stone dust. This is soft, round and savory in style, with mineral-tinged red and black fruits that cascade across a core of brisk acidity. It finishes with a hulking structure, leaving just nuances of black currant to linger. Unfortunately, I don’t see the fruit keeping pace with the tannins over time.
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2018 La Spinetta (Rivetti) Barolo Vürsù Vigneto Campè
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Dark and moody in the glass, the 2018 Barolo Campe opens up with a blend of wild herbal tones and dried cherries. It’s softly textured, with masses of minerality up front contrasting a core of tarry blackberry and plum. This finishes with a hulking structure, a bit dried out and long, with grippy tannins that saturate as hints of black licorice slowly fade.
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