An Introduction to 2014: Barolo Margheria from Azelia and Massolino and Rocche dell'Annunziata from Renato Corino at La Festa del Barolo

Growing Nebbiolo grapes for the production of Barolo wines was a challenge in 2014; but the show must go on. And go on it did, according to the producers who spoke at the Saturday Seminar of Antonio Galloni's La Festa del Barolo.

At the seminar we had the chance to hear from, and taste the wines of, 14 Barolo producers arranged into flights of between two and four producer/wine combinations.

The initial flight was titled An Introduction to 2014 ... and featured Lorenzo Scavino (Piemonte's response to Hollywood) presenting Azelia's Barolo Margheria, Franco Massolino presenting a similarly designated wine from his namesake estate, and Stefano Corino presenting the Barolo Rocche dell' Annunziato from Renato Corino.

Lorenzo Scavino, Franco Massolino, and Stefano Corino

I was mystified by the composition of this flight. The Azelia and Massolino wines had been paired in a flight at last year's Seminar as we probed the character of the cru. Combining them this year with the Renato Corino wine -- a wine from one of my top 18 Barolo Vineyards -- begs the question as to intent.

I have covered the fundamentals of the Azelia and Massolino estates, and the Margheria and Rocche dell'Annunziata crus, in prior posts. I will provide a brief summary of the Renato Corino operations herein to fill out the picture.

Renato Corino
Renato Corino split from his brother in 2005 and founded the estate currently bearing his name. The estate owns vineyards in the La Morra crus of Rocche dell'Annunziata, Arborino, and Pozzo, employing integrated/sustainable farming practices therein. The estate eschews the use of chemicals, using copper, sulfur, and manure instead. Grass is maintained between vineyard rows and is then tilled into the soil in the winter.Vines are trained using the Guyot system. Yield is managed through fruit drops at the end of July and pre-harvest.

Grapes for the Barolo Rocche dell'Annunziata wine is sourced from a 0.6 ha, southwest-facing plot that sits between 300 and 320 meters on clayey sand soil. The vineyard was planted in 1962.

The wine is fermented in stainless steel tanks before being transferred to wood for malolactic fermentation and 24 months aging.

The Wines

Azelia
According to Lorenzo, this wine was fermented traditionally with submerged cap and was aged for three years in the bottle after the 24 months in wood.

The wine was perfumed on the nose, with a profusion of violets accompanying notes of tar, roses, and spice. Linear and focused with beautiful fruit. Mineral and saline with good acidity. Drying on the palate as tannins make their presence felt.

Massolino
Perfumed. Violets, tar, and red fruit. Broader-based than the Azelia; fuller and rounder. Beautiful fruit. More textured than the Azelia.

Renato Corino
Lean and elegant with fine-boned tar. Violets, walnuts and truffle. Structured and complex. Great acidity, aggressive tannins, and a bitter, creamy finish. A beautiful wine.

Right about this time we got the first of many fire safety announcements from the PA system. It was a pain.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

Elvio Cogno's Barolo Ravera Bricco Pernice and Vietti's Barolo Ravera: The Emergence of Novello and Ravera

The Antonio Galloni celebration of Barolo is held annually in New York City and consists of (i) a gala dinner and (ii) a Masterclass tasting of 15 Barolos on the day after the dinner. This year's Masterclass was titled 2013 Barolo: Sublime Finesse and Elegance and featured 15 of the region's top producers discussing, in turn, their estate's 2013 vintage.

The wines were presented in flights. This flight, titled The Emergence of Novello and Ravera, featured 2013 Barolo Raveras from Elvio Cogno and Vietti presented by Valter Fissore and Luca Currado, respectively.

The Emergence of Novello and Ravera
The context of the flight title is captured pithily by Masnaghetti (Barolo MGA):

If, up until 15 years ago, Novello could be numbered among the townships of lesser importance for the Barolo appellation in terms of vineyard surface, things are quite different today. ... the vineyard surface for the production of Barolo has practically tripled over the last 13 years, now making it superior to Verduno and even to Castiglione Falletto. An expansion which has principally involved the Eastern Slopes of the township where we moreover find the best known crus, in particular Ravera and Sottocastello di Novello.

Masnaghetti goes on to say that most of this growth appears to be driven by producers from other townships expanding their growing and production capacity into the area, potentially driven by lower costs.

Galloni, in a February 2014 article, also mentioned the potential of climate change having beneficial effects for "austere" wines such as those produced in Ravera.

Ravera
Ravera is the largest of the Novello MGAs, its shared status with the Barolo commune notwithstanding (According to Masnaghetti, 4% of its 130.41 ha falls within the borders of the Barolo commune.). There was a recent significant expansion of the Cru (probably as part of the MGA classification process) because Petrini (A Wine Atlas of the Langhe) had defined it more narrowly: "The territory we have identified as the Ravera vineyard ... covers about five giornate (two hectares). It is a south-facing vineyard that runs along the Ravera municipal road descending from Novello, near the church of San Rocco, to the Panerole municipal road." A rough approximation of the boundaries of the currently defined cru is illustrated in the map below.

An approximation of the Ravera Cru illustrated in brown

The altitude of the vineyard ranges between 300 and 480 m (Masnaghetti), among the highest in the Barolo zone. This height, coupled with the lack of barriers between it and the mountains to the north, exposes the vineyard to cooler north winds. The vineyards experience copious amounts of direct sunlight and significant day-night temperature variation, yielding brilliant fruit endowed with great acidity (Luca Currado, Vietti). These growing conditions usually have the Ravera vines blooming 10 days, on average, later than the vines in other crus but they catch up during the course of the growing season (elviocogno.com).

The soil composition is 57% loam, 28% clay, and 15% sand, with the clay contributing to its water-holding capability. The limestone content is high, as is the pH(8.2).

According to Kermit Lynch, the wines from this MGA "... have the distinction of combining the structural strength of neighboring Serralunga d'Alba with the concentration and richness of Bussia and other crus further north."

Elvio Cogno Barolo Ravera Bricco Pernice
Elvio Cogno purchased Cascina Nuova in 1990, thus launching his own estate after a decades-long association with the Marcarin estate in La Morra and, earlier, making wines for patrons of his family's restaurant. In 1996 Elvio passed his business on to his son-in-law Valter Fissore, husband of his daughter Nadia. Today the winery owns 11.5 ha of vineyards in the Ravera cru, distributed over four vineyards: Cascina Nuova, Bricco Pernice, Ravera, and Vigna Elena.

Elvio Cogno and its vineyards (Source: elviocogno.com)

Bricco Pernice is a 2-ha vineyard located at 320 m elevation in a "warm and sheltered" portion of the cru. The white color of its soil is a testament to high levels of limestone interspersed with clay. The vineyard is planted with the lampia clone with two of its three parcels outfitted with 25-year-old vines and vines in the remaining parcel averaging 50 years. The vines are vertical-trellised, Guyot-pruned, and planted at 5000 vines/ha.

Bricco Pernice (Source: elviocogno.com)

The vineyard follows organic-farming principles and, as such, has eliminated the use of synthetic treatments and fertilizers.

Grapes are vinified in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks and macerated for 30 days with a submerged cap. The wines are then racked over to large Slavonian oak barrels (25 - 30 hl) for 30 months aging and is aged for an additional 18 months after bottling.

Vietti Barolo Ravera
The Vietti Ravera plot is 3 ha in size with a southwest exposure and clay-limestone soils. The vines average 25 years and are planted at 4500 vines/ha.

In a video clip on vinous.com -- wherein Luca Currado and Valter Fissore discuss the Ravera cru -- Luca stated that he has made a wine from this cru for many years but that he had to learn how to make such a wine. In the early days he had tried a more modern approach but the results were unsatisfactory: the "brilliant fruit" and "great acidity" were not adequately represented. After many years of experimentation, he finally came to the realization that the traditional approach -- long maceration and long aging in large casks -- worked best in bringing out the terroir characteristics of the fruit. The year 2000 signaled the end of the period of experimentation and ascendance to production of a reliable terroir wine.

The grapes are crushed and placed into stainless steel tanks for four weeks of fermentation and maceration (pre and post) and are aged for 30 months in Slovenian oak casks.

The Wines
The 2013 Elvio Cogno Barolo Ravera Bricco Pernice showed ripe red fruit, tar, and spice on the nose. Plum on the palate. Saline finish. The Vietti Ravera showed tar, roses, a deep cherry, licorice, and a slight balsamic note. Open on the nose. Floral on the palate. Elegant with a beautiful finish. These are both excellent wines but I found the Vietti slightly more pleasing.


©Wine -- Mise en abyme

Francesco Rinaldi and Giuseppe Rinaldi: The Classicism of Brunate

The Saturday Masterclass (2013 Barolo: Sublime Finesse and Elegance) at 2018's La Festa del Barolo featured six flights of wines, with each wine presented by a representative of the estate. I have previously posted on The Art of the Blend and Renaissance of Verduno and Monvigliero flights and will continue down that path with this post on the flight titled The Classicism of Brunate. This flight features the wines of Francesco Rinaldi and Giuseppe Rinaldi presented by Paola Rinaldi and Carlotta Rinaldi, respectively.

Brunate
Brunate is a 25-ha, inter-commune vineyard with administrative responsibility shared between the towns of Barolo and La Morra. According to ceretto.com, the soil profiles and exposure on both sides of the communes dividing line are essentially the same but the altitudes differ, ranging from 230 m to 400 m. The soils feature marls of S. Agata fossils with good levels of sand, especially in the higher elevations.

Cantinadamilano.it reports that:

The lower sand levels in the soil result in aromas that are less intense but feature notes of fruit and spice such as clove, cinnamon, and nutmeg. As the wine matures, the fine structure of the terroir translates into hints of tobacco, rose and liquorice. And in great vintages, the nose has notes of truffle and tar. Alkalinity and elevated calcium levels give the final wine a touch of delicate elegance ... The Barolo of Brunate can be defined as a particularly balanced wine with an ample nose and an intense structure with good alcohol levels, as well as, generous tannins and body.

According to ceretto.com, "It is one of the most representative vineyards of the commune of La Morra and has always been considered one of the points of reference of the entire appellation." Vinous cites Manuel Marchetti of Marcarini who identified Brunate wines as "austere, yet ethereal, notes of spices, mint, licorice and balsamic are all very typical." Polaner Selections was pithy: "Brunate is one of the greatest vineyards in the Barolo region” ... with wines that "... are prized for their depth, power and brilliant balance..."

The Rinaldis
The Rinaldi winemaking heritage actually stretches back to 1870 when the great great grandfather of the current generation -- Giovanni -- merged his inherited vineyard with that of his wife's to form the Barale-Rinaldi estate, the third largest in the region behind Borgogno and Marchesi di Barolo (Labor of Love). The winery continued operation with the contributions of Giovanni's four sons until they parted ways. The original estate continued operation under the name Francesco Rinaldi (the youngest son) and is currently managed by Paola and Piera Rinaldi, great granddaughters of Giovanni and nieces of Luciano Rinaldi.

The Giuseppe Rinaldi estate was founded by Giuseppe Rinaldi who had already been making wines with his brothers but broke away to form his own estate in 1916. The current estate proprietor, Giuseppe, is best known for his continued adherence to the traditional ways of producing Barolo wine. Giuseppe has been joined in the estate by his two daughters Marta and Carlotta with Marta's area of focus being in the cellar while Carlotta spends a lot of her time in the vineyards.

According to Polaner Selections, "These two family wineries have marched down through time side by side, both upholding the unique, traditional style of Barolo that has also been championed by other great names in Piemonte such as Bartolo Mascarello and Bruno Giacosa."

Francesco Rinaldi Brunate

Grapes for this wine are sourced from a 2-ha plot of the famed vineyard. This plot is southeast-facing, with clay soils, and was planted between 1979 and 1981. The Francesco Rinaldi Brunate plot is shown in yellow on the map below.

Rinaldi Barolo vineyards (Source: vinitywinecompany.com)

Grapes for this wine are vinified in temperature-controlled steel or concrete tanks and are subject to lengthy maceration periods. The cap is managed by automatic pump overs for 20 to 30 days during the maceration period.

After maceration the wine is racked over to Slavonian oak barrels (20 - 30 Hl) for 3 years of aging. After bottling the wine is subjected to additional aging prior to release on the market.

Giuseppe Rinaldi Brunate

The Rinaldi vineyards are farmed organically. The fruit undergoes a month-long pre-fermentation maceration/fermentation/post-fermentation maceration or a month in tall, un-cooled, Slovenian oak vats. Indigenous yeasts are utilized in this effort. Cap management is via twice/day pump overs along with some manual punchdowns. Grape solids are sent to a basket press at the end of the maceration.

The wines are aged in big botti for 3 to 5 years. They are racked once or twice per year during the first two years but are untouched in the third.

The Wines
For the Francesco Rinaldi Brunate, elegant rose petal, tar, licorice and ripe red fruit. Lands on the palate with the feet of a butterfly. Silky tannins, spice and a long, long finish. The Giuseppe Rinaldi Brunate showed tar, roses, licorice, and dark fruit on the nose. Weightier on the palate than was the case for the Francesco Rinaldi but does not suffer as a result. Roundness on palate with balanced, smooth elegance. Beautiful rose wood finish.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

E. Pira e Figli's Via Nuova and Luciano Sandrone's Le Vigne: The art of the blend

The second of the six flights at Galloni's Masterclass (2013 Barolo: Sublime Finesse and Elegance) at La Festa del Barolo was titled The Art of the Blend and showcased the 2013 Barolos of E. Pira e Figli (Via Nuova) and Luciano Sandrone (Le Vigne) presented by Chiara Boschis and Barbara Sandrone, respectively.

Blending

There are a number of blending drivers, as indicated in the figure below. While varietal blends tend to dominate, blending can occur down to the single-variety, single-plot level where free-run and press juice are kept separate and then blended in a winemaker-determined proportion at a later date.

According to classof1855.com, complexity in wine is demonstrated by "multiple layers and nuances of bouquet and flavors that are formed mostly in mature wines because aging contributes to this attribute." Further, "complexity creates interest and often unfolds layer upon layer on the nose and in the mouth if the wine is at its peak. Compared to complex wines, other wines seem shallow or one-dimensional."

According to Winemaker Matt, writing on the Kendall-Jackson Blog, blending different vineyard sites with different characteristics from different growing regions allows winemakers to create a wine that is 'greater than the sum of its parts.'" He points to the Kendall-Jackson Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon (assuredly not one of the world's great wines; but the principle holds) which is built from a small percentage of the 400 lots which the winery vinifies and ages separately post-harvest. He creates a core blend and then experiments with different lots to add complexity and seamlessness. According to Matt, "Often the results are truly surprising. A wine that might seem simple, but having one or two interesting features, can provide an incredible enhancement to a new blend."

As it relates to Barolo, Erin Scala (writing in Vinography) stated thusly: " In the first half of the 1900s, producers generally blended wines from different vineyards and bottled them together. In addition to the levels of complexity that you'd get from the subtle differences in ripeness from different microclimates, the blending of wines from sandstone and limestone marl could yield a full, complex wine. You could also get other layers of complexity from the blending of younger and older wines."

E. Pira e Figli's Via Nuova

Via Nuova used to be a cru but, when this named vineyard was incorporated into the Terlo MGA, Chiara trademarked the name and, as of 2009, made a blended Barolo with fruit sourced as follows: Terlo and Liste in Barolo, Ravera and Mosconi in Monforte d'Alba, and Gabutti and Baudana in Serralunga d'Alba. Each site averages 0.5 ha in size and is either south- or southeast-facing at an average elevation of 340 m.

In addition to the living-soil practices of organic farming, and the pest-control characteristics of biodiversity, Chiara has an active-measures program for the provision of high-quality fruit to the cellar door. Vines are pruned in the winter (a maximum of 9 buds/plant) and green harvesting (to concentrate the vine's energy into a smaller number of bunches) remains a mainstay of her vineyard management program.

All work in the vineyard, including harvesting, is done manually. At harvest there is a strict selection in the vineyard with grapes not making the cut dropped in the field to contribute to soil regeneration.

After harvesting, the grapes are crushed/destemmed prior to being placed into stainless steel tanks for fermentation (Chiara prefers stainless steel because of the ease of cleaning). Each vineyard is vinified separately. Maceration is shortened (two weeks for fermentation and maceration in this case) with the cap being managed by punchdowns. The grapes are then lightly pressed and racked over to barriques for malolactic fermentation.

The wine is aged for 24 months  in lightly toasted French oak barrels (1/3 new, 1/3 second use, 1/3 third use) and then an additional year in bottle.

Chiara Boschis at La Festa del Barolo 2018

Luciano Sandrone's Le Vigne
Lee Vigne is a multi-vineyard blend composed of fruit sourced from the Baudana (Serralunga d'Alba),Villero (Castiglione Falletto), and Merli (Novello) vineyards. According to the winery website, these vineyard sites "form a perfect diagonal across the area" and encompasses a variety of terroirs: soils ranging from light and sandy to ones that are more compact and deep; different altitudes; and different exposures.

The winery is known for severe green harvests (in order to produce high-quality fruit) along with "an obsessive attention to training, pruning, and harvesting." Once harvested, the grapes are vinified and aged separately with blending occurring prior to bottling. Fermentation is spontaneous with medium-length maceration. Malolactic fermentation and aging are carried out in 500l, partially new, French oak barrels.

The Sandrone winemaking practices place the enterprise squarely athwart the traditional and modern winemaking philosophies in Barolo.

Barbara Sandrone at La Festa del Barolo 2018

The Wines
The Via Nuova showed rose petals, tar, licorice and dark cherries. Powerful. Tar carries through. Persistence on the palate from attack through a lengthy finish. The Le Vigne showed tar, licorice, red fruit, and a hint of rose petals. Fruit and acid balances beautifully on the palate. Spice. Great weight. Lengthy sour finish. I like this wine.

These two wines made great cases for blended Barolos.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

Antonio Galloni's La Festa del Barolo: Guest post by Ron Siegel

Last weekend, Antonio Galloni -- fresh from his settlement with Robert Parker -- hosted the second edition of his La Festa del Barolo in New York City. The event, touted as a “special weekend celebration dedicated to the great wines of Barolo,” included a Rare Wine Charity Dinner benefitting The Robin Hood Relief Fund and the victims of Hurricane Sandy on Friday night and Saturday events to include a tutored tasting and a subsequent dinner at Del Posto.  This post covers the Saturday events.

Galloni flew in 15 of the top producers from Piemonte to participate in the event and had the highly acclaimed restaurant Del Posto host the tasting and the dinner in their private downstairs banquet room. The tasting -- titled 2008 Barolo: An Exploration of Terroir and held earlier in the afternoon -- consisted of 15 wines of the 2008 Barolo vintage in four flights. 

Ron, Bev, and Galloni

Bev with Pete Wasserman

The tasting and dinner were both well organized and extremely well run with top Sommeliers from NYC and around the country opening and pouring the wines. We had Gianluca Grasso -- from Elio Grasso -- at our table with Marta Rinaldi from the Rinaldi  winery as our special guest. Marta was so much fun to be with and kept bringing us wines to taste and introducing winemakers to our table. 

Ron, Bev, and Marta Rinaldi

The following wines were poured at the tasting. The winemakers would talk about the wines and the vintage with Galloni moderating. A cool growing season and late harvest were some of the hallmarks of 2008.

Flight 1

2008 E Pira Barolo Cannubi. Surprisingly showing some sediment. Nice red fruit. Smoke, soy, and balsamic notes. 

2008 Borgogno Barolo Cannubi. Slightly muted nose. Tar and rose petals. Made in the classic style. 

2008 Luciano Sandrone Barolo Cannubi Bosch is concentrated cherry. Very structured with violets and camphor notes. Nice acidity. Will need time but I like this producer.

2008 Roberto Voerzio Barolo Cerequio. Huge nose of black cherry. Very floral with violets and rose petals. Spice and tar notes. Long finish. We loved this wine. My wine of the flight.

Flight 2

2008 Elvio Cogno Barolo Bricco Pernice. Higher altitude vineyards which showed a somewhat muted and closed nose. A lighter and more elegant style of Barolo. Not my favorite today.

2008 GD Vajra Barolo Bricco delle Viole. Very aromatic and complex bouquet. spice, forest floor, cherry, sandalwood, bay leaf, roses, licorice, and tar and slightly medicinal. Very elegant on the palate. I would buy this!  

2008 Vietti Barolo Rocche. Wow! Love Vietti's Rocche. Great intensity with a nose of strawberry, licorice, and tar. Big, structured, and rich. Showing lots of depth but still very elegant and no harsh tannins. My wine of the flight

2008 Paolo Scavino Barolo Riserva Bric del Fiasc. Nice red fruits, floral notes, smoke and spice.

Flight 3

2008 Conterno Fantino Barolo Sori Ginestra. Sweet red fruit, licorice, cherry, smoke and vanilla. Nicely structured and ripe. Long maceration plus 24 months in 80%-90% new oak.

2008 Elio Grasso Barolo Ginestra Vigna Case Mate Large, structured, and tannic. Very complex nose of cherry, strawberry, dried herbs, and licorice. Needed more decant time. Galloni gave this 98+. 

2008 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo Romirasco. Very spicy. Red berry fruits, roses, and mint with some smoke, mineral, and balsamic. Full-bodied and made from one of the best vineyard sites, Bussia. My wine of the flight.

2008 Pio Cesare Barolo Ornato. Nice round, lush cherry fruit with some cinnamon and licorice notes. Ten thousand bottles produced and in only good vintages. Very nice Barolo.

Flight 4

2008 Giacoma Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia. Barolo made in the traditional style with black cherry, rose petals, tar and licorice notes.   

2008 Brovia Barolo Ca' Mia. Dark color. Lovely complex nose of cherry and strawberry. Very floral, spicy, tarry and meaty. Reminded my wife of a Dr pepper. Big structured Barolo. My wine of the flight.

2007 Cavallotto Barolo Riserva Bricco Boschis Vigna San Giuseppe. The only 2007 in the tasting as the 2008 was yet to be bottled. Very approachable with red fruits and floral notes of roses and violets. Nice spice.                

Below are most of the wines that we tasted at the dinner arranged by decade. 

I got a little taste of what La Paulee must be like for their Gala dinners as we had to taste quickly as there were new wines ready to pour one after the other into our already filled glasses. A great night of Giacosa Riservas and Monfortino's.

1950s

1957 Cappellano Barolo (slightly over the hill)

1960s

1964 Giacomo Conterno Barolo

1970s

1970 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Monfortino

1971 Giuse

1978 Borgogno Barolo Riserva (poured to us by Andrea Farinetti - the son of the owner of Borgogno)

1980s

1982 Giuseppe Mascarello Barbaresco Marcarini (corked)

1982 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Cascina Francia

1985 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo Brunate Riserva

1988 Aldo Conterno Barolo Granbussia from Magnum (poured for us by Roberto Conterno - the owner of Giacomo Conterno)

1988 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Riserva Santo Stefano (Red Label)

1989 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Riserva Santo Stefano (Red Label)

1989 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia

1990s

1990 Brovia Barolo Monprivato from Magnum

1990 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Rionda (Red Label)

1990 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Falletto (Red Label)

1990 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Monfortino from Magnum (poured for us by Roberto Conterno - the owner of Giacomo Conterno)

1994 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo Brunate Le Coste

1997 Roberto Voerzio Barolo La Serra

1998 Cappellano Pie Rupestris (normally this is Barolo DOCG but in 1998 it was not approved as Barolo DOCG and was bottled as a Vino de Tavola)

1998 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Riserva Santo Stefano (Red Label)

1999 Elio Grasso Barolo Riserva Rüncot

2000s

2000 Roberto Voerzio Barbera Riserva Pozzo dell' Annunziata (only bottled in Magnum)

2001 Elio Grasso Barolo Casa Maté

2002 Cascina Ebreo Limpido

2008 Elio Grasso Barolo Casa Maté

©Wine -- Mise en abyme