Winemaker Notes
An impeccable balance. Castiglione Falletto and Serralunga d'Alba match here in a superlative way. Aroma and finesse with power and body at the same time. Sweet nose, with hints of cherry, black currant and licorice. Fruity tannins. A union of characters. Aged for two years in large casks. In the vintages in which Barolo Riserva is not produced its grapes contribute, with their superb quality, to this exceptional Barolo.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Round, bursting with cherry and raspberry fruit, this red reveals tar and underbrush notes. Well-structured and balanced, ending with a tobacco-tinged aftertaste. Best from 2021 through 2035.
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James Suckling
Fresh cherries and healthy, dry tannins make this a very solid and attractive wine. Needs some time for all the subtle notes to emerge, but this kind of youthfulness is rare in 2014 Barolos. Drink after 2020.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Barolo is a blend of fruit from six smaller vineyard sites. About 30% of the fruit comes from Castiglione Falletto and the remaining 70% is from Serralunga d'Alba (mostly from the Cerretta and Broglio crus). Across the board, the average age of the vines is 45 years old. Even though the mouthfeel is a bit thinner in this vintage, the bouquet is pleasantly generous and ripe. Blackberry, cassis, tar and spice mesh together with seamless ease.
Responsible for some of the most elegant and age-worthy wines in the world, Nebbiolo, named for the ubiquitous autumnal fog (called nebbia in Italian), is the star variety of northern Italy’s Piedmont region. Grown throughout the area, as well as in the neighboring Valle d’Aosta and Valtellina, it reaches its highest potential in the Piedmontese villages of Barolo, Barbaresco and Roero. Outside of Italy, growers are still very much in the experimentation stage but some success has been achieved in parts of California. Somm Secret—If you’re new to Nebbiolo, start with a charming, wallet-friendly, early-drinking Langhe Nebbiolo or Nebbiolo d'Alba.
The center of the production of the world’s most exclusive and age-worthy red wines made from Nebbiolo, the Barolo wine region includes five core townships: La Morra, Monforte d’Alba, Serralunga d’Alba, Castiglione Falletto and the Barolo village itself, as well as a few outlying villages. The landscape of Barolo, characterized by prominent and castle-topped hills, is full of history and romance centered on the Nebbiolo grape. Its wines, with the signature “tar and roses” aromas, have a deceptively light garnet color but full presence on the palate and plenty of tannins and acidity. In a well-made Barolo wine, one can expect to find complexity and good evolution with notes of, for example, strawberry, cherry, plum, leather, truffle, anise, fresh and dried herbs, tobacco and violets.
There are two predominant soil types here, which distinguish Barolo from the lesser surrounding areas. Compact and fertile Tortonian sandy marls define the vineyards farthest west and at higher elevations. Typically the Barolo wines coming from this side, from La Morra and Barolo, can be approachable relatively early on in their evolution and represent the “feminine” side of Barolo, often closer in style to Barbaresco with elegant perfume and fresh fruit.
On the eastern side of the Barolo wine region, Helvetian soils of compressed sandstone and chalks are less fertile, producing wines with intense body, power and structured tannins. This more “masculine” style comes from Monforte d’Alba and Serralunga d’Alba. The township of Castiglione Falletto covers a spine with both soil types.
The best Barolo wines need 10-15 years before they are ready to drink, and can further age for several decades.