Winemaker Notes
An explosive energy of Serralunga d’Alba with grace and vigor. Black cherries, wild berries and plums with menthol, sage and saline notes. Pure ardor. The wine is aged 30 months in large casks.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Extremely aromatic with strawberries, flowers, and stones, following through to a full body with layers of fruit and round tannins that go on and on. Rich and opulent, yet polished and toned. A generous young Barolo. Drink in 2025.
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Wine Spectator
Decadent cherry and currant aromas signal this vibrant, complex red, whose core of ripe fruit defines the palate, with supporting roles from eucalyptus, leather, licorice, tar and mineral. The tannins are dense and alive, while the finish goes on and on.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2017 Barolo Cerretta has layered aromatics of dried black cherry, leather, dried thyme, and tar. The palate is classically structured with tension and firm tannic grip and a long finish. The Cerretta’s savory dark fruit is persistent, with extracted black tea and dried earth. This is deserving of additional time in cellar and will benefit from 3-6 years before enjoying 2025-2045.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This is the second vintage of this new single-vineyard expression from Serralunga d'Alba. It is a family project that has been in the works for decades. This 3,500-bottle release of the Azelia 2017 Barolo Cerretta represents a firm and compact wine that sits tight on the palate. The hot vintage has developed a robust structure and power but has also subtracted from the wine's ruby color intensity. Indeed, its light garnet hue is deceptive once you consider the wine's substantial textural fiber and fruit intensity. There is sweet cherry and plum followed by candied orange peel and rusty iron ore. It should be fascinating to see how this wine evolves, as I imagine the tannins will become softer and pliant with time, but the wine's color will surely fade further. This cru is dedicated to the centennial anniversary of the estate.
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Wine Enthusiast
Camphor, cedar and leather aromas come to the forefront along with whiffs of underbrush and blue flower. Firmly structured, the palate is quite austere, offering tart cherry, orange zest and tobacco alongside assertive, close-grained tannins that leave a grippy finish.
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.
