Winemaker Notes
The wine is ruby red in color. It has a spicy nose reminiscent of pepper and licorice. Dry taste and persistent tannins.
Delicious with main courses of meat, braised meat, bacon and aged cheeses.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Lovely aromas of forest berry, rose, wild herb and violet waft out of the glass along with a whiff of new leather. On the elegantly structured, almost ethereal palate, notes of star anise and clove accent juicy red cherry, pomegranate and blood orange. Polished tannins and bright acidity keep it balanced. Drink 2023–2030.
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Decanter
Another exception to the otherwise dilute character of Barolo 2018 at village level, most likely favoured by a blend from several selections. Liquorice and coffee grounds, leafy lightness and red currants mingle. The palate is graceful with a soft attack, ripe tannins, good citrus characters and crisp freshness - an overall crunchy style. Dusty yet not bitter on the finish.
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James Suckling
Tightly packed, ripe red fruit and nutty spice on the nose. Full-bodied with the same compact character on the palate. The tannins are medium-grained and provide a good framework to the spicy fruit. This is all tightly packed. Give it a few years to unwind. Drink from 2024.
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Wine Spectator
This red is packed with ripe, rich cherry and plum fruit. Reveals leather, tar and underbrush notes, which add depth as this plays out on the lingering aftertaste. This shows ample power for the vintage and an open texture, all coupled with good grip. Best from 2025.
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.