Winemaker Notes
Paiagallo is one of the most historic vineyards in the municipality of Barolo. Thanks to the soils rich in sandy marl and 30-year-old plants, it is a Barolo with great energy and structure, but wrapped in a pleasant, delicate sensation, with heady aromas and sweet tannins. In the mouth are perceived aromas of dried cherry, nut and citrus peel, with a spicy aftertaste. Full bodied with slightly firm tannins and a long, balanced finish.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Licorice, plums, dried flowers and a tarry note. The medium- to full-bodied palate has fleshy, controlled fruit, angular yet integrated tannins and a precise finish. Better from 2027.
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Wine Enthusiast
That floral lift is the first thing you notice and it sets the tone for everything that follows, dried cherries and fresh herbs rising together into something pretty, refined, and completely its own. Round tannins and a good honest core of fruit give the palate a drinkability and generosity that makes this as easy to love today as it will be years from now. Elegant from start to finish.
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Decanter
Attractive dried floral aromas of cherry blossom, rose and tea; raspberry coulis, sweet oak spice and structured tannins on the palate.
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.