Winemaker Notes
From a single, historical vineyard located in the Castelletto cru in Monforte d’Alba. Vines were planted in 1969 and 1986 at an elevation of 350 m (1148 ft) with a southeastern exposure.
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2019 Barolo Castelletto Vigna Pressenda is gorgeous. Delicate and perfumed in the glass, the 2019 offers up a beguiling mélange of dark red cherry, rose petal, mint, cedar, blood orange, spice and crushed autumn leaves. In 2019, the Monforte tannins are especially refined, something that is very rarely the case here at this stage. What a wonderfully precise, sophisticated, nuanced wine this is. Impressive.
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James Suckling
Fresh and vibrant with red berry, blood orange, crushed hazelnut, hibiscus and spice aromas and flavors. Medium- to full-bodied, tense and linear with a backbone of firm, finely grained tannins and steady minerality.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Conterno Fantino 2019 Barolo Castelletto Vigna Pressenda is medium dark and more concentrated compared to many of its peers. This wine shows a solid bouquet with fixed aromas of wild cherry, long-stemmed rose and candied orange. With time, even more floral aromas are coaxed forward from the bouquet. Beyond those are oak-driven notes of allspice and cinnamon. The tannins are polished, and the wine offers quite a bit of fruit texture.
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Wine Spectator
Presents cherry, raspberry, sun-kissed hay, mineral and spice aromas and flavors that curl around an acidic spine and tannins. This has all the right components, matched to a slim, taut frame, with fine length. Best from 2026 through 2043.
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.
