Winemaker Notes
Aromas of dark berries, tobacco, plums, roses. Complex and layered; also supple, silky. Good structure and balance.
Pair with grilled steak; dishes with wild mushrooms.
Professional Ratings
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Wine & Spirits
This wine is so aromatically pleasing that you want to keep it in your glass all night, stealing whiffs of dewy rose petals, soft herbs and white pepper. Those floral notes are reflected in the bright tones of cherry, raspberry and pomegran- ate, which feel fully integrated and expressive. Taut tannins knit the flavors together in a fine, lacy structure as the wine continues to gain intensity and verve.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Fratelli Alessandria 2016 Barolo Monvigliero is a true beauty. This wine offers an all-encompassing, wide-angle view of this unique vineyard in Verduno. Wines from Monvigliero tend to show a slightly wild or unpredictable side that makes them very exciting. That untamed nature comes through with wild flowers and peppery spice, and the mouthfeel always has a unique silkiness that feels glossy or polished in texture. This is a very special growing site, and Fratelli Alessandria has long been a protagonist of the Verduno subzone. Rating: 97+
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Wine Enthusiast
Aromas of ripe forest berry, camphor and fragrant purple flower come together in this full-bodied red, along with whiffs of new leather and underbrush. Concentrated and enveloping, the palate boasts an almost weightless finesse, delivering juicy Morello cherry, cranberry compote and licorice while velvety tannins lend seamless support. Drink 2024–2036. Cellar Selection.
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James Suckling
Aromas of cherries, strawberries, smoke and candied lemons follow through to a full body with tight, polished tannins and a transparent finish. This suggests a degree of excellence, but a little tight now. Try after 2023.
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.