Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2020 Barolo Arione is a wine of extreme delicacy and finesse. Lavender, sage, mint, cedar and rose petal are some of the many notes that lift from the palate. Deceptive in its mid-weight structure, the 2020 impresses with its inner sweetness and sublime balance.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Giacomo Conterno 2020 Barolo Arione strikes on the darker and more saturated side of the Nebbiolo spectrum. This vineyard site in Serralunga d'Alba reveals dark fruit and scorched earth, but those baritone aromas are given lift by a brilliant pop of sweet red cherry. The 2020 vintage is actually less intense and concentrated compared to past releases, and you can count on this wine for a special touch of elegance. It closes with a silky and very precise sense of structure. Winemaking is the same for most of the estate wines. The Arione saw three weeks of skin maceration with submerged cap, a few punch-downs, pump-overs and délestage. Cap management has been the same at this estate for 20 or 30 years. The results offer pretty fruit succulence with impressively glossy tannins.
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.
PSLICO194_2020 Item# 3676650