Winemaker Notes
Garnet red color with variable intensity depending on the vintage. The grapes come from different vineyards and this gives them a broad and variable spectrum of perfumes, ranging from tempting spicy notes to those of a sweeter, floral and fruity nature. A variety of sensations, with a full-bodied, classic and well structured wine which ages well and perfectly represents the important character of our land. It achieves its best expression when served with red meats, particularly game, and with dishes dressed with truffle. It is also excellent with fresh egg pasta and meat sauce, and with risotto, as well as medium-mature cow’s milk and goat’s milk cheeses.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Massolino 2021 Barolo reveals a shiny ruby color and a core of dark fruit. Beyond the plummy fruit is tar, licorice, pressed flower and campfire ash. This wine has a pronounced savory side, yet it all fits squarely into a very delicate and finessed delivery. This is a pretty example of the vintage.
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Wine Spectator
A beam of pure cherry permeates this juicy red. Supporting flavors of strawberry, rose, graphite and eucalyptus add depth, while vibrant acidity focuses the flavors and drives them through the lingering finish. A great example of the modern style of Barolo.
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James Suckling
Intense, smoky style to this Barolo, dominated by floral aromas, with citrus notes allied to red fruits and gentle spice. The palate is medium-bodied with chewy acidity and tannins which are flexible and not dry, despite the austere finish. Try from 2027.
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Jeb Dunnuck
A jeweled ruby red color, the 2021 Barolo is expressive on the nose with notes of polished leather, ripe cherries, fresh herbs, and mossy earth. The structure is quite appealing, with mouthwatering, ripe acidity, sweet tannins, and an even feel in a medium-bodied frame that’s gently rounded. It’s a very pretty wine and a nice calling card for the estate in this vintage. Drink 2025-2035.
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Vinous
The 2021 Barolo is a fabulous wine that shows both the quality of the year and the very high standards at Massolino. Pliant and expressive, with notable depth, the Barolo is super-impressive. Macerated dark cherry, spice, lavender, menthol and blood orange all build in the glass. What a gorgeous and complete wine this is. The straight Barolo is, without question, the hidden gem in this range.
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.