Wine & Spirits - December 2020 - 87

FOCUS: BAROLO & BARBARESCO

$65

2016 Barolo Marcenasco ^ Marcenasco is
vibrant in the 2016 vintage, offering redberry flavors so ripe that they verge on sweetness, those flavors balanced by edgy acidity
and bright orange-peel accents. § Lux Wines,
Modesto, CA
278856

93 | Giovanni Rosso

$65

93 | Virna

$87

2015 Barolo Sarmassa ^ Virna Borgogno produces this wine from a southwest-facing plot
of 42-year-old vines in Barolo's Sarmassa cru.
It is dark and dense in this vintage, with finegrained tannins that frame flavors of black
cherry, licorice and lavender. Notes of fresh
mushroom emerge with air, and a hint of
orange peel lifts the long and balanced finish. § Shiverick Imports, Los Angeles, CA
278904

278876

93 | Renato Ratti

93 | Virna

$60

2016 Barolo del Comune di Serralunga
d'Alba ^ Davide Rosso selects fruit from five
different crus (Cerretta, Sorrano, Damiano,
Broglio and Costabella) to give a wine that
beautifully captures Serralunga's power and
minerality, yet with finesse imparted by gentle extraction and aging in large (50-hectoliter) oak casks. Its mouthwatering red-cherry
flavors are laced with notes of licorice and
mint, the flavors encased in taut, ferrous tannins. The finish is long and fresh, indicating
plenty of cellaring potential. § Vias Imports, NY
278844

2015 Barolo Cannubi ^ This wine is rich and
round, its flavors of ripe and dried cherries
melding with notes of black licorice and
tobacco leaf. It shows impressive depth and
length, with a supple texture and lingering
spice. § Shiverick Imports, Los Angeles, CA
278942

92 | Altare

$86

2016 Barolo ^ A blend of fruit from La Morra,
Castiglione Falletto, Serralunga d'Alba and
Barolo, this is bright and spicy, its rich texture carrying flavors of macerated cherry,
anise and candied orange peel. § Skurnik
Wines & Spirits, NY
279037

92 | Ca'Rome

$118

$69

2016 Barolo Cerretta ^ Dense, chewy tannins
give way with air to reveal flavors of dried
cherry, apple skin and dark spice. Give those
tannins a few years to relent, then pour this
with a ribeye. § Empson USA, Alexandria, VA
278886

2016 Barolo Bricco Ambrogio ^ This is fleshy
and immediately appealing in 2016, its flavors of macerated cherry and plum laced
with warm spices and wrapped in lush, round
tannins. § Skurnik Wines & Spirits, NY
278883

2015 Barolo Riva del Bric (Best Buy)^ This
is rich and earthy, its flavors of ripe cherry
showing good depth and notes of subtle spice
and tobacco. § Skurnik Wines & Spirits, NY
278922

93 | Paolo Scavino

93 | Paolo Scavino

$50

2016 Barolo ^ The Scavino family draws fruit
for this wine from seven of their cru vineyards scattered across the communes of
Barolo, Castiglione Falletto and Serralunga
d'Alba. In 2016, it came together in a beautifully balanced Barolo, with bright red-berry
tones and notes of licorice and lavender in a
supple mid-weight frame. Immensely appealing in its youth, this should also age well. §
Skurnik Wines & Spirits, NY
278890

93 | La Spinetta

$170

2016 Barolo Campe ^ Exuberant aromas of
fresh cherry, crushed rose petal and mint
lead into juicy red-cherry and raspberry flavors. The wine rested for two years in French
oak barriques, gaining sultry black spice
notes and polished tannins. § Indigenous Selections, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
278900

92 | Paolo Conterno

92 | Cordero di
Montezemolo

$45

$110

2016 Barolo Enrico VI ^ From a 5.4-acre plot
in Castiglione Falletto's Villero cru, this wine
rested for 20 months in French oak barriques,
gaining notes of carob, baking spice and cassis that weave through the rich cherry-compote flavors. Its warm, sensual profile would
pair well with comfort food, like pot roast. §
Ethica Wines, Miami, FL
278947

92 | Giacomo Fenocchio

$63

2016 Barolo Bussia ^ This wine macerated on
the skins for 40 days and aged in large Slavonian casks for 30 months. It has a lean and
woodsy personality, more savory than fruity.
The notes of tobacco and leathery tannins
eventually give way to reveal pleasant redberry tones. § Skurnik Wines & Spirits, NY

278954

92 | Fortemasso

$70

2015 Barolo Castelletto ^ Lean and lithe for
the 2015 vintage, this wine has chewy tannins under dark-cherry and licorice flavors,
all brightened by a twist of orange zest. Floral scents add lift, and although perhaps not
the last word in concentration or length, the
wine remains poised and balanced through
the finish. § Panebianco, NY
278894

92 | Gianni Gagliardo

$112

2016 Barolo Fossati ^ Fruit from this estate's
small Fossati plot fills just four used barriques, where the wine rested for 30 months,
developing supple tannins to frame its ripe,
dark cherry flavors. Notes of mint and licorice add a kick to the finish. § Enotec Imports,
Denver, CO
278843

92 | Bruna Grimaldi

$55

92 | Bruna Grimaldi

$45

92 | Pecchenino

$55

2016 Barolo Bricco Ambrogio ^ This wine
from the Roddi commune's sole cru unfolds
with flavors of red cherry, licorice and fresh
tobacco. The somewhat angular tannins suggest that time in the cellar will allow the fruit
tones to flesh out. § Massanois Imports, NY
278879
2016 Barolo Camilla (Best Buy) ^ Appealing
floral scents lead into mouthwatering dark
cherry flavors laced with mint and dried
herbs in this wine. The tannins are ample but
finely honed, and the bright finish is characteristic of the 2016 vintage. § Enotec Imports,
Denver, CO
278941
2016 Barolo San Giuseppe ^ This wine's
dark cherry flavors are rich and ripe, held
fast with a firm underpinning of tannins and
layered with notes of licorice and dark spice.
The fruit comes from three Monforte plots
planted in 1980, 1995 and 2006, and the wine
rested for two years in large French oak casks. §
Vias Imports, NY

WINE & SPIRITS

DECEMBER 2020

87
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Wine & Spirits - December 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - December 2020
