Barolo & Barbaresco
Increasingly we see Nebbiolo from Piedmont through the same lens as we see Pinot Noir in Burgundy. One grape, from one region but with a wealth of profoundly different expressions depending on which village or commune the vineyards are in. Unimaginably influenced by the specific terroirs across the zone and of course with wonderful interpretations by different winemakers. On the whole, Domaines are small in Piedmont, as in Burgundy. They are similarly made up with small parcels of vines in a variety of different crus with each vineyard historically recognised for its various characteristics that live on today.
In the same way that Nuits-Saint-Georges gives wines dramatically different to those from Chambolle-Musigny - which are again completely different to the Pinot Noirs from Fixin or from Pommard – Piedmont is divided into several distinctly different villages and crus. Barolo has 11 villages, each with profoundly different expressions of Nebbiolo, here there are about 170 MGA (Menzioni Geografiche Aggiuntive), these are the same as specific vineyard ‘Cru’ in Burgundy. Barbaresco has 65 distinct MGAs of its own – so the differences of Nebbiolo expression are both broad in Piedmont and deeply profound.
It would be overly simplistic and incorrect to try and equate each sector of Piedmont with a matching village on the Côtes de Nuits, but it is safe to say that lovers of power and more deep-seated intensity should hunt out wines from the villages to the east, with Serralunga and Monforte the headliners. Wine lovers looking for more lift and grace in the wine should start with the villages to the west of the zone, La Morra and Verduno further north will usually satisfy. Of course it is dangerous to generalise, but it is important to note that there are two major valleys here, each with very different soils that have these broadly identifiable impacts on Nebbiolo.
As in Burgundy though it can get even more detailed than ‘village styles’ or even homogenous wines from single Crus. The MGA ‘Bussia’ would certainly be eligible for Grand Cru status if such a thing existed here and yet it is an incredibly large Cru (approaching 300HA!). It is worked by many different growers, and rather like Clos Vougeot (51HA) it can be very varied. Depending on who the grower is, and quite where their vines are – the resulting wines can be fabulously diverse. At the village level it is not simple either. A good example of the detail involved is Castiglione Falletto. This Barolo village sits on the line, right between two valleys. Claudio Viberti’s tiny winery perches on this narrow ridge and he has vineyards on both sides running very steeply down from these lofty peaks. The expression of his delicate and pretty Castiglione Barolo grown on the more sandy slopes on the cooler east side could not be in greater contrast to his wonderfully powerful Barolo Bricco Boschis from the slopes that run down to the west with heavier soils. These wines, from one producer, are an education in themselves.
Eric Guido – Vinous.com
“If Pinot Noir is the world's most tantalising grape, Nebbiolo runs it a close second - for very similar reasons. While the red burgundy grape has been slow to travel happily from its birthplace, and is only just showing signs of settling down in places such as Oregon, Australia, South Africa and cooler parts of California, good Nebbiolo wine is still extremely difficult to find outside its homeland in north-west Italy. Yet the best of these home-grown products are so uniquely delicious that winemakers all over the world are enticed to give it a try.”