:::
Tel: +39.0173.560.023
:::
eMail:
info@sandroneluciano.com
::: |
|
----------
For more information on tasting events around the world, please go to our "Events" page.
---
OperaWine
March 21st, Saturday
17.00-19.30
Palazzo della Gran Guardia
Verona
OperaWine - "Finest Italian Wines: 100 Great Producers"
The first in a series of events under the OperaWine umbrella will be a Grand Tasting in Verona on March 21 presented byVinItaly in partnership with the American lifestyle magazine Wine Spectator.
Barbara and Luciano will be pouring the 2003 Barolo Cannubi Boschis at this exclusive event (reservations required).
More information, registration and reservations: click here.
---
VinItaly
March 22-25, 2015
Verona Fiere Center
Tough we do not participate in the VinItaly fair, it is among the premier educational events for Italian wine in the world.
Click on VinItaly for information, reservations and registration for the fair.
---
Vinexpo
June 14-15-16-17-18, 2015
"Parc des Expositions"
Exhibition Centre, Bordeaux
Barbara and team member Mrs. Anna Rech will be pouring you Luciano's new vintages:
2011 Barolo Cannubi Boschis
2011 Barolo Le Vigne
2013 Valmaggiore
2013 Barbera d'Alba
VinExpo 2015 information can be found here.
As more information becomes available, such as our booth number and location at the fair, we will post it to our events page.
|
 ---------
Recent Press
Vinous
(USA)
Many thanks to Antonio for his forthright criticism, for encouraging our work and his longtime support of the wines of the Langhe!
September, 2014
Galloni rates 2011 Barolo and recaps 1999 Barolo
Just published: Antonio has posted a new article on a "First Look" at 2011 Barolo.
Link to the full article here.
(subscription required)
"Luciano and Luca Sandrone's 2011 Barolos are gorgeous. They also reflect some of the important shifts taking place in Piedmont; namely keeping green harvests from being excessive, leaving more leaf cover and picking a little earlier. For a few years now Sandrone has been among the first to bottle, preferring to give the wines less time in barrel, but more time in bottle before release in order to preserve freshness."
2011 Barolo Cannubi Boschis
95+ points
"Sandrone's 2011 Barolo Cannubi Boschis is a drop-dead gorgeous beauty. Flashy, supple and radiant, the 2011 is already quite open and expressive. Cannubi Boschis impresses for its centerdness, solid core of fruit and exceptional overall balance. This gorgeous, voluptuous beauty is shaping up to be a jewel of a wine. Next to the sensual, layered Le Vigne, the Cannubi Boschis is a decidedly vertical, powerful Barolo."
2011 Barolo Le Vigne
96 points
"Rose petal, mint, crushed flowers, sweet red berries and cinnamon are some of the many notes that take shape in the glass. A wine of exquisite perfume and aromatic lift, the 2011 Le Vigne is all about finesse and pure texture. With time in the glass, the 2011 blossoms into a layered, head-turning wine. This is a great effort from Sandrone. In 2011, Le Vigne includes fruit from Villero for the first time. Few wines straddle the modern and traditional with this much pure finesse."
1999 Vintage Recap
by Antonio Galloni
(published August 2014)
"The 1999 Barolos are the first wines Luciano Sandrone made in his current winery in the flats of Barolo across the road from Cannubi. Since then, Sandrone has continued to ratchet up quality in a meaningful way. Although the 1999s are beautiful, it is pretty clear that today's wines have an extra gear or two. In the late 1990s, the emphasis was on very low yields and later harvesting, than is the case today, while new oak levels were also higher."
Link here to full article.
(subscription required)
1999 Barolo Cannubi Boschis
93 points
"Sandrone's 1999 Barolo Cannubi Boschis has become much more delicate over the last few years. Still fresh and vibrant, the 1999 impresses for its total sense of harmony. The tannins are now starting to melt away, allowing the fruit to be fully expressive. Violets, lavender and blue/purplish fruit grace the finish. There is a lot to like here."
1999 Barolo Le Vigne
94 points
"The 1999 Barolo Le Vigne is striking and super-expressive today. Still quite youthful, the 1999 possesses lovely balance and plenty of silkiness. Subtle hints of sweet tobacco, mint, dried cherries, crushed flowers and anise are all layers of nuance in a finely sculpted, chiseled Barolo long on personality and class. This is a fabulous showing from Le Vigne."
---
Antonio Galloni reviewed
the 2010 Barolo releases
(posted to Vinous on Jan 8, 2014)
2010 Barolo Cannubi Boschis
97+ points
"Tar, smoke, licorice, incense, blood orange and sweet spices are some of the many notes that emerge from the 2010 Barolo Cannubi Boschis. Today the 2010 is firing on all cylinders. The flavors are broad, rich and ample, with fabulous delineation, energy and class. A creamy, resonant finish laced with exotic floral and citrus notes only adds intrigue in this drop-dead gorgeous Barolo." Drink 2020-2035
2010 Barolo Le Vinge
100 points
"Sandrone's 2010 Barolo Le Vigne is one of the wines of the vintage, hands down. Rich, layered and utterly impeccable, the Le Vigne boasts stunning depth and richness. This is the second year in which Le Vigne includes fruit from Baudana which gives the wine a sense of volume and pure breadth it has never had before. Dried rose petal, tar, mint, wild flowers and cinnamon flow through to the multi-dimensional finish. The 2010 is a blend of fruit from Vignane and Merli, two historic sites for Le Vigne, while Cerretta and Conterni have been replaced by Baudana, a site in Serralunga that confers a level of depth, darkness and masculinity that has not been present in the past. Villero is the next vineyard that will appear in Le Vigne, starting in 2011. In the meantime, readers will not want to miss the 2010 Barolo Le Vigne, an epic achievement from the Sandrone family." Drink 2018-2035
---
Wine Advocate rates
2010 Barolo
(USA)
the 2010 Barolo in
Issue 213 of the Wine Advocate.
"The 2010 vintage of Barolo is the most Nebbiologgiante vintage in recent memory. It offers a pristine and absolutely immaculate view into this great native grape that thrives so successfully in the Langhe area of northwest Italy. Without a doubt, it will be recorded as one of the great vintages of the past decades."
96 points.
"The 2010 Barolo Le Vigne is composed from an assembly of fruit sourced from the townships of Barolo, Novello and Serralunga d'Alba. It reflects Barolo tradition in which, years ago, this noble wine was made from a wide assembly of fruit instead of single cru sites (as is the custom today). Bright cherry fruit, blackberry and creme de cassis segue to profound layers of licorice, spice, cola and anisette. It feels strong and tonic in the mouth with a pleasingly velveteen texture and a fresh dose of zesty acidity. Drink: 2017-2030."
2010 Barolo Cannubi Boschis
97 points.
"The single-vineyard 2010 Barolo Cannubi Boschis speaks in confident tones at high volumes. First produced in 1985, Cannubi Boschis is among the first single vineyard cru expressions made in Barolo. Thirty-five-year-old vines enjoy south and southeast exposures at 250 meters above sea level. The long 2010 growing season has favored optimal tannin ripeness and fine complexity on the bouquet. This is one of the standout wines of this celebrated vintage. It is well worth putting this wine at the back of your cellar where it will be untouched for years. Drink: 2017-2030."
---
(USA)
Reviews 2010 Barolo
Reviewer: Kerin O'Keefe:
97 points.
September 1, 2014
"This compelling wine delivers a combination of concentration and complexity. It opens with a multifaceted fragrance that includes mature black fruit, leather, cinnamon and balsamic notes. The palate is still tightly wound but offers bright red berry and black cherry layered with notes of tobacco, alpine herbs and baking spices alongside bracing tannins and invigorating acidity. It's young but impeccably balanced. Drink after 2020."
99 points.
September 1, 2014
"Structured but extremely elegant, this opens with an intense fragrance of violet, rose, wild berry, leather, underbrush and balsamic notes. The delicious, focused palate delivers crushed black cherry layered with notes of exotic spices, licorice, sage and black pepper, perfectly balanced by assertive tannins and vibrant energy. It already boasts gripping depth, but this has serious aging potential. Drink 2020-2040."
---
La Revue de Vin de France
(FR)
has included Barbara and the Sandrone Cantina in a recent article on the region.
The article recommended two "tours" and we are included in the pedestrian tour of the village of Barolo. The writers recommend our 2010 Valmaggiore
as a "do-not-miss" wine.
Page 1 of the article here.
Page 2 with itineraries here.
---
(USA)
Nov/Dec 2013 94 (+?) points
"Good deep red. Perfumed aromas of raspberry, licorice, dried flowers and herbs. Silky on entry, then rich but tight in the middle, with a distinctly darker fruit character than the Cannubi Boschis. Very complex, energetic wine with fresh acidity, serious tannins and a sappy saline quality on the very long finish. A beauty in the making."
95+ points "Good deep, bright medium red. Highly complex, very expressive scents of black raspberry, violet, smoke, licorice and espresso, plus an exhilarating whiff of blood orange. Then dense but bound-up on the palate, showing a medicinal licorice quality and modest flesh today, with the wine's powerful spine dominating. But the explosive back-end fruit and outstanding lift and rising length suggest that this brilliantly delineated wine will be a long-lived classic."
|
|
Greetings!
After a damp December came the dry and clear January, during which we were able to finish a great deal of the winter pruning in sunny but chilly conditions. The first week of February brought back snow and cold - we had almost 90cms of snow fall in a day at the end of the first week of February. Now with the beginning of March, the first green is emerging in the fields as the grasses begin to sprout. In Bussia, the first almond tree bloomed on the 5th of March!
Now we are doing the last of the cane tying: bending the just-pruned fruiting cane down to the wire trellis (we use the guyot system), preparing it for the coming growing season.
We bottled the 2013 Valmaggiore and 2013 Barbera in December. The two Barolo bottlings will be bottled this month and released in September of 2016; the Barbera and Valmaggiore in September of this year. Dolcetto 2014 will be bottled in June/July of this year for entry into the market in September 2015.
We are happy to have read that Antonio Galloni has released the first ratings for Barolo 2011, and are grateful and honored to have earned such good marks from him (see "Recent Press" at left). Many thanks to Antonio for his longtime support of our work and of the wines of Piedmont in general. We appreciate it!
Mid-February we took a short break to visit the Champagne region of France, visiting both large and small producers. For the first time both of Luciano's grandchildren Alessia and Stefano were in attendance. During the 5-day trip we visited the cellars of Savart, Ber�che, Pommery, Bruno Paillard, and Philipponnat. We finished with a tasting with the incomparable Anselme Selosse at Domaine Jaques Selosse!
And now the first day of spring is almost upon us - even though we are still in the wet, muddy part of the year, we can sense the air warming and the fields are greening. The vineyards beckon!
--- As always, we thank you, our collectors and consumers, for your continued interest in our wines, and we hope to continue to fulfill your expectations of quality and excellence in the bottle. With warmest regards, Luciano Sandrone Barbara Sandrone Luca Sandrone PS. For those of you that are receiving this the first time, we hope you enjoy our newsletter. We send it out seasonally, four times per year, full of information about the wines, the cantina and vineyards. If you no longer wish to receive future mailings, you may quickly and safely unsubscribe anytime by clicking the "SafeUnsubscribe" button at the end of this newsletter. Rest assured we will never share your personal information with anyone. ---------- |
|
2014 - 2015 Winter
Malolactic fermentation of the 2014 wines was finished up by mid-February. All of our wines, with the exception of Dolcetto, go thorough the malolactic in tonneaux, the 500l French oak barrels that we use exclusively. Once the alcoholic fermentation, maceration and first rackings were completed by mid-November, the wines were transferred down to the first ageing cellar and put in the tonneaux (Dolcetto is placed in steel tank to preserve freshness and fruit). The cellar is warmed slightly to about 20�-21�C and malo starts up naturally, without inoculation or additions.
|
| |
Luciano sampling tonneaux after malolactic fermentation
|
Malolactic fermentation is a natural process: a bacterial fermentation whereby malic acid is transformed into lactic acid. Malic acid is the acid found in green apples (think Granny Smith variety), which is tart, green and astringent. Lactic acid is the acid found in milk and gives the wines a smoother, creamier mouthfeel. All red wines go through "malo." (Only some white wines do; typically these are whites where the winemaker wants a bigger, creamier texture. White wines that don't go though malo tend to be brighter and fresher, crisper in the mouth.)
We test all tonneaux beginning in January to make sure that all the malic acid has been consumed and transformed. Once positive lab results come back for every container of wine, we drop the temperature in the cellar back to 12�C, the temperature at which the wines continue the aging process until bottling.
---
|
| |
The existing Sibi et Paucis Library cellar: completely full!
|
|
| |
Construction of the first arches and ceilings, February 12, 2015
|
Our big news this winter involves the expansion of the library cellars. We began digging out the ground underneath the south corner of our winery lot in November and at this point the main foundation walls for the cellar expansion are in place, parts of the floor have been poured and the brick arches for the ceiling are being installed as weather permits.
This project became necessary as we find that our library program |
| |
Brick arches under protective blankets, Feb 12
|
is becoming more and more important for both our long-term restaurant clients and for the ongoing historical memory of the winery. We hold back about 10% of each of the 3 Nebbiolo-based wines each vintage under our "Sibi et Paucis" program. As this program has grown over the last 15 years, we find ourself completely out of space in the cellar that was purpose-built for this program. Valmaggiore is held back an additional 4 years before re-release, the Barolo bottlings are held back from 4-8 additional years (obviously, it requires a lot of space to store these bottles!). The new cellar will more than double our available space for Sibi et Paucis wines. Above the cellar at ground level, we will expand the tractor shed so as to have more space to house and maintain our farm vehicles.
|
| |
Forms for the arched ceiling support the brickwork while the concrete sets.
|
As the productivity of the vineyards has not significantly changed with the addition of the Baudana property in 2010 (we gave up 2 rental vineyards when we purchased Baudana) we are not adding productive capacity. This expansion is driven by the need for cellar storage space for bottled, aging wine. Each vintage we make requires space for 3 stacks of bottles from the three Nebbiolo bottlings (see picture above). We don't sell this stock quickly - these are bottles that trickle out over the ensuing years, mostly to replenish restaurant wine lists that want to keep verticals of our wines. Currently we have Sibi et Paucis stacks going back to the 1998 vintage for the two Baroli, and Valmaggiore is represented back to 2001. (The first vintage of Sibi et Paucis for Barolo was 1996).
|
| |
Workers installing the brickwork ceilings on top of the forms.
|
When we put aside Sibi et Paucis bottles, the wine is exactly the same as what is put into the market at the time of original release. All of our wines are bottled at the same time from a single tank to insure that the first bottle off the line is exactly the same as the last. We simply place 10% of each Nebbiolo wine aside for extra aging in Luciano's library cellar under ideal conditions. The only difference between the regular and Sibi et Paucis releases is the metallic seal on the S&P wines, which indicates that the wine was aged in the winery's library under perfect conditions.
|
| |
Capstones ready to install
|
Of course, the architectural plan calls for the new structure to follow the aesthetic of the previous buildings in the style of an historic fortified Piedmontese farmhouse. We have always wanted that our winery building fits in with the traditional landscape of the Barolo region.
We will keep you updated on the progress of the new construction. We hope to have the cellars finished by early summer and begin the tractor building immediately thereafter, so as to have them ready by winter.
---
Finally, we are pleased to |
| |
Construction of cellars, March 5, 2015. The first 9 arched ceiling bays have been built and the floor above is being poured.
|
announce that we were able to secure an additional small piece of land in the Baudana adjoining our existing owned plots under a long-term lease. The Baudana fruit is used to make the Le Vigne Barolo and the wine has become more ageable and structured since we began adding fruit from this high-quality Serralunga vineyard in 2010. The addition of about a hectare of land will allow a slight increase in the production of Le Vigne Barolo by about 10% in a normal year. This vineyard is fully planted with well-tended, mature vines about 25 years old and will be used immediately.
----------
|
|
| Recent Tastings: Older Vintages from Luciano's Personal Cellar
Once in while, we open an older bottle to see how it is maturing and developing (but also to enjoy the result of our work!). This section of the Newsletter is to share any recent tasting of older vintages with you.
In January we took the opportunity to take a look at the development of the 1991 Cannubi Boschis Barolo.
(Tasted by Luciano, Luca and Barbara, with others on the staff, January 2015)
The 1991 is generally considered a disaster vintage in the Barolo, so we approached this bottle with caution. Quelle Surprise! While the rain-soaked harvest and cool, wet growing conditions made the vintage difficult at best, we were impressed by the staying power of the wine.
Cantina Tasting Note:
(January 2015): The garnet-brick color is classic aged Nebbiolo, with notes of tar, dried violets and smoky dried cherries. On the palate, there is mellow, aged richness, with dried floral and dried black fruit elements, spices, mushrooms, a menthol note and licorice. This well-stored example of the wine was fully mature and should be consumed over the 2 years. Examples of lesser provenance may already be over the hill, but this bottle was delightful and drank well with a simple grilled meat dish. Drink now.
The Critics:
84 points.
"A well-made, smooth, round Barolo that shows fine black cherry, rose petal and spice flavors. Quite austere, medium body and has the stuffing to age into 1997 and longer."
----------
|
| |
The winery in the foreground with the Cannubi Boschis hill behind it,
and La Morra in the distance.
|
----------
|
| Sandrone Wines as Investment
 Though we believe that wine is made for drinking, one cannot escape the fact that wine has become an investment vehicle for certain types of investors. Certainly we have read about the many "Wine Funds" that have collapsed over the last year and we bemoan the bad faith and corruption that sometimes come with all types of investment funds, not just ones that focus on wine. We were heartened to read a year ago that our Barolo Le Vigne was being included in the "Italy 100" section of the Liv-Ex Fine Wine 1000 index. This index reflects the investment value of a set of blue-chip wines from around the world. The first index was almost exclusively Bordeaux but has been expanded to include the investment-grade wines of the rest of the world.
Recently we saw this article in Decanter on the investment possibilities of Italian wines: Investment Analysis: SuperTuscans and Barolos. Barolo is beginning to preform very well for Investment indexes. What is holding Piedmontese wines back in relation to Tuscans is the smaller production and the less-developed sense of "brand." Whereas Supertuscans were denied DOC and DOCG status, thus forcing them to develop a strong brand identity as "lowly" IGT wines, Piedmontese blue-chips are exclusively DOCG wines, and take their fame from the place they are made, such as Barolo or Barbaresco.
We were honored to be included in the Liv-Ex Italy index and thanks all our collectors worldwide who have helped make our wine a blue-chip investment for rewards both financial and pleasurable. The Italy index has appreciated by over 20% for the most recent 5-year window; only Burgundy and Champagne have performed better.
---------- |
| New Releases for September coming to the Market!
On September 1, 2015 the new vintages of Barolo, Barbera, Dolcetto and Nebbiolo will be released.
Dolcetto d'Alba 2014
Barbera d'Alba 2013
Barolo Cannubi Boschis 2011
Barolo "Le Vigne" 2011
We will begin to ship the new wines as the release date approaches; check with your country's importer(s) for specific arrival times and ordering/purchase information with their retail partners.
Technical data and tasting notes for all wines including historical vintages can be found by following the above links to our website. We add professional reviews as they become available.
In 2011, early warmth around Easter brought the bud break forward by 10-12 days and set a fast start to the growing season. Temperatures cooled though the early and middle summer to the point that the fruit was on schedule at the end on July. August 6 and 7 saw the arrival of high pressure and heat across northern Italy, and the warmth continued unabated through the middle of October. Interestingly, the extra warmth, coming so late in the growing cycle, did not lead to higher production. The Barolo of 2011 combine the best elements of a cool and warm year; it was cool through August and warm thereafter, and the wines show forward fruit and drinkability alongside a bracing freshness and ripe, long tannins. In general, the wines show poise, drinkability and precise delineation. These are wines that can be consumed earlier in their life compared to the backward vintages of 2006, 2008 and 2010.
The Valmaggiore area is always somewhat warmer than in the Barolo, as is normal, and the 2013 shows the focused fruit and acidity typical of the growing season. 2013 was a cooler year and our Valamggiore shows the delightfully precise effects of the Roero terroir on Nebbiolo: delicacy, red fruits, soft tannins.
Barbera needed more care in the vineyards in 2013 as the season lacked the heat that gives Barbera its greatest expression. Careful vine work and green harvesting allowed us to pick beautifully ripe fruit the end of September. It is a focused and refreshing Barbera.
The difficult 2014 vintage required a set of working practices that we have not needed in nearly a decade: laborious hand-work in the vineyards because the ground was too wet for tractors and heavy equipment. Near-constant hand-spraying and leaf-thinning (to allow for better air circulation) resulted in a very satisfying and deeply colored Dolcetto.
 Current Release Spotlight:
2012 Valmaggiore
Nebbiolo d'Alba
The 2012 vintage gave us Nebbiolo of uncommon delicacy and equilibrium. A moderately warm growing season gave us wines of harmony with "classic-vintage" character. Valmaggiore was harvested under clear, warm conditions over the first 10 days of October 2012.
Cantina Tasting Notes:
January 2015: The wine's aromatic profile shows great typicity of Roero Nebbiolo: fresh and dried cherries, intense red flowers, herbal sage notes with pomegranate, licorice and cola. In the mouth, the wine's excellent balance give a pleasant, harmonious mouthfeel, one of red fruits and delicate, ripe tannins. The acid is refreshing and the wine's finish is long and focused. Drink now-2024.
The Critics:
Wine Enthusiast (Kerin O'Keefe): 92 points (November 2014 Advance Buying Guide)
"Made from grapes grown in the top vineyard site in Roero, this elegant wine entices with aromas of violets, perfumed berries and sweet cake spices. The juicy palate doles out lip-smacking cherry-berry fruit accented by mint, clove, and orange peel, accompanied by lithe tannins and bright acidity. Drink now through 2018."
Vinous (Antonio Galloni): 92 points, November 2014
"Freshly cut roses, sweet red cherries, wild flowers and cinnamon all lift from the glass as the 2012 Nebbiolo d'Alba Valmaggiore shows off its polished, refined personality. This is an especially weightless Nebbiolo built on perfume, silkiness and harmony."
----------
|
Sibi et Paucis 
Along with new current releases, we typically release a few bottles of our "Sibi et Paucis" library wines. This year Luciano decided to wait an additional two years and release the 2006 Barolo bottlings on their 10th anniversary in 2016. Thus this autumn we have no new library release bottles.
The Sibi et Paucis program is our library re-release program (not a riserva wine) and more information can be found here on our website.
Please check with your country's importer for availability of these bottles - previously released vintages may still be in their supply.
Only 10% of the production of each of the three Nebbiolo-based wines are kept back for the Sibi et Paucis program, and most are allocated to restaurant wine lists. If you see the metallic stamp on a bottle, you can be assured that the wine spent 4 years in Luciano's archive library cellar - perfect provenance!
----------
|
Barolo resting in the Cantina
 | |
Tonneaux in the Ageing Cellar.
|
Our Barolo spends at least 24 months in wooden casks and per DOCG laws cannot be released until the beginning of the 4th calendar year after the vintage. So there is a good bit of wine down in our cellar! We do not use barriques here at Sandrone, instead Luciano prefers to use tonneaux (500 liter casks of French oak). Also, the Barbera and Valmaggiore spend 12-14 months in wood. We use about 20-25% new wood on the Barolo, 30-50% new wood on the Barbera and only used, neutral casks for the Valmaggiore.
The 2012 Baroli have been in tonneaux for 24 months and are just being bottled this month. The 2012 Barbera and Nebbiolo Valmaggiore were bottled in December 2013 and were released last September. The 2011 Barolo were assembled and bottled in January-February of 2014 and will be released in September of 2015. While it is impossible to talk about what the wines still in wood will specifically taste like when they are released in the future, we would like to tell you a bit about how the Barolo are developing.
 2011: The Barolo were in cask for 2 years and were assembled in December 2013 and bottled in January 2014. The warm Cannubi Boschis site gave us grapes that embody the best attributes of the season: amazing perfume of strawberries, cherries and fresh roses with beautiful ripe fruit in the mouth. A big surprise is Le Vigne, which has changed somewhat due to a switch of the component vineyards: we gave up our long-term leases on Conterni and Cerretta in the commune of Monforte, and added the Villero vineyard from Castiglione, which adds mid-palate richness and structure, and further fruit from the Upper Baudana planting from Serralunga, which adds great tannic structure to the wine (a portion of the Baudana fruit was also used in the 2010 Le Vigne). We have very high expectations for this wine, and the further addition of the Serralunga fruit should make it even more age-worthy. The wine shows deep, penetrating aromas of black fruits and licorice and has incredible presence in the mouth. This wine truly embodies the old Barolo adage of the "iron fist in the velvet glove."
2012: A long, even growing season of exceptional quality was the characteristic of this year. The wines show generous and forward fruit but with more structure and tannin than some of the warm recent vintages, thus the 2012s require some patience to reach their peak. As the wines develop, we see the character of a more classic vintage emerging, showing good acidity and structure. Cannubi Boschis, lower in the valley and from a warmer site, gives us a fruit-driven wine; Le Vigne, from higher-altitude plots, shows more tightness and structure. In 2012, Luciano made 2 experiments with fruit from various Le Vigne vineyards: a tank vinified with the stems from a plot of exceptionally ripe Nebbiolo and a tank macerated for 4 weeks on the skins. Both of these tanks will be incorporated into the Le Vigne bottling. Luciano's goal with these experiments - as always - is to improve quality, drinkability and more fully express the typicity of Nebbiolo grown in the Barolo. Barbera in 2012 is bright, fruity and very quaffable; Valmaggiore 2012 is a balanced, expressive wine of delicate and elegant aromatics and structure.
 | |
Ripe, healthy Nebbiolo in Valmaggiore, September 2013
|
2013: A difficult, wet and cold spring gave way to sunny and warm conditions a week before flowering, and the ensuing summer was warm but not particularly hot, except for an 8-day heatwave in late July/early August. August was less hot than usual and a 3-day rain the first week of September drastically cooled the area. Uneven weather patterns forced us to carefully pick parcel-by-parcel as grapes reached optimum ripeness. The Dolcetto suffered a bit from the early cool weather but the health of the fruit at picking time was excellent, though alcohol levels will be a half-point lower than usual. Late September and early October gave us warm, sunny days and good picking conditions, and we were able to harvest near-normal quantities of exceptionally balanced, mature Nebbiolo and Barbera. It is too early to talk about specific taste profiles of the new individual wines but Luciano and Luca are very happy with the overall high quality. Malolactic fermentation finished the first week of February2014 and the wines will continue to develop during their time in tonneaux.
2014: The first truly difficult growing season since 2002 and 2003, but not the disaster the press has made it out to be. After 10 very good to otherworldly vintages, having a difficult vintage is not the end of the world - we have much for which to be thankful, not least of which is the wines we made this year. The wines were racked to tonneaux in November and early December of 2014 and went through the malolactic fermentation; all have finished the malo and the temperatures in the aging cellar are back down to 12C.
We will keep you updated on the further development of these wines.
|
Legal & Copyright: The Fine Print!
Newsletter, Announcements, Flash News and Press Releases: Copyright 2015Sandrone Luciano Azienda Agricola, Via Pugnane 4, 12060 Barolo (CN) Italy
Text: Copyright 2015 VintageSpec, Inc. Used by permission. Reproduction of any part of this newsletter without prior written consent of Sandrone Luciano Barolo and any other copyright holder is prohibited. Photos: "Cannubi panorama landscape" header, "5 bottles," "Valmaggiore Vineyard" and individual bottle photos: Copyright Davide Dutto. Any and All other Photographs in text: Copyright 2005-2015 VintageSpec Inc. Used by permission. Reproductions of text and images such as in the "Recent Press," "Upcoming Events" and other sections of this newsletter come from various named and credited publications, events and critics, and are made under "Fair Use" provisions of Copyright law. |
|
|
|
|
