• Flight 1: E.Pira, F.Rinaldi, L.Sandrone.
• Flight 2: Vajra, Cogno.
• Flight 3: A. e G.N. Fantino, E.Grasso.
• Flight 4: Azelia, Brovia.
• Flight 5: Voerzio, Vietti.
• Flight 6: Scavino, G. Rinaldi.
• Flight 7: Alessandria, G.B. Burlotto.
• Lunch.

Chiara Boschis

Paola Rinaldi & Barbara Sandrone

• 2011 E. Pira & Figli (Chiara Boschis) Barolo Cannubi - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  Lovely nose of licorice and red and black fruit. On the palate, complex with black fruit, licorice, and plenty of tannin. A serious wine. 92-94 (93 points)
• 2011 Francesco Rinaldi e Figli Barolo Cannubi - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Paola Rinaldi spoke about how her great grandfather (Giovanni Rinaldi) bought their farmhouse and their original plot in Cannubi-Boschis (from Marchesi Falletti) when he founded the winery in 1875. Boschis was the name of the original owner of this farmhouse. They own some vines in Cannubi, but most are in Cannubi-Boschis. Both are included in this wine. Her grandfather (Francesco) bought their parcel of Brunate in 1936 for 60k Lira.] Darker nose of black fruit and licorice. Long finish of tannin and black fruit. Sweet and rough. Harder to judge at this stage. (91–92 points)
• 2011 Luciano Sandrone Barolo Cannubi Boschis - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Barbara Sandrone, daughter of Luciano Sandrone, talked about how special Cannubi Boschis is and how it was the first vineyard that her father bought. Luciano had planned to be here, but had to cancel at the last minute.] Perfumed floral black fruit nose. Rich, sweet, delicious. Medium length. (93 points)

Giuseppe Vajra

Valter Fissore

• 2011 G.D. Vajra Barolo Bricco delle Viole - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Giuseppe Vajra spoke about the effect of the high altitude of this vineyard. How it gets strong sun in the daytime, but cool breezes from the Alps in the evening.] Stunning black fruit nose with loads for sweet tar and licorice. Thick, rich, ripe. Wow, just a gorgeous wine to drink over the next 10-15 years. (95 points)
• 2011 Azienda Agricola Elvio Cogno Barolo Bricco Pernice - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Valter Fissore spoke about how his father in law, Elvio Cogno, left Marcarini in 1990 and bought his own vineyard in Ravera. Bricco Pernice is the historical center of Ravera.] Muted nose (at least compared to the Vajra BdV), but stunning in the mouth. Elegant, complex. Juicy and delicous. (95 points)

Alessandro e Gian Natale Fantino (from their website)

Gianluca Grasso, who did smile, just not in my photo.

• 2011 Alessandro e Gian Natale Fantino Barolo Bussia Cascina Dardi - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Alessandro Fantino had to cancel at the last minute, so no one spoke for this winery … except the wine, which spoke quite well.] Wildly perfumed nose of bright cherries. Rich and complex with a very long tannic finish. Exotic. The surprise of the tasting. (95 points)
• 2011 Elio Grasso Barolo Ginestra Casa Maté - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Gianluca Grasso talked about the 1970s when times were very hard economically and young people were leaving the area to work in the big cities. People back then prefered flat land to grow crops other than grapes to make a living. His father left banking to come back to "become the son of a farmer."] Sweet cherry-vanilla nose. Rich, thick, tannic. Palate not as overtly oaky as the nose. Long and sweet. I would wait 5-10 years on this one for the oak to integrate. (93–?? points)

Lorenzo Scavino

Alex Sanchez

• 2011 Azelia Barolo Margheria - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Lorenzo Scavino said his father, Luigi Scavino, always loved Serralunga vineyards. He first bought a parcel in San Rocco, then later in Margheria. Sweet, perfumed vanilla nose. Fresh and tasty. Good tannins and length. (92 points)
• 2011 Fratelli Brovia Barolo Brea Vigna Ca'mia - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Alex Sanchez said their wine is organic. Made from free-run juice only and 60-year-old vines. Brea is a monopole in Serralunga d'Alba.] Lovely, perfumed red berry and licorice nose. Wonderfully complex in the mouth with lots of tannin. (94–?? points)

Roberto Voerzio

Luca Currado

• 2011 Roberto Voerzio Barolo Brunate - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  ["Owning vines in Brunate is like having Leo Messi on your soccer team." - Roberto Voerzio. He also mentioned that since 1990, they have planted their vines at about twice the density that is typical in Barolo. On average, they use half new barriques, but it varies from vintage to vintage.] Lovely perfumed cherry nose. Thick and simple in the mouth at this point. Long, juicy dark fruit finish. (91–?? points)
• 2011 Vietti Barolo Rocche di Castiglione - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Luca Currado says the 2011s turned out better than many past warm vintages because they all work to keep the acidity up, even harvesting a bit earlier. He also spent some time talking about how his father (Alfredo Currado) made the first single-vineyard Barolo from Rocche in 1961. He gave a lot of credit to his mother (Luciana Vietti) who had the idea that Barolo could be more like Burgundy if it focused on single-vineyard wines.] Gorgeous, perfumed nose of tar and black cherries. Minerals, licorice, and black fruit in the mouth. A terrific wine. Quite classic for this vintage. (95 points)

Enrico Scavino

Marta Rinaldi

• 2011 Paolo Scavino Barolo Riserva Novantesimo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Enrico Scavino said that 2011 is the 90th anniversary of the founding of this winery by his father Paolo and his grandfather Lorenzo. In honor of this, they made this special blend from grapes in Fiasco (Castiglione Falletto), Monvigliero (Verduno), Cannubi and Vignane (Barolo), San Bernardo (Serralunga), Bricco Ambrogio (Roddi), and Rocche dell’Annunziata (La Morra).] Lovely, sweet, new oak nose. Sweet and a little simple at this stage, but very appealing. Some tannin. Medium length. It seems a bit shut down this morning. (92–?? points)
  Note that the label pictured below was made to look like the label from 90 years ago, so it does not say Riserva on it. That will be on a label on the other side (when the wine is released in 2017), which for government purposes will be the official front label. Note the similarity to the 1964 label next to it below.
• 2011 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo Tre Tine - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Marta Rinaldi says she doesn't like 2011 so much. It's a warm vintage with an early harvest. They picked Cannubi on September 26th. More than 14.5% alcohol in this wine due to warm vintage. 70% Ravera this year, since that was the freshest of the 3 vineyards.] Muted red fruit and tar nose. Rich and expansive in the mouth. Gorgeous macerated cherries on the finish. A wow wine. (95 points)

Vittore Alessandria

Fabio Alessandria

• 2011 Fratelli Alessandria Barolo Monvigliero - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Vittore Alessandria said that having 2 producers from Verduno together presenting at this event is historic. He said that he had sent a text message to the parson of Verduno to ask him to ring the bell in the church. People laughed. I'm not sure he wasn't serious. He is the 5th generation of his family to work in this winery.] Lovely, perfumed, dark fruit nose with just a hint of olives. Elegant and complex. A tasty wine that needs a few years to fill out. (93 points)
• 2011 Comm. G.B. Burlotto Barolo Monvigliero - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
  [Whole cluster fermentation.] Same nose as the Alessandria Monvigliero but with more olive. Beautiful and complex. A very long finish and a great sense of harmony. (95 points)

All original content © Ken Vastola