2018 Elio Altare, Barolo, Piedmont, Italy

In the 1970’s, Elio Altare took a trip to Burgundy which inspired him to think how he could transfer the potential of a site to the bottle, making more terroir driven wines. Low yields, shorter macerations and less time in barrel were the things Elio took away from the visit and so began his journey. Going a little against tradition which bought much attention at the time, Elio started to apply green harvest and introduced French barriques. This meant the wines gained the perfume, elegance and finesse that we now take for granted. His daughter Silvia is now running the estate with the same, intact philosophy. The estate is based in La Morra, where the Altare family produce some of Piedmont’s greatest wines. The production relies on 10 hectares of organically farmed vineyards.  Why do we like it? Among the range they have some of the finest Barolo single vineyards but our focus is their estate Barolo which is an incredible value wine. It comes from 20 to 30 years old vines located ideally south, south-east, it sees a short maceration for 4-5 days and two years in French barrique. When Barolo are this lifted and expressive, you can only fail in love with them! With enticing cherry fruit, wild raspberry aromas, a touch of orange peel, fresh earth, rose petal and a touch of spice, it's one of the most complex non single vineyards Barolo produced on the market. This wine is suave and concentrated, showing remarkable finesse and fragrance.   Grape            Nebbiolo Country        Italy                              Region          Piedmont                                     Vintage         2018