MCF Rare Wine
Bovio Barolo
So, the 2015 Barolo are landing and by and large, they're big, dark, brawny and intensely structured wines.
Very good...but big...
By and large, that is...
A producer like Bovio, however, whose lighter and brighter style is one I tend to love in a vintage like '15, has produced a wine that I...welll, love in '15.
Last week, winemaker Matteo Franchi dropped in to show me a lineup of the current releases and, among a whole range of fabulous wine (really they are doing fantastic work, maybe the best they've ever done), the 2015 Barolo really captured my attention.
I've long adored Bovio for their pure, polished and elegant take on Barolo. In lighter/juicier vintages like say 1998, this kind of style yields super-friendly wines of aromatics and elegance that, despite their rather joyful disposition, are deceptively ageworthy. I've had (and sold some of you) some of the 1998s recently and they're drinking fabulously.
In a burly vintage like 2015, however, this kind of style is, for me, even more attractive
So, after tasting our way through the Dolcetto/Nebbiolo/Barberas of the Bovio lineup, it was time to taste the 2015 Barolo normale. Having tasted some other 2015 Baroli recently, most of which were definitely from the other end of the spectrum in terms of style, I was eager to see what Bovio had managed.
They managed...
This was one terrifically bright, balanced, crystalline, fragrant, energetic Barolo...an incredibly complete wine that, despite its refined take, still shows the telltale 2015 structure underneath it all.
Sure, I'll be buying 2015s across the board and in a range of styles, but in a vintage like 2015, I always flock to the wines with this kind of brighter style, especially when they're such values as well.
Since he was here, and the importer still has nice stock on them, Matteo also poured two of the single vineyard wines from the lauded 2013 vintage and they were fantastic as well. Showing just a bit of evolution compared to the fresh 2015, the 2013 Arborina and Gattera were two more shining examples of the Bovio style.
The Arborina, always the most dainty of the Bovio Baroli, was lifted, fragrant and bright, showing the more flowery side of Nebbiolo, though still tightly wound.
The Gattera, on the other hand, is always the most firmly structured offering from Bovio and here was one of the great examples of a young Gattera that I can recall. Muscular, tarry and very firmly stuffed, its nose was packed with hints of future glory.
While I think both wines need ideally another 10 years at least, I certainly wouldn't refuse a glass of either right now.
If only all tasting appointments were this enjoyable...
To inquire about this wine, please email info@mcf-rarewine.com or call 212.255.8870.
Matt Franco
MCF Rare Wine, Ltd
249 West 13th Street NYC 10011
212.255.8870
