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This is a silky-smooth Barolo, delicately scented with roses and violets, and showing great aromatic complexity. It can be enjoyed only a few months after bottling, but will continue to improve and develop in elegance for 15-20 years.
- Country: Italy
- Region: Piemonte
- Sub-Region/Appellation: Barolo
Riccardo Ceretto founded the Casa Vinicola Ceretto in the late thirties, setting the stage by raising his two sons in the wine business of Alba. The next generation saw the sorry state of winemaking, the squandered resources of their precious land – all the conditions of the sixties that pushed a small group of dedicated young men to rebuild the Langhe and prove to the world its merit as a great wine zone. Two of these men were Bruno and Marcello Ceretto, the “Barolo Brothers” who describe themselves as simili al punto che più diversi non potrebbero essere – so similar they could not be more different. While the reserved Marcello developed skills in enology and took control of production, dynamic big brother Bruno analyzed the business side of the wine world. It was Bruno’s innovative approach to marketing that brought attention to his sibling’s top-notch creations: a fresh new face for the bottlings caught the eyes of experts and wine lovers; highlighting Roero Arneis helped keep Piemonte on the map in the 80’s when whites were all the rage and Friuli had captivated the world; and the establishment of a distinguished literary prize for wine and food writing framed a grand image of Ceretto as a leader in, and guardian of, excellence in enogastronomy.
The Ceretto brothers have never tried to change their Barolo or Barbaresco – innovation is the exclusive realm of the marketing department – but rather strive to perfect what comes naturally from the earth. Their wine production covers seven separate estates, while an eighth (I Vignaioli di Santo Stefano) is co-owned along with two other growers.
The first estate to be established was the Azienda Bricco Asili. These 8.5 hectares lie in the Barbaresco communes of Bricco Asili, Bernardot, and Faset, and a cru Barbaresco is produced from each of these three sites. The other principal estate is the Azienda Bricco Rocche, located in the heart of Barolo and comprising 11 hectares in La Morra, Serralunga, and Castiglione Falletto. Only Barolo is made here: Brunate and Prapò are made in most vintages (the vintners pass grapes from difficult vintages to the central estate, where the Zonchera is made) and exceptional harvests brew the Bricco Rocche.
In addition to the traditional Barolos Bricco Rocche and Prapò and the Barbaresco Bricco Asili for which they are renowned, Ceretto makes wines like Monsordo that blend international varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Pinot Nero with the native Nebbiolo. Their purview of varied sites allows Ceretto to produce a wide range of wines that are distinct to the vineyard from which they are reaped, and with the help of consultant Donato Lanati (also of Schiopetto, Russiz Superiore, Colterenzio, and Isole e Olena) each bottling is of outstanding quality.
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