Comm. G.B. Burlotto Barolo 2019

Last bottle, opened to share with Nadia Verrua of Cascina Tavijn - the kind of pour that's worth the saving. Deep and introspective, the way the 2019 has been all along: trademark Burlotto strawberry wrapped in tea, dried roses, forest floor, cold rain on autumn leaves, a flicker of bitter herbs and medicinal underbrush. Tannins powdery and drying, texture soothing everything into a seamless line, the gravity of a wine that asks for an evening rather than a glass. Multilayered, deeply elegant, properly delicious. A good wine to part with on the right occasion.

Burlotto's Barolo "normale" reflects the traditional approach of blending multiple Verduno vineyards to express the character of the village as a whole. Sourced from Breri, Neirane, Rocche Olmo, and Boscatto, the cuvée integrates parcels with varying exposures and altitudes (240 - 370 m), rooted in a mix of laminated Sant'Agata fossil marls and the Cassano Spinola formation. These calcareous soils (balanced in clay, sand, and silt) provide structure, aromatic lift, and water retention essential in warmer years.

Harvest is manual, with strict grape selection. Fermentation takes place in open French oak vats. The must is moved only using gravity. Maceration is long and gentle, with daily remontage and punching down. No barriques are used. The resulting wine is a classic Verduno Barolo: aromatic, precise, and structurally elegant - less about power, and more about balance and nuance.

Deep and introspective. The nose paints a cold autumn day - you're remembering summer strawberries tainted by briar tea, but you're surrounded by forest floor, wet leaves, damp earth, cold tea gone tannic, dried flowers that still hold echoes of warm evenings. Perhaps a touch of medicinal herbs, but this is primarily about the beauty of restraint meeting elegance. The tannins are powdery, drying, yet the texture soothes everything - taming both tannin and acidity into something seamless. Multi-layered and genuinely beautiful. A wine to savour across a long evening.

Compared to the 2020, the 2019 is deeper, more introspective. If 2020 was a breezy summer morning, then 2019 is a quiet, rainy autumn day. The trademark strawberry is there, but it's wrapped in layers of tea, dried roses, and a bit of earth. With time, bitter herbs begin to emerge. It drinks with more gravity - the tannins are more pronounced, a touch more granular, yet everything is beautifully integrated. Complex, layered, and deeply elegant. Rounded, contemplative, and seriously delicious.

This wine is truly remarkable. It exudes a perfumed elegance yet delivers a distinct fruit intensity with notes of cherry, black currant, and raspberry. Hints of spice, wood, and wet earth add complexity. Despite its power, it remains beautifully delicate. It requires time to fully open, revealing a fresh and robust character with firm, slightly youthful tannins. While the tannins are somewhat tingling and dry, the juiciness shines through. An excellent value.

Barolo

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