2019 Barolo: Back on Track

BY ANTONIO GALLONI | JANUARY 10, 2023

After the highly problematic and uneven 2018s, Barolo bounces back with a stellar vintage in 2019 that could very well represent the beginning of a new cycle of strong, outstanding years for this historic appellation. The 2019s are potent, tightly wound wines that will thrill readers who appreciate the nuance, subtlety and structure of Nebbiolo. Today, the 2019s show elements of youthful austerity that, at times, recall vintages such as 2016, 2005 and 1999. The only thing 2019 lacks is some of the visceral excitement found in the very best years, although the top wines certainly check all the boxes.

Chiara Boschis, left, along with her niece, Beatrice, and brother, Giorgio, made some of the most impressive Barolos of 2019.

Barolo Loses a Favorite Son

I learned of Luciano Sandrone’s passing just as I prepared to go to press with this report. I will have more to say on Sandrone and his remarkable life once I have had a chance to gather my thoughts. For now, let me just say that Luciano Sandrone was a titan. Sandrone defined an entire generation of young, quality-minded Barolo growers who revolutionized Barolo in the 1980s, when Piedmont was a far less dynamic place than it is today. With all due respect to his contemporaries, Sandrone did several things none of them did. First, he created an estate from nothing, with no inherited land, but rather with a vineyard he and his wife Mariuccia purchased. Sandrone almost immediately found remarkable balance, crafting Barolos that were decidedly modern in style but that also appealed to wine lovers reared on the classics. The 1989 and especially 1990 Cannubi Boschis were among his first iconic wines. Last and maybe most importantly, Sandrone was the only grower of his generation to create a winery that climbed the ranks and becomes part of Piedmont's elite, that small group of historic, family-run estates whose wines are highly sought in the secondary market.

Luciano Sandrone, left, with wife Mariuccia, brother Luca and daughter Barbara at their winery in 2019.

2019…How Did We Get Here?

As much as I am enthusiastic about 2019, this is not an easy vintage to understand. Not at all. When I first started tasting Piedmont wines, looking at years was pretty simple. Most vintages fell into one of two camps. Some years were cooler and later-ripening. These ‘classic’ vintages, often preferred by Nebbiolo purists, tended to yield wines with bright acids, penetrating aromatics and plenty of structure, often manifested in forbidding tannins, especially in the old days. Think of 1978, 1996 and, in more current times, 2004, 2005 or 2008. Warmer years offered suppler wines with softer contours and more forward fruit. These wines were generally easier to enjoy with just a few years in bottle. Think 1985, 1990, 1997 and 2000, for example. Occasionally an odd vintage with a shock weather event like 2002 reared its head. And that was about it. Simple.