Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo Brunate Retrospective: 1990-2010

BY ANTONIO GALLONI | MAY 18, 2017

This recent retrospective of Rinaldi Barolo Brunate from magnum going back to 1990 was special for so many reasons, most notably the rarity of the bottles we opened. Gordon Ramsay’s maze in the heart of London was the setting for what turned out to be a truly unforgettable evening.

We only do a few events a year at Vinous. Our goal is to create experiences that are rich in historical context – tastings and dinners that offer both a high amount of educational value as well as pure pleasure, because at the end of the day, wine is about pleasure. I have specific memories about each of the events that we have hosted in the past. On this night, the wines were brilliant, the food was terrific and the service was top-notch, but what I will remember most was the pure electricity in the room. As we sat down, around 7pm, the overall energy and sound level was more typical of what I would expect to see much later in the evening. I am especially indebted to my neighbors at the table for their extraordinary passion for these wines. Their comments and conversation illuminated much of the evening. 

A Little Background

Giuseppe Rinaldi, like so many estates in Piedmont, is special to me personally because it is a property I first visited as a consumer, well before I wrote about wine. I was attracted to the deep sense of tradition that was, and remains, such a signature. It is hard to believe, but back then Rinaldi was essentially unknown outside of Italy. Today, many years later, even after having the immense privilege of tasting the very best and rarest wines from pretty much everywhere, my appreciation for the Rinaldi Barolos is stronger than ever. Quite simply these are among the world’s greatest and most iconic wines.

I think it is important to remember just how much things have changed in Piedmont over the last twenty years. It is only recently, within the last decade or so, that Barolo and Barbaresco sell through within a calendar year. When I first started visiting Piedmont, in the mid-1990s, it was not uncommon for wineries to have several vintages of their wines for sale at one time. Suffice it to say, it’s not like that anymore. I remember one visit to Piedmont when I was in business school and heavily in debt. I still bought much more wine than anyone in my financial position should have, and yet, I probably should have bought more. At the time, there was not a single Barolo or Barbaresco that was not easy to source and buy in quantity, including all of the big names.

One of the reasons the Rinaldi Barolos are very hard to find is that the family has long upheld a tradition of selling a large portion of the production directly to their numerous loyal private customers. Because of this dispersion of wine among many households, it is exceedingly rare to find large parcels of older wines at auction. Most bottles are quietly cellared in the cellars of discerning consumers and drunk. I remember running into Magda Olivero, a long-time private customer, during a visit many years ago. Olivero, one of the legendary opera singers of the twentieth century and true verismo soprano whose interpretations stand apart for their total depiction of character, sustained a professional career well into her 90s and lived to be 104. I would like to think that all that Rinaldi Barolo was a secret to her longevity.

1911 Barale & Rinaldi Barolo, 1921 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo

Family History

The Rinaldi family is originally from nearby Diano d’Alba. In 1870 Giovanni Battista Rinaldi (d. 1928), Beppe Rinaldi’s great-grandfather, married Ludovica Barale. They bought the Boschis farmhouse atop Cannubi (today the home of the Francesco Rinaldi winery) from the caretaker of Marchesi di Barolo and founded Barale & Rinaldi. As an aside, Beppe Rinaldi’s father was born in that farmhouse. The couple had nine children, four of them boys. In 1916, the family divided their vineyards, all of which had originally come from the Barale side of the family. Brothers Giuseppe, Francesco and Carlo divided the family holdings and founded their own wineries (the fourth brother died as an infant). The Giuseppe Rinaldi and Francesco Rinaldi wineries continue to this day. Carlo Rinaldi had two sons, one of whom died young in a motorcycle accident. The surviving son, Luigi, sold off some of the family property and donated the rest to the town of Barolo before emigrating to Argentina. The retirement home in Barolo is one of those properties.

The present-day Giuseppe Rinaldi farmhouse, winery and residence was built between 1910 and 1916. Giuseppe Rinaldi released the first wine under his label with the 1921 vintage. During this era, Rinaldi made two Barolos, a Barolo Brunate-Le Coste and a Barolo Cannubi (San Lorenzo)-Ravera, but the wines were never labeled as such, a reflection of a much simpler time. Giuseppe’s son, Battista, took over in 1945. Battista Rinaldi blended the fruit from all of the family’s vineyards to make a single Barolo. In 1964, Rinaldi began bottling a small amount of Riserva just from Brunate, which was called Riserva Brunata with a final ‘a’, the naming convention of the time. Battista's son, Beppe, then working as a veterinarian, returned to the winery, following his father's death in 1992 although he had been involved in the family business for a number of years prior to that.

1992 Barolo Brunate, 1993 Barolo Brunate Le-Coste