1997 Barolo Cerequio

The key to the deep colors and extraordinary richness of these wines is Voerzio tiny yields, among the lowest in the Langhe region at less than one kilo of fruit per vine, which yields less than a bottle of wine. I saw it with my own eyes: a week prior to the start of the harvest, the vines to either side of Voerzio's Capalot holding below the town of La Morra carried more than twice the crop load as Voerzio's, with many more bunches per vine and larger clusters. As there's less volume of fruit for Voerzio's vines to ripen, potential alcohol levels tend to be high, and Voerzio is often in a position to harvest earlier, a major advantage if weather forecasts are grim. And Voerzio emphasizes that just 6 people work his 12 hectares of vines, giving him better control over the raw materials-"like a great chef." x000D x000D In Voerzio's view, the '97 vintage has great polpa(flesh), but also as much tannin as '96, though considerably lower acidity. "The '97s show a rare roundness for our region," he notes, adding that he also likes the slightly jammy quality of the fruit in '97. "If people in the area say their '98s were better, that's because they brought in too many grapes in '97."

As I tasted through the new vintages with Voerzio extremely tall son David, the perfumed aromas of these Barolos (dark berries, violet, chocolate) made me think I was in a Burgundy cellar, except that here the wines were even more concentrated and the cellar vibrated to the rhythm of loud American rock. In fact, Voerzio owns a high percentage of older vines, and crop thins two or three times during the summer. Barolo yields were well below 30 hectoliters per hectare in '95, '96 and '97, according to Voerzio, who says that he produces less than one kilogram of grapes per vine. He uses barriques for his Barolos, in the belief that the oak frames the fruit and gives the wines a firmer structure for aging. Voerzio describes the '97s as a hot weather style of Barolo, with the jammy aromas he likes and with alcohol in the 14.3%-14.8% range, or close to a percent higher than the '96s, a vintage marked by cooler September nights. x000D x000D x000D x000D x000D x000D x000D x000D x000D x000D Barbera fans should check out Voerzio Barbera d'Alba Riserva Pozzo, aged in all barriques 50% new, and bottled entirely in magnums. This is an extraordinarily concentrated and rich wine, with impressive body and depth of flavor. Voerzio claims it ages like Barolo and needs at least four or five years in the cellar. The problem with the traditional style of barbera, says Voerzio, is that the wines have huge acidity but not enough polpa (flesh). It's all a question of yields, he adds.