1985 Barolo Rocche di Castiglione

Vietti is one of Italy’s most historic wineries. Husband and wife Alfredo Currado and Luciana Vietti (Luca Currado’s parents) were pioneers in so many ways. They were among the first producers to bottle single-vineyard Barolo and to promote Piedmont and its wines abroad, especially in the United States. Alfredo Currado is also widely credited for rescuing Arneis from total obscurity in the 1960s. This wine was tasted as part of a vertical spanning 17 vintages held in May 2016.

These four stunning Barolos find Alfredo Currado at the peak of his powers. The 1982 is my favorite. A deeply expressive Barolo with captivating aromatics and remarkable nuance, the 1982 also the first glass I finish. I find much to admire in the 1985, although it is a slightly overshadowed in this flight. The 1989 and 1990 are a bit subdued relative to other times I have tasted those wines, but overall the flight is Magnificent. With a capital M.

A simple, informal dinner at Becco, in New York City's theater district, provided an incredible opportunity to survey a broad range of vintages of Vietti's Barolo Rocche. Vietti is one of Barolo's historic properties. Husband and wife team Alfredo Currado and Luciana Vietti were pioneers in the 1960s. They were among the first producers to recognize the unique qualities of their vineyards, many of which are among the finest in the region, even today. Their 1961 Barolo Rocche was among the earliest Barolos to be made from a single vineyard rather than from a blend of plots as was the prevailing custom at the time. Vietti was also one of the first estates to export a significant amount of their production to overseas markets, especially to the US. In fact, I remember that when I lived in Italy a few years ago their wines were always easier to find in the US than locally. Today, the estate is run by brothers-in-law Luca Currado and Mario Cordero. While the quality of the Barolos continues to be very high what impresses me most about Vietti is the quality of all their wines, from top to bottom. The Rocche vineyard is located in Castiglione Falletto, not too far from the winery. The hallmarks of this site are perfumed fruit, finessed, silky tannins, and a sweetness to the fruit that makes the wines accessible at a relatively early age for Barolo, all qualities that were on full display in the wines. The atmosphere in the room was electric as we worked our way through this breathtaking array of wines, which we enjoyed alongside Becco's traditional Italian fare. The food was delicious, but on this night our attention was understandably focused on the wines. Special thanks are due to collector Greg Dal Piaz who organized the dinner and contributed all of the wines except for the 2003 and 2004, which were brought by Luca Currado.

The subject of evaluating and rating vintages is one of the favorite topics of discussion among Piedmont lovers, so the opportunity to taste sixteen of the best 1985 Barolos and Barbarescos with a group of hardcore New York Nebbiolo fans made for a truly special evening. Many insiders describe the 1985 vintage as a turning point for the wines. According to Luciano Sandrone “1985 was in many ways the first ‘modern,' hot vintage. The Barolos were uncharacteristically open from the start and have remained accessible.” Giacosa enologist Dante Scaglione says “1985 was the first vintage in which we had wines with very high alcohol. In fact, we wouldn't see such alcohol levels in our wines again until 2003. I view 1985 as a vintage that is ready to drink and one which will not be especially long-lived going forward.” Roberto Conterno had a slightly different take commenting that “I wouldn't necessarily say our wines were accessible from the beginning, however today the 1985s are very expressive and it is a great vintage to drink today.”
Because of the hot growing season and early appeal of the vintage, some have predicted that the wines would not age well. For the most part, I was amazed at how well these Barolos showed. Many of the wines displayed lively color, with rich, sweet fruit, and enough underlying structure to provide balance. While the wines as a group are mature, any suggestion that they are falling apart is simply not borne out by this tasting. How long will the wines last? That is a hard question to answer, since provenance is such a huge variable, but I think it is safe to say that for many of these wines well-stored bottles have another decade of life ahead, and perhaps more. These 1985s offer great drinking today in a more accessible, softer style than either 1982 or 1989, the other two great vintages from the 1980s. Unfortunately we also had a few bad bottles, which I suppose is to be expected in a tasting like this, although the percentage of corked/cooked bottles was higher than we would have liked (around 25%). When these wines were first released fifteen years ago there simply wasn't the kind of attention to temperature-controlled shipping that we have today and several wines appeared to have been damaged by excess heat at some point in their lives. The biggest lesson here for consumers is that there is no substitute for buying these wines on release and cellaring them. Doing so is the only reliable way to minimize the possibility of some very expensive disappointments at a later date. The wines were double-decanted and served blind in flights of four. The identity of the wines was revealed only after all of the wines had been tasted and discussed. Tasting these wines blind with a group of passionate and knowledgeable Barolo fans was a great learning experience, but also a humbling one. Mature Barolos are wines of extraordinary complexity and can fool even the most seasoned palates, as we would be reminded throughout the evening. After the formal tasting was concluded, we enjoyed a delicious dinner, and finished off what was left of these spectacular wines. We also tasted Prunotto's 1985 Barolo Bussia, which was fresh, youthful, and delicious, although it didn't quite reach the level of the best wines on this evening. A great bottle of Bruno Giacosa's 1986 Barolo Riserva Falletto followed, and it was one of the best wines of the night, prompting some of the tasters to wonder if this producer may have been more successful in 1986 than 1985. The evening closed with the outrageous 1983 Recioto from Giuseppe Quintarelli. While I don't have enough experience with this wine to put it into the proper context, I will say that it was breathtaking for its complexity, balance, and sheer appeal. At age 22 it appeared to be magically youthful, and my sense is that this is a wine whose aging potential is to be measured in decades rather than years.