1999 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.

I remember first tasting the 1999s in the Vietti tasting room when they were first released. As gorgeous as the wines were then, they are even better today. In addition to these 1999s, Luca and Elena Currado opened a few older Barolos for added perspective. I have included notes on those wines here for readers who have an interest in some of the estate's early Barolos. Since the 1999s were made, Vietti has gone on to even greater heights, but readers who might still be able to source well-stored bottles should not hesitate.

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.

“I am a big fan of the 1999s and expect them to be long- lived wines,” says Luca Currado. “Today I find that the wines have started to close down in the bottle as they lose their primary fruit and begin acquiring more tertiary aromas and flavors. The only one of my wines I would advise opening now is the Castiglione, the other Barolos should be forgotten about for at least another few years. Based on what I've tasted my impression is that over the long haul 1999 is a vintage which will favor traditionally made wines made with longer maceration times, as I expect to be the case with 2004 as well.” In the past one of my criticisms of this estate has been that the use of barrique tends to obscure too much of the nuances in the wines, especially a shame for a producer working with some of the most prestigious vineyards in the zone. “We have never been huge users of small oak, usually limiting the wines to no more than twelve months of barrique,” responds Currado. “That said, in vintages such as 1998 and 1999 we found perhaps a slight excess of sweet flavors contributed by the barriques which tended to mask some of the vineyard qualities in wines like Lazzarito, Ravera and Brunate. In vintages 2003, 2004, and 2005 we have kept our Barolos in barrique even less time.” Indeed, I have tasted the 2003 and 2004 Barolos on two occasions and the wines offer outstanding potential. They will be fascinating Barolos to follow over the next few years.

The Currado family now owns 32 hectares of vineyards, following a very expensive purchase of a parcel of Barolo Villero. The family is in the process of expanding its winery, although there are no plans to increase production. Luca Currado is a flexible winemaker with strong ideas about the different needs of his crus. "The Rocche needs a long fermentation and does not take well to aging in barriques" he told me. "Brunate is a more feminine wine; it typically requires more oxygenation during its first year. The Lazzarito is a typically hard terroir of Serralunga. Small barrels are essential: the wine is like a wild horse that you need to ride." Currado is increasingly doing the malolactic fermentations in barriques which he believes adds silkiness and fat to the family's wines without making them overly oaky. But elevage varies depending on the wine. For example, the Barbaresco Masseria is aged entirely in barriques but the Barolo Villero is racked into large Slavonian ovals the spring after the harvest, once the malos have occurred in small barrels. Rocche is the only Barolo that spends no time in barriques.Currado is a champion of the 1999 vintage, which offered excellent material and power "for the Barolistas." He described 1998 as an elegant, crowd-pleasing style of wine, like a more structured version of 1988. ("No, it's more like '89," interjected Alfredo Currado.) Luca added that he thought 2000 favored Barbaresco over Barolo, but that 2001 is stronger for both areas. "For me, 2001 is a 100-point vintage, surely the best since 1996. 1996 would have been as good if we knew then what we know now."