Tasting Notes
Antonio Galloni 93
The 2019 Barolo Coste di Rose is the most open of the vineyard designates, but is not the easygoing Barolo it has often been in the past. Bright acids and veins of supporting tannin give the 2019 its taut, rather nervous feel. Crushed red berry fruit, mint, spice flowers and earthy tones all develop with a bit of time in the glass. There is a bit of nervousness in the tannin that needs to soften, but all the elements are nicely balanced.
Anticipated maturity: 2026-2039
JancisRobinson.com 17.5+
Full bottle 1,324 g. Certified organic (Ecocert), sustainable (SQNPI). Aged 28 months in 25-hl and 50-hl Slavonian oak. A small vineyard (16 ha) which Giuseppe Vajra calls a hidden gem – literally: the only way to see it is to go off road. Very steep, located on the top of the hill and on very, very old sandstone, over 50% of the soil matrix is pure sand. Planted 1995 to 2001. Litus Rosarum on the label. Hand-picked 18 October 2019, destemmed and vinified in custom-designed tini. Vinification lasted 25 days, including the submerged maceration. Spontaneous malolactic fermentation occurred in the following spring. 28 months in large Slavonian casks of 25 and 40 hl. Bottled 25 July 2022. So intensely, fragrantly spicy that the first breath and sip is like inhaling a newly-opened jar of Hungarian sweet paprika and Baharat. The fruit is also fragrant; fine, almost a little shy, like a violin solo in an enormous, empty concert hall. Hibiscus, raspberry, blood orange, red roses. A delicate, very fine-boned wine that, for the moment, is only peeping out from behind the brooding screen of fine-grained tannins, which, as Giuseppe Vajra points out, protrude like a pinch on the tip of the tongue rather than sitting at the back of the mouth. 24 hours later, the tannins feel more like cashmere, allowing the fruit to come forward and sing sweetly and softly. (TC)
Anticipated maturity: 2025-2035
