Vietti 2016 "Castiglione" Barolo, Piemonte, Italy [375ml Half Bottle]

Vietti 2016 "Castiglione" Barolo, Piemonte, Italy [375ml Half Bottle]

Variety: Nebbiolo

Farming: Sustainable with Organic Practice

Terroir: The  Castiglione is a combination of 100% Nebbiolo from small vineyards all throughout Barolo. The vines grow on clay-limestone soils and range in  age from 8-41 years old. 

Vinification: After harvest, the grapes are separated by  their cru, where they remain so until bottling and experience  differentiating techniques depending on their specific site. The grapes  are fermented in stainless steel.

Aging: A combination of oak and  barriques for approximately 30 months. The wine is finally blended  together once aging is finished then bottled. 

Tasting Notes: Aromatically this  Barolo is delicate with notes of dried roses and violets, red cherries  and a hint of fine baking spice. On the palate, the wine has mouth  watering tannins with red fruit flavors, dried basil, and a kiss of  leather. 

Scores: 94+ Wine Advocate, 94 Vinous, 93 Decanter
 

Vietti currently owns 90 acres of vineyards spread over nine communes  within Barolo, and in nearly all the key regional appellations,  including Barbaresco, Barbera d'Asti and Barbera d'Alba. The estate’s  vines are from 10 to over 90 years old. The oldest, planted by Luca’s  grandfather Mario, are made into the Vigna Vecchia (old vine) Barbera  D’Alba wines.

 Each lot of fruit is processed and aging  separately with slightly different methods. Fermentation for each lot is  performed in stainless steel. The wine is aged for roughly 30 months in  oak and barriques, then blended before bottling.

The Vietti winery, now managed by the family’s fifth generation, is  based in the small medieval village of Castiglione Falletto, the heart  of Piedmont’s famous “Langhe” wine region. Here the Currado family  carefully and patiently handcrafts lauded wines that are the result of a  unique combination of sun and soil. Although the family has made wine  for two centuries, the first Vietti-labeled wines were produced by  third-generation Mario, who transformed the family’s farm into a grape  growing winery. In 1952 Alfredo Currado married Mario’s daughter Luciana  and made a name for Vietti’s single-vineyard Barbera and Barolo. He  also put the native Piedmont varietal Arneis on the wine map.

In 1970 the Viettis began working with artists on an ongoing, original  artwork label program, featuring Pier Paolo Pasolini and Janet Fish  among others, which received an exhibition at New York’s MOMA in 1996.  In 1990 Alfredo and Luciana’s son Luca joined the family business as  winemaker after working at California's Simi Winery, Opus One, Long  Vineyards and Bordeaux's Mouton-Rothschild. His innovative winemaking  utilizes a unique combination of the modern and traditional. Luca's  focus on terroir is reflected in his careful cultivation and organic  farming of more than 25 single vineyards. Recently he eliminated  equipment that measures acid and tannin levels in favor of a more  intuitive, and wine-specific approach, preferring that wine critics and  drinkers apply their own perceptions and preferences to his wines.In  1983 Mario Cordero, Alfredo and Luciana’s son-in-law joined the winery  to run marketing and sales. In 2005 Luca’s wife, Elena Penna, started to  work in the family winery in marketing and public relations.

One of the first Barolo wineries to select and vinify grapes from a single  Barolo vineyard and label as a single cru, Vietti is also credited with  rediscovering the almost lost varietal of Arneis. A true icon in the  world of wine, Vietti specializes in producing a wide array of DOC and  DOCG wines from the region.