2013 Cavallotto Barolo Bricco Boschis- Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (4/12/2017)
Striking, precise, deeply perfumed and artfully poised. The structure seems to match the quality of the extremely pure fruits, which is to say, this measures up to some of the very best newly released Barolo wines. I had to taste it twice, the second time, no spitting. Only going to get better from here, could well end up in epic territory. Glorious, elegant length; bravo, Alfio! 2024 thru 2048+. HOLD. highly recommended+
Thanks for the note Tim. The Bricco Boschis lives in the shadows of the San Giuseppe but in a top vintage like 2013 (or 2010) it can be a great wine in its own right. I look forward to trying the 2013 version.
It’s been almost a year since I had them when I visited Cavallotto last fall, but my impression is that the '12s are definitely more approachable right now. The '13s need years more in the bottle, but I think when they come around will really be fantastic to drink. I wouldn’t recommend opening a '13 riserva anytime soon.
Caveat, I sell these wines and have had both several times… yes, I recognize that ‘12 is a little more forward, I would actually argue that it’s more in balance than the ‘13… the ‘13 is showing a huge frame as to the ‘12 is more chiseled and refined…
I think overall the ‘13 vintage is way overrated and according to Alfio the ‘12 riservas are the best they have ever made…
I have not tried the riservas, but I tried the 2013 Bricco Boschis after release and I agree with you - it was a huge, dense wine, with coarser tannins than I expected, and I decided to skip it. Have you tried the 16 Bricco Boschis? How does it compare to the 2013?
+1 for the Langhe nebbiolo, although it is released earlier than what would be required for Barolo every year. I assume the point you are making is that this sees long skin contact (up to a month) and extended time in oak (15-18 mo for Langhe nebbiolo) which is not all that common for a Langhe nebbiolo. From my notes during my visit last year, their Barolo typically sees twice as much time in oak as that as well as slightly longer time with skins.
For my money, this is one of the best nebbiolo values that can be had.
I was being a bit loose, you’re right, it’s released much earlier than the ‘disciplinario’ for Barolo requires. I was referring to the way it’s vinified, with long maceration, and the aging in wood, which is above the new minimum of 18m in most vintages. Their Barolos and Riservas are aged for a lot longer in wood than the required minimums, as you say, as one can tell by looking at their excellent vintage-specific tech sheets on their website; 48-60m in wood for the 2015 Bricco Boschis, for example, never mind the Riservas.
Oliver, it looks like you found a mistake on the Cavallotto website! It looks like it is only present in the Italian language version of their tech sheet for the 2015 bricco boschis where it says 48-60 mo in wood. The English version shows the correct 36-42 months that the wine actually received, as it was released in 2019 - less than 48 months after harvest - and always receives some time in the cellar post-bottling prior to release.
None of this is to try and start an argument - I’m know you have much more experience in this area than I do. I am just in the middle of trying to plan for a return this fall to the region (travel restrictions permitting) and going through my notes from my visits last fall so this is all quite fresh in my mind from then.
I think your overall points here are very clear though - across the board Cavallotto wines see longer macerations and much longer time in wood than required. Aside from the use of rotofermenters, quite traditional in production and wonderful wines across the board (at least in my opinon).
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