Working on my understanding of the nuances of Barolo, with no ability to travel there anytime in the near future. What’s a good way, intellectually (i.e. Don’t tell me to go taste 20 wines), for me to get my head around the different communes, and get a vague sense of what I should expect from them in terms of flavor profile? How much of a difference is there really between, say, Monforte, Castiglione and Serralunga? Is it a matter of producers or does the terroir really change that much? Did not find the Kerin O’Keefe book to be of much help.
This map is a pretty succinct way of understanding the geological divide in Barolo, which has a big impact on the structure of the wines:
http://www.jdemeven.cz/wine/Barolo_map.pdf
It is pretty amazing that O’Keefe doesn’t discuss this. The World Atlas of Wine and Bastianich and Lynch’s Vino Italiano describe the differences.
In another thread I saw this link to a wonderful interview with D’agata, thorough discussion of the crus of Barolo and Barbaresco, with extensive detail and how it impacts the wines.
^ This - the D’Agata interview is incredibly informative. After you’ve listened to it, spend a bunch of hours on this blog, which takes you about as deep on the geology as you could possible wish to go: http://mowse.blogspot.com
And if you like, I’m happy to let you peruse my recently acquired copy of the Masnaghetti book Barolo MGA.
Hi Noah
I’m not convinced I could tell the difference between the communes if tasting blind. Indeed I’d be pleasantly surprised if I could pick the Barbaresco wines from those made in Barolo! I’m aware of some suggested differences from reading, though producer approach for me can make a bigger difference especially when tasting a fierce traditionalist’s wines vs. an arch-modernist’s equivalents.
Loads of good reading to be had, and the maps are a joy to look at (though the ability to freely walk through them brings them brilliantly to life).
Not Barolo, and effectively just a single commune, but the Produttori del Barbaresco have done wine geeks a huge favour by their 9 cru bottlings, which they’ve often offered all together at tasting events, and now even do a 10 bottle ‘case’ (inc. a bottle of the standard blended bottling) so people can run such a tasting at home. I believe the same winemaking is applied across the Cru bottlings, so if you want a feel for Barbaresco ‘terroir’ it’s ideal.
I have taste Barolo from classic vintage (not 2009, 2011 or 2014, for example) blind and have correctly identified which sector (La Morra/Barolo/Serralunga) a wine comes from. I think La Morra wines have heavier, syrupy sweet fruit flavours. Serralunga and surrounds are much more complex and structured. I much prefer the latter. I’d guess that it’d be much more difficult to pick out subregions and vineyards without having vast experience and a superb palate. 
I have taste Barolo from classic vintage (not 2009, 2011 or 2014, for example) blind and have correctly identified which sector (La Morra/Barolo/Serralunga) a wine comes from. I think La Morra wines have heavier, syrupy sweet fruit flavours. Serralunga and surrounds are much more complex and structured. I much prefer the latter. I’d guess that it’d be much more difficult to pick out subregions and vineyards without having vast experience and a superb palate.
I, too, find Serralunga wines often stand out when tasting blindly, because they are typically more concentrated and are more tannic. A lot of Monforte wines are that way, too, though a number of producers there use barriques, so it’s a little harder to get an overall impression of the commune’s inherent terroir.
I happen to like a lot of La Morra and Verduno wines, as well, though they are at the other end in structure typically. I certainly don’t think of La Morra wines being heavy or syrupy. For me, Marcarini Brunate is an archetype of the potential elegance of La Morra. And Burlotto and Fratelli Alessandria offer something similar in Verduno.
La Morra is hard to generalize about since it was ground zero for the modernist movement. Most of Marco de Grazia’s producers are clustered around Annunziata, at the base of the La Morra hill. So there is a disproportionate number of wineries using short macerations and barriques in La Morra.
To Ian’s point, I find it easier to distinguish Serralunga, and possibly Monforte, from wines in the rest of Barolo and Barbaresco than it is to distinguish Barbaresco from Barolo generally.
(All of this with the usual other-things-being-equal caveats about winemaking styles, blah, blah, blah.)
Just to pile on, John Morris’ map is a great summary. To my tastes, I can mostly tell the difference between the left hand side of the map (soil with lots of manganese) and the right hand side of the map (soil with more iron). But I can’t much tell the difference within the right and left hand sides.
It’s not like burgundy though where each village has such a distinct signature.
Talking to various winemakers in Barolo there’s also more emphasis on the winemaking process (aka ‘the house style’) than there is in burgundy. Winemakers are more inclined to dwell on oak choices, maceration choices, etc than their burgundy counterparts.
The Burgundians may talk about it less, but I don’t think it’s any less important in the outcome. In Burgundy there’s a big range of techniques. Some people do a cold presoak; some destem, some don’t; there are lots of different oak regimes.
Some people do a cold presoak; some destem, some don’t; there are lots of different oak regimes.
John … knock knock … it’s the grammar/spelling police at your door: 
Is it oak regime or oak regimen? I think the latter but can’t testify to it in court of law…
Regime:
a system or planned way of doing things, especially one imposed from above.
“detention centers with a very tough physical regime”
synonyms: system, arrangement, order, pattern, method, procedure, routine, course, plan, program
“a health regime”
Mr. Alfert, my defense counsel, has responded on my behalf.
Most vineyards in Barolo or Barbaresco are pretty big thanks to the MGA reform. However if you pick classic enough examples and if you have enough experience (not a lot), you can identify Regions pretty easily as most have said above. Picking a Barolo vs a Barbaresco is also not too much of a difficult exercise akin spotting a Volnay in a bunch of Cote de Nuits samples. If you don’t know the region or you don’t enough tasting experience it is indeed quite tricky…
Whatever John posted I subscribe to…
You are now arguing with two very accomplished attorneys. Give up now.
That makes three!
I actually jumped on the thread to comment that the wine IQ on this site never ever ceases to amaze me. Great thread and information for someone like me that knows only a modest amount about Barolo. Johnny emailed me some solid recos too.
If our wine tasting group wanted to do a tasting that demonstrated the differences among the geographic regions within Barolo, what specific wines/winemakers would you recommend? To make the inquiry more specific, do you think one could buy current Barolos (meaning those generally available in nicer wine shops today) and so such a tasting? (My fear is that younger Barolo tend to be so tight and tannic that it might be difficult to discern the difference, but I don’t have enough experience to know if this is true.)
I think '12s would work for this purpose. I haven’t tasted any since early in the year, and it’s possible they’ve shut down, but it’s a relatively approachable, less tannic year, and there are lots of them still on the market. For various reasons, I think I’d avoid anything between '07 and '11, because they’re either at an awkward stage ('08 and '10) or the years were too warm ('07, '09 and '11) for my taste.
I’m suggesting all traditionally made wines so the winemaking doesn’t overshadow the terroir. Be sure you have some food to refresh your palate.
On the western side, without going for trophy wines:
Burlotto Acclivi (a blend from vineyards in Verduno)
Fratelli Alessandria - Monvigliero or San Lorenzo (both in Verduno)
– You could pair one of these with their Gramolere from Monforte if you can find both so you can isolate terroir from the winemaking
Castello di Verduno - Massara (Verduno) (I think their Monvigliero is always made as a riserva, with several more years in wood, so the style would be different)
Oddero Barolo normale (a blend from a vineyard in La Morra and Bricco Fiasco on the western side of Castiglione)
– You could pair this with their Bussia (from Monforte) or their Rocche or Villero, both from vineyards on the top of the ridge in Castiglione that tend to yield firmer, more masculine wines
Marcarini - Brunate (on the Barolo/La Morra border), or possibly their La Serra (La Morra), though it is usually less impressive
(It’s harder to make recommendations in La Morra because so many producers there fall in the modern camp.)
On the east side, perhaps:
Ettore Germano: base Barolo, Prapo or Ceretta – all from Serralunga
Schiavenza: Barolo Serralunga, Prapo or Broglio – all from Serralunga
Brovia - Ca’ Mia (aka Brea) (the winery is in Castiglione but this vineyard is in Serralunga)
Guido Porro - all vineyards are in Serralunga
Massolino/Vigna Rionda - Margheria or Parafada
Giacomo Conterno (if you’re feeling rich) - Francia or Cerreta (winery is in Monforte but both vineyards are in Serralunga)
Luigi Baudana (now owned by Vajra; all vineyards in Serralunga)
Thanks so much John! I really appreciate you taking the time to respond in such a thoughtful way. If we get this organized I will let you know how it goes.
Look like it’s a push guys … both will do