I’ve received an offer today from a wine merchant, including the following:
I was wondering if anyone knows anything about this wine?
From what I understand, this is a first bottling from the Vajra’s Ravera vineyard section which they’ve been cultivating for a few years now, but my knowledge of them is rather limited…
Thanks!
I’ve stocked up on his 2010 Barolo (but not this bottling). Great vintage, solid producer. You could do worse than 3 bottles of each of his Barolo.
They’ve previously sold this in bulk. Galloni was under the impression they weren’t going to bottle it under the own label until 2012 vintage.
How much was it?
Not to steal the thread, but is anyone familiar with the 2010 Giacomo Fenocchio Barolo Bussia that Rare Wine had for sale last week? In a moment of weakness I bought a few. New producer to me.
AG said he intends to buy it for himself.
Somehow I missed that offer. It’s a great wine. Traditional, complete and very fine. I would have bought it based on it being reasonably priced. My note can be found here. http://www.snooth.com/wine/giacomo-fenocchio-barolo-bussia-2010/
Extremely helpful and from an impeccable source. Thanks very much
I think you are confusing this with the Vietti Ravera 2010. Galloni has no notes that I could find on the Vajra Ravera.
I know, which is why I thought it was a bit strange to see this offer in my mailbox.
I haven’t got the email in front of me, but from memory it was somewhat less than Bricco delle Viole, about 70-80% of its price.
His comment was on his forum in response to an inquiry. He describes it as, " not quite at the level of the Bricco delle Viole, but gorgeous."
Aha! Thanks Mike!
I wonder what that means for Bricco Viole 2010???
Antonio Galloni on the '10 Bricco from unblended casks: “At the moment, the 2010 Barolo Bricco delle Viole, is sitting in three casks that correspond to the different sections of the vineyard. The final blend has not been made, and it is also not a foregone conclusion that 100% of each cask will make it into the finished wine. Still, the three casks were all impressive and point to a wine with a bright future.”
AG on the '10 Albe (bottled): “The 2010 Barolo Albe is a real stunner. Brilliant and finely sculpted on the palate, the 2010 dazzles from the very first taste. Expressive, floral notes meld into bright red fruit, mint and crushed berries in a vibrant, striking Barolo endowed with pure energy and class. In most vintages, the Albe is juicy and fruit-driven, but in 2010 is the wine’s minerality that is front and center. Aldo Vajra opted to bottle the 2010 a little bit earlier than normal in order to preserve freshness, a decision that worked beautifully here. The Barolo Albe is made from three parcels; Fossati, Castello della Volta and Costa di Vergne. The 2010 Barolo vintages is rightly drawing a lot of attention. The Albe should be relatively easy to find at a fair price. Simply put, the 2010 Barolo Albe is not to be missed.” Drink from 2017- 2030. 94 pts
thanks for posting!
Giuseppe Vaira just posted about this wine on facebook. I asked him about it and he replied “Buonasera Ken! Indeed the liquid was 2010 Barolo Ravera. As for the label, no, that’s a sticker we use to send samples. 3000 bottles, 52 Mags, 12 jeroboams. That’s about it. A presto!”
I pointed him to this thread, so perhaps he’ll come here and comment further.
Buona sera a tutti.
Apologies if this is a short introduction to Ravera, and thank you Ken for pointing out this topic.
We’ve been farming Ravera for 13 years now. I was 16 when we planted the parcels that go in this first bottling.
A little funny story about the genesis of this dream. Our parents used to live in Novello, just to the side and slightly above of the Ravera cru in the early days of their wedding. Their two-room apartment was facing in direction of the vineyard. So our dad must have seen that slope every single morning (that place was too small and the view too gorgeous not to really watch out of the window). That’s counts at least 600 times, in the 2 years they lived in that flat. As a result, my siblings and I grew up hearing about how much he liked Ravera.
We didn’t release this wine before, because we don’t produce Barolo with any of our young vines.
All the fruit of young vines goes straight into our Langhe Nebbiolo, and this was the case with Ravera until 2007 vintage. In '08 and '09 we started a separate, longer vinification to test the strength of the fruit. It was not time yet. So this is why 2010 is the first vintage to be bottled and released.
Starting in 2012, we were able to rent the beautiful parcel just above ours. It is a ‘schiena’ - which translates into ‘back’ , like a ridge that shapes towards the south. This block is about 40-50 years old, on selection massale, it’s bushy and uneven and so much beautiful!
One final word about the choice to bottle 2010. We are excited and feel it was the right choice. Maybe because 2010 is a gorgeous vintage. Maybe because it was a LOT of waiting and dreaming before. But this is it. First vintage. We feel all the joy for this special moment.
It will ship in a few weeks, the only bottles we’ve sent out are selected samples.
This is the short insight. Please excuse typos and bad writing but these are long days of work, the house is full of children and it’s pretty late here in Italy.
I sincerely hope to welcome you at the winery soon, meet in person, show you Ravera and taste this bottling together. A presto, grazie per la fiducia e per la vostra ‘berserk-titude’.
giuseppe vaira
Giuseppe - welcome!!
When Ken tells me to look out for a particular Barolo producer (which he did, via email today), I listen…now I need to find some!
Dear Todd, too kind of you, and of Ken!
We feel it is such a honor to do what we do, and to have the chance to give a voice to the dreams and the hard work behind the bottles.
Buona notte e grazie per l’accoglienza.
giuseppe
Welcome Giuseppe! Would “schiena” be similar to a “bricco” or would it be higher on the hill?
Recently had the 2008 Bricco delle Viole: beautiful wine!
Molte grazie, Giuseppe!
It’s a fantastic story, and I look forward to tasting the wine!