$499.99
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Region: Piedmont
Grapes: Nebbiolo
First Glance: Intense, Energetic, Muscular, Age-worthy
Acclaim: 96 points
The Wine:
The Massolino was founded in 1896, and it is one of the premier estates in the Serralunga sub-region of Barolo. Apart from making highly acclaimed wines, Massolino is significant for being the first producer to bottle a single-vineyard Barolo back in 1982 - something which is now very much in vogue, with the more recent official introduction of the MGA vineyard classification. The new rules offers producers the option of labelling their wines with specific vineyards or communes, as opposed to relying solely on house style and age designations to stand out from the crowd.
The Parafara vineyard sites 300 to 340 metres above sea level and faces due south, catching the full face of the sun. The aspect, the 60+ year old vines and the dense clay/marly/lime-infused soils typically result in the densest, most powerful wine of Massolino’s three Serralunga Crus.
The Review:
Antonio Galloni, Vinous - 96pts
"The 2019 Barolo Parafada is a wine of tremendous inner strength, as if all of its energy is focused inwards. Dark cherry, smoke, leather, gravel, scorched earth and licorice slowly come alive in the glass. Dense, potent and muscular, the 2019 offers tons of textural intensity and brooding, virile power. It is fascinating to taste next to the Margheria, which is a bit more aromatic and nuanced, while the Parafada is all muscle. This is one of the best editions I can remember tasting"
