A DARK CENTRE OF GRAVITY
It’s a safe bet that if winemakers are excited about a vintage, you should be too. Following the very hot and generally challenging 2017 growing season and the uneven 2018 vintage, there was a lot of buzz and anticipation in Piedmont’s Barolo during the buildup to 2019. The abundant enthusiasm for the 2019 vintage has legitimate context. There is a solid argument to be made that the wine regions of Piedmont have entered a chapter of unprecedented glory.
Consider the growth of Barolo. According to the Liv-Ex Global Market Place, it jumped from 6.8% of Italian wine traded by value in 2015, to a whopping 32.4% market share in 2021.
“Wine value has translated to land value. Barolo vineyards are the most expensive land you can buy in Italy, with prices that range from 250,000 euros to two million euros per hectare, according to the government-run CREA research agency. I am told that a record six million euros were paid for a single hectare of vines.” Monica Larner – Wine Advocate.
Introducing the wines of Mauro Veglio.
Estate namesake Mauro Veglio has been at the helm of this historic family property since 1986, and in 2017, he brought his nephew, Alessandro, into the fold. The winery is based in the village of La Morra, the wines tend to show the brighter, less tannic, more perfumed style of Barolo that village is known for but there’s also a “house style” element at play here: The Veglio wines are always characterized by grace and refinement, and the 2019’s exhibit plenty of both.
2019 Mauro Veglio – Barolo – Castelletto, Piedmont, Italy
95 Points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. $94.95 per bottle.
“In the dark blue label, the Mauro Veglio 2019 Barolo Castelletto shines from within the glass with dark ruby and garnet highlights. The Castelletto (with fruit from Monforte d’Alba) has a dark center of gravity with black cherry, plum and iron ore. This wine offers good power, structure and an especially firm texture. At its core, it is chiseled and hard. It definitely needs more cellar age, but I suspect this bottle will be worth the wait.”
2019 Mauro Veglio -Barolo – del Comune di Serralunga d’Alba, Piedmont, Italy. $84.95 per bottle.
92 Points Antonio Galloni – Vinous Media
“The 2019 Barolo del Comune di Serralunga d’Alba is laced with hints of tobacco, cedar, dried herbs, menthol, sage and mint, all of which infuse the 2019 with tons of character. The Serralunga is a gorgeous Barolo, a wine full of intrigue that will enjoy a fine evolution in bottle for at least a decade or so. It is a very good first effort. My impression is that this will only get better in future vintages. Vineyard sources are: Lirano and Manocino.”
