Wine&Spirits om:
Barolo Pio
According to Pio Boffa, his team has worked for more than a decade to identify clones with smaller berries and clusters that give more consistent phenolic ripeness and allow them to pick earlier, which keeps alcohol levels moderate. They have also refined their oak regimen over the years, backing off their use of new French oak barriques in their Barolos so that just 20 percent of the wine rests in new barriques, the rest in large oak casks, for about 30 months. Their efforts show in Pio Cesare’s 2015 releases, some of the best we have tasted from this house. The 2015 Barolo is comprised of fruit from estate vineyards in five communes, including, for the first time, a small percentage from Monforte d’Alba’s Mosconi, acquired by the estate in 2014. It’s lively and long, with flavors of ripe red cherry and raspberry laced with subtle spice and bright notes of orange peel, the acidity drawing out the flavors into a balanced finish. 94/100
