Giacomo Fenocchio Barolo Bussia 2017 fine wine december 2021

Seductively fruity and powerfully tannic are two of the hallmarks of great Barolo and this wine more than meets the mark with its massive depth of earthy, dark flavours and its delicate aromas of red fruit. It is a sensational Barolo, available in small volumes in New Zealand. 

This is Barolo at its best. It is alluringly tasty now and undoubtedly has a long life ahead for those with willpower to cellar it for up to and beyond a decade.

Giacomo Fenocchio is regarded as one of the best Barolo producers today. Here’s a piece that sums up why he is so highly respected and what makes his wines an authentic expression of Piemonte as a wine region.

What the critics say

90 points 

Monica Larner,Robert Parker

“This is a hearty and slightly evolved expression. The Giacomo Fenocchio 2016 Barolo offers a broad range of Nebbiolo characteristics with lots of dark fruit followed by spice, tar and tilled earth. That licorice signature is very strong in this wine. The fruit veers toward heavier black and purple fruit tones, with plenty of tar and campfire ash. Instead of sharpness and precision, this Barolo offers a big-picture approach with wide, sweeping flavors.”

Giacomo Fenocchio’s winemaking philosophy

“Claudio Fenocchio took over from his father Giacomo in 1989 ? probably the moment of greatest pressure to follow the ?modern? winemaking path of short fermentations and aging in new barriques. In fact, it?s difficult now to understand how much pressure was exerted ? from peers and neighbors, old and young, from the press, importers, customers, and that mysterious thing called ?the market?. It took a strong will to resist, and a strong devotion to tradition. Lucky for us that Claudio stuck with the best of tradition ? organic farming, long fermentations, and aging in large Slavonian oak casks. Easy for us too, since we get to drink his wines. Here?s a rare group of Fenocchio bottles spanning the generations, and ending with the beautiful 2016s.”

From Chalmers Street Wine