Giacomo Conterno - Barolo "Ceretta" 2020 (750ml)
Price: $339.99
| Producer | Giacomo Conterno |
| Country | Italy |
| Region | Piedmont |
| Varietal | Nebbiolo |
| Vintage | 2020 |
| Sku | 203167 |
| Size | 750ml |
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Giacomo Conterno Description
The Giacomo Conterno winery is one of the greatest names in all of Piemonte. The estate was founded in the 1920’s by Roberto Conterno’s grandfather Giacomo from whom the estate gets its name. Giacomo was not the first in the family to make wine but he was the first to label the bottles with the family’s name. Giacomo’s father, Giovanni, had made Barolo from purchased grapes and whatever was not consumed at the family’s tavern during this period was sold in barrel, as was the custom throughout the region in the early twentieth century. Their flagship Riserva Barolo, Monfortino, was first conceived as a means of showing off the quality of their best wine and the first confirmed vintage to have been made was the 1924. There are reports that a 1912 Monfortino was made by Giovanni, but the family members cannot recall if this was indeed the case. In any event, after his return from World War I, Giacomo Conterno and his father Giovanni started producing Barolo in earnest, and a legend was started.
The Conterno style of Barolo has always been ultra-traditional, with a long maceration followed by extended aging in large, oak casks (botti). In the old days, aging was anywhere from four to ten years prior to bottling, and often longer, sometimes with multiple bottlings from the same vintage. Today, the "regular" Barolos are aged for four years before bottling, and the Monfortino for six to seven years - the only "modernist" concession in the entire vinification and aging process!
A clay heavy soil, different from Francia or Arione that leads to a more lush, fruit-driven style. Western exposure. Aged for four years in large botti.
Wine Advocate: 97 Points
Showing muscle and brawn, the Giacomo Conterno 2020 Barolo Cerretta stands apart thanks to its richer texture. There is more stuffing and volume in this expression from Serralunga d'Alba with layers of dark fruit, rusty nail and bitter orange marmalade (with highlights of sweetness and sourness). In the case of the Cerretta, you get an extra layer of intensity that is delivered alongside beautiful velvety tannins. That feeling reminds me of the soft skin on animal antlers. The 2020 vintage will be remembered for elegance, and 2019 is noted for its heftier structure. Roberto Conterno says that the upcoming 2021 vintage is a mix of both.
Of these three single-vineyard Barolos, Arione has the finesse, Cerretta has volume and structured tannins and Francia, well, has an even greater sense of tannic intensity. These are age-worthy tannins that still feel quite firm and compact and will need more time to resolve.
Vinous: 96 Points
The 2020 Barolo Cerretta is a potent, packed wine. Today, the tannins are especially imposing and also larger in scale than the other Barolos in this range. Dark red-toned fruit, orange peel, white pepper and crushed rocks all race out of the glass. This is a wine for those with patience.
