Mature Barolo from the cellar for Christmas

Piedmont, in the northwest corner of Italy, is as renowned for its food as its wines. The town of Bra is home to the Slow Food movement, while arguably the most famous truffle market in the world can be found in historic Alba. Both espresso and vermouth lay claim to having been invented in the region’s capital, Torino.

But here, the wine should really take centre stage, and fittingly the region’s most famous export – Barolo – is known as the ‘king of wines’.

Nebbiolo in Piedmont commonly serves up plenty of acidity – a feature preserved in the grapes by the cool morning mists that roll over the hillsides of Monforte – which provides freshness to these wines and balances the weight of tannin and fruit. As discussed in our piece on wines for the Christmas table, acidity is your friend in these situations.

Alongside red fruit flavours, classic Barolo characteristics can include violet, rose, liquorice and tar, depending on a wine’s stage of development.

The Barolos listed below range from the ‘mature, autumnal’ 2013 Bricco Voghera Riserva from Azelia, to Marchesi di Barolo’s Sarmassa 10 Years Limited Edition – ‘a melting pot of fragrance, freshness and balance’.

Barolo and food

Barolo’s tannic structure can be overpowering when young, but with time the tannins begin to integrate and soften.

Barolo works well with red meats and game, but be careful not to drown out older wines with strongly flavoured sauces. It’s also a fitting match for the region’s truffles.

The high acidity of Nebbiolo enables Barolo to cut through oily, fatty and salty ingredients, and reach equilibrium with high acidity foods such as tomato.

Barolo Crus: Brief guide

The vast majority of Barolo is produced in the five main communes: Barolo, La Morra, Castiglione Falletto, Serralunga d’Alba and Monforte d’Alba.

In addition, each of these communes has several vineyard crus, which are notable for their individual characteristics – much like a grand or premier cru Burgundy. Both Barolo and Burgundy can be defined by their patchwork of communes, crus, and family-owned domaines.

There are strict laws designed to maintain the quality of Barolo. Every wine labelled as Barolo must be made from 100% Nebbiolo, and must be aged for at least 38 months before release – including a minimum of 18 months in oak. This increases to a minimum of 62 months if it’s labelled as a Barolo Riserva, with at least 18 of those months in oak.

Mature Barolo for Christmas:

Top value Barolo 2018: 13 great picks

Barolo Riserva 2016 vintage report: 20 top picks by quality and value

Alto Piemonte Nebbiolo report and top picks

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James Button is Decanter’s regional editor for Italy, responsible for all of Decanter's Italian content in print and online.

Like many others, he started his wine career at Majestic Wine, giving him a strong grounding in the subject before successfully completing the WSET Level 4 Diploma in 2010. From 2014 to 2016 he managed the fine wine department of a startup wine company in London, before joining Decanter as digital sub-editor.

Outside of wine, James enjoys cooking, skiing, playing guitar and cycling.