Barolo 2022: Our guide to the ‘against-all odds’ vintage

When I visited Barolo in early May of 2022, scrawny plants on dusty, arid soil were barely noticeable amid the equally scraggly cover crop.

By the end of the season, many vines hadn’t even reached the top of the trellis, which is almost inconceivable for the notoriously vigorous Nebbiolo.

Drought reached hyperbolic levels and the summer heat was relentless. For a region that is well versed in dealing with rain, the severe lack of it was disconcerting.

‘It forced me to rethink my farming,’ recalls Gianluca Colombo, who abandoned the region’s traditional viticultural practices and adopted the farming approaches of more southern, Mediterranean climes.

‘2022 was an exception in the worst possible way,’ says Carlotta Rinaldi. Yet the vines’ resilience was astounding: ‘From the beginning, they tried to preserve energy and limit production’, she continues.

Tools in the armoury

Drawing on lessons learned in vintages such as 2003, 2007 and 2017, green harvesting was minimal at most. Likewise, many estates avoided de-leafing and hedging, and allowed lateral shoots to grow for additional shade.

‘We left the vines in peace’, concludes Chiara Boschis.

Beyond managing the canopy to shade the grapes, producers such as Poderi e Cantine Oddero and Brovia applied kaolin (a powdery white clay) to act as a natural sunscreen for the bunches.

Anti-hail nets were also credited with curbing sunburn, providing much-needed shade. Paolo Scavino launched the first trials with automated nets developed specifically for sun protection.

Among the few estates with access to water, the family also experimented with irrigation since special permission had been granted for emergency use; a hot and divisive topic to say the least.

And in many cases, inter-row cover crops were left in situ, helping to prevent the soils from losing precious moisture, and to keep the ground as cool as possible.

Yet, inevitably, vines shut down due to heat stress in 2022, particularly those on sandier soils. ‘The heat and drought actually slowed down phenolic ripening, but not sugar levels,’ notes Alberto Cordero di Montezemolo.

Nevertheless, harvest was still early across the board – while some picked long before the rain which arrived at the end of September, others, including Alan Maley at Margherita Otto waited.

‘Those days of rain made all the difference. It was like putting gas in the car.’ Maley also noted a reduction in potential alcohol from 15.2% before to 14.2% after.

Throwing out the rule book

Yields were down anywhere from 20% to 45% but grapes were healthy. Despite small, concentrated berries with thick skins, tannin ripeness was a niggling concern.

The challenge, therefore, was to fine-tune the concentration and avoid over- or under-extraction.

‘It made it difficult to colour inside the lines’, describes Giacomo Conterno.

So again, wineries threw out the rules they were weaned on. Lower fermentation temperatures, gentler pump overs, shorter time on the skins, and avoiding submerged cap macerations were some of the ways winemakers sought to achieve balance.

Several reduced the time in wood, too, in order ‘to preserve freshness’, as Colombo puts it.

As extreme as the 2022 vintage in Barolo was, this does not translate into the wines and I am pleasantly surprised by their fragrance and fruit expression.

Heterogenous in quality, some veer towards confection, though are rarely stewed. Those that fall short are washed out and lacking through the mid-palate.

Conversely, the best wines defy the vintage without disassociating from it, offering depth and definition.

The majority of wines are round in body with harmonising rather than bracing acidity. The tannins are well managed, if less complex and intricate than in great years. And when a bit of dryness does poke through, I appreciate the reminder that I am drinking Nebbiolo!

‘We worried they would be heavy and cloying, but they have much more spunk than we expected,’ remarks Alessandro Olocco at Palladino.

Many found it impossible to single out a comparable vintage, though 2020 was repeatedly cited in terms of the wines’ generous and open nature. ‘There is richness, power and warmth – but not like 2003, which is already dead,’ notes Silvia Altare.

Martina Fiorino at Bruna Grimaldi describes the tannins in 2022 as ‘more resolved and integrated’, compared to 2017.

To blend or not to blend

While 2022 isn’t a vintage to seek out definitive site-specific examples, it does present a compelling case for the time-honoured tradition of blending. But the underlying rationale is different from the cooler climate of yesteryear.

‘In hot years, the vineyards start to resemble one another’, asserts Fabio Alessandria at GB Burlotto. As such, he opted to forego his single-MGA bottlings to produce just one Barolo that incorporates all.

‘Splitting it into three labels would have left too little wine,’ adds Cordero di Montezemolo, explaining that they excluded lots that didn’t meet their usual high standards.

‘Not every vintage is suited for expressing the individual MGAs,’ he continues, ‘but that does not mean the vintage is bad or of lower quality.’

In general, the ‘classic’ Barolos represent a sweet spot for the vintage. Bartolo Mascarello’s remains the standard-bearer but I was also duly impressed with Chiara Boschis’ Via Nuova, Margherita Otto, Pio Cesare and Vietti among others.

There are many successes among the MGA bottlings too. Both Lorenzo Scavino at Azelia and Milena Viara at GD Vajra attribute the quality of theirs in 2022 to the old vines: ‘Even in a difficult vintage, they still speak of where they are from,’ Vaira argues.

My wine of the vintage

2022 vintage conclusions

In 2022 there are plenty of very good wines, but few truly outstanding and distinctive ones. The best convey a visceral connection to the against-all odds vintage.

Most are ready or nearly ready to drink, with an ageing potential between 10 to 12 years. Some will be even longer lived, but only a very few bottles will require extended cellaring.

At the risk of distracting from 2022, my recommendations also include several late-release 2021s.

Missing out on these would be a shame. Topping my list is Guido Porro’s Vignarionda MGA, with the estate’s Vigna Lazzairasco making for a shrewd sidestep.

Also pulling a solid one-two punch is Aurelio Settimo with the striking Rocche dell'Annunziata MGA and excellent value classic Barolo.

Beyond these, Marcarini’s Brunate is a testament to this prestigious MGA, and Le Strette’s Bergera-Pezzole MGA gives insight into Novello beyond Ravera.

I just hope your appetite – or rather thirst – for Barolo in all its variations is as big as mine!

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Barolo 2022: A commune by commune analysis

Barolo 2022: Tasted & rated

Score table: 94 points and under

Barolo 2021 late releases

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