First produced in 1911, the fruit for Massolino’s classic cuvée comes from seven hectares of prime-sited Serralunga vineyards. The most important of these—Briccolina, Collareto, Broglio and Le Turne—are dotted around the town itself; Le Turne borders Margheria, while Collareto lies next to Vigna Rionda. We are talking quality real estate. The 2021 also includes a little fruit from Massolino’s Parussi Cru as well as some declassified Vigna Rionda! Vine age varies from 10 to 55 years. Half of this Barolo was fermented in large wooden cask, the other half in concrete. The final blend matured for up to 30 months in large, Slavonian oak casks.

From the first sip it is obvious we are dealing with a brilliant release of this wine. So much finesse, so much perfume, so much intensity and length. There is great potential here, yet the wine is already so delicious, with ribbons of sweet, complex fruit shot through with ultra-fine tannins, complexed by smoke and loads of spice. It has excellent structure and freshness yet tremendous elegance. Give it some air, or some time in bottle, and you will be amazed at what is being delivered at this price point. And don’t be scared to age it 5 to 10 years. It’s another brilliant-value wine from Massolino.

First produced in 1911, the fruit for Massolino’s classic cuvée comes from seven hectares of prime-sited Serralunga vineyards. The most important of these—Briccolina, Collareto, Broglio and Le Turne—are dotted around the town itself; Le Turne borders Margheria, while Collareto lies next to Vigna Rionda. We are talking quality real estate. The 2021 also includes a little fruit from Massolino’s Parussi Cru as well as some declassified Vigna Rionda! Vine age varies from 10 to 55 years. Half of this Barolo was fermented in large wooden cask, the other half in concrete. The final blend matured for up to 30 months in large, Slavonian oak casks.

From the first sip it is obvious we are dealing with a brilliant release of this wine. So much finesse, so much perfume, so much intensity and length. There is great potential here, yet the wine is already so delicious, with ribbons of sweet, complex fruit shot through with ultra-fine tannins, complexed by smoke and loads of spice. It has excellent structure and freshness yet tremendous elegance. Give it some air, or some time in bottle, and you will be amazed at what is being delivered at this price point. And don’t be scared to age it 5 to 10 years. It’s another brilliant-value wine from Massolino.

First produced in 1911, the fruit for Massolino’s classic cuvée comes from seven hectares of prime-sited Serralunga vineyards. The most important of these—Briccolina, Collareto, Broglio and Le Turne—are dotted around the town itself; Le Turne borders Margheria, while Collareto lies next to Vigna Rionda. We are talking quality real estate. The 2021 also includes a little fruit from Massolino’s Parussi Cru as well as some declassified Vigna Rionda! Vine age varies from 10 to 55 years. Half of this Barolo was fermented in large wooden cask, the other half in concrete. The final blend matured for up to 30 months in large, Slavonian oak casks.

From the first sip it is obvious we are dealing with a brilliant release of this wine. So much finesse, so much perfume, so much intensity and length. There is great potential here, yet the wine is already so delicious, with ribbons of sweet, complex fruit shot through with ultra-fine tannins, complexed by smoke and loads of spice. It has excellent structure and freshness yet tremendous elegance. Give it some air, or some time in bottle, and you will be amazed at what is being delivered at this price point. And don’t be scared to age it 5 to 10 years. It’s another brilliant-value wine from Massolino.

Barolo lovers need no reminding: 2016 was an epic vintage, producing a stream of breathtaking wines. First bottled as a single Cru in 1982, 2016 marked the 35th vintage of Massolino’s benchmark Barolo, Vigna Rionda, and even those who know this wine intimately will surely not have tasted a greater expression. This year’s sheer quality led Massolino to introduce a new, all-black label, which henceforth will only be used for the greatest years of Vigna Rionda. The 2016 fermented with indigenous yeasts in oak tini—large, conical oak vats—with the blending and pre-bottling in stainless-steel tanks and cement vats. It matured for 36 months in Stockinger botti.

This is clearly a very special Vigna Rionda. It’s a rich, layered wine of enormous depth and power yet also great finesse. It’s unique, perhaps a little like 2010 or 2004 but with more structural power. The notes below tell you all you need to know about the quality on offer.

In a recent survey for Michele Longo and Ian D’Agata’s upcoming book, no Barolo cru garnered more votes from respondents asked to name Barolo’s top five Crus in terms of quality and prestige. Vigna Rionda is historically Serralunga’s most revered vineyard and the source of some of the greatest, finest, longest-lived Barolo. The Massolino family took ownership of their first parcel in 1956, and new parcels directly adjoining the existing vines were purchased in 1967, 1985, and 1987. This took Massolino’s holding to the 3.5 hectares of vines (two planted to Nebbiolo).

On some of the oldest soils of Barolo, there is very little topsoil here, with a high concentration of limestone, oxidised iron and other mineral elements. Vigna Rionda’s soil can be traced back to the Lequio Formation, the oldest soil of the Barolo area, originating in the Serravallian period between 13 and 11 million years ago. The limestone presence differentiates this vineyard from many other Barolo vineyards; the soils limit vigour and ensure consistent phenolic ripeness. In fact, within the Barolo area, Vigna Rionda, at roughly 14%, boasts one of the highest limestone contents in the entire Barolo zone.

The vines are at 250 to 360 metres’ altitude and protected from northerly winds and frost by the south/southwest aspect. This vineyard generates wines with an optimum balance of perfume, finesse, concentration and structure rarely found in Barolo. Excellent acidity and tannins are a feature of Vigna Rionda wines, so they require longer aging in botti and bottle. This is why Massolino’s Vigna Rionda is always released with a minimum of six years of age. Always aged in large cask, 2017 was the second vintage where Massolino’s Vigna Rionda also fermented in large wood. It spent 20 days on skins and then aged for 30 months in a 7,000-litre Stockinger botte.

Planted in 1957, Parafada was the Massolino family’s first prime parcel in Serralunga. It is still home to their oldest vines. Legend has it that Giovanni Massolino planted these vines when he was just 17 years old! Today these 66-year-old vines produce smaller berries with more concentrated fruit as a result. Located between Gabutti and Lazzarito, Massolino’s 1.2-hectare parcel rises steeply from 300 to 340 metres above sea level and faces due south, catching the full face of the sun. The aspect, old vines and dense clay/marl/lime-infused soils (Formazione di Lequio to be precise) typically result in the densest, most powerful wine of Massolino’s three Serralunga Crus. As with all three 2019 Crus, this was fermented and aged in large oak fermenters and had around two weeks on skins.

Planted in 1957, Parafada was the Massolino family’s first prime parcel in Serralunga. It is still home to their oldest vines. Legend has it that Giovanni Massolino planted these vines when he was just 17 years old! Today these 66-year-old vines produce smaller berries with more concentrated fruit as a result. Located between Gabutti and Lazzarito, Massolino’s 1.2-hectare parcel rises steeply from 300 to 340 metres above sea level and faces due south, catching the full face of the sun. The aspect, old vines and dense clay/marl/lime-infused soils (Formazione di Lequio to be precise) typically result in the densest, most powerful wine of Massolino’s three Serralunga Crus. As with all three 2019 Crus, this was fermented and aged in large oak fermenters and had around two weeks on skins.