1982 Barolo Villero Riserva

I have had mixed experiences with the 1982 Barolo Riserva Villero, but this bottled is beautiful. It still shows good intensity of color for a wine of its age. Sweet tobacco, herbs, licorice and dried cherries are some of the nuances that emerge in the glass. The 1982 needs quite a bit air to find its focus. Though at peak, well-stored bottles still have a few years of fine drinking in them. According the Luca Currado, the high degree of bottle variation in 1982 is mostly attributable to an approach to cork that is now outdated, plus a generally more rustic approach to winemaking. The 1982 is the only Villero that was made from three parcels. During this era, Vietti also sourced fruit from a vineyard owned by the Fenocchio family. The 1980s were a time of transition in Piedmont as the trend to work with estate-grown fruit accelerated. Vietti lost leases in several other high profile vineyards, including Rabaja and Pian Romualdo, but compensated by consolidating their holdings elsewhere.