2017 Barolo Vigna Gattera
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Tasting notes
La Morra. Developing mid ruby with a bright orange-tinged rim. At first a little sweet and candied on the nose then opens up to cherry and wild strawberry with peppery notes and a suggestion of fruit cake. With aeration, oak notes emerge. Supple, succulent and deep and with super-attractive, chewy tannins. Real finesse and at the same time hedonistic. Ready now. (WS)
Critic scores
Average Score
Walter Speller, jancisrobinson.com
James Suckling
More reviews and scores
A firm, fine-tannined Barolo, yet very structured and intense with ripe-strawberry, cedar and lemon-peel character. Medium to full body. Tar and walnut to the bright fruit. Tight finish. Give this time to open. Best after 2024.
This vintage from Mauro Veglio is a degree lighter in color and contrasts, and that less-saturated appearance is a common trait found across many of the wines from this warm and hot growing season. The Nebbiolo grape is particularly color sensitive, and the 2017 Barolo Gattera sees its fruit sourced from 70-year-old vines in La Morra, a site that is already earmarked for its delicate and nuanced approach. The bouquet is broad and not totally defined here, with some exotic fruit that is mixed with wild berry and peach blossom. I feel that the wine is short in the mid-palate, and that prompts me to suggest a shorter drinking window as a result. I am less convinced by this 9,000-bottle Gattera release than I am by the other wines in this flight from Mauro Veglio.
The 2017 Barolo Gattera has a bit more weight and density than most of the other wines in this range, but it, too, is a bit fleeting in feel. Dark cherry, mocha, spice, leather and menthol bring out slightly darker tonalities of Nebbiolo fruit.