2012 Elio Altare Barolo Unoperuno
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Tasting notes
This is the second year that this Barolo is produced. With fruit from the Arborina cru, the 2012 Barolo Unoperuno sees a manual destemming process in which the grapes are removed one by one ("uno per uno") from the clusters before being fermented. Given that intense labor, the wine is understandably produced in limited quantity (up to 1,500 bottles are made). It exhibits an exceptional quality of tannins that can only be achieved when the green overtones of the stems are excluded, as they are in this case. The mouthfeel is extra silky, smooth and creamy. The wine undergoes a brief carbonic maceration to achieve extra fruit intensity and suppleness. The purity and the integrity of the wine are enormously pleasurable.
Critic scores
Walter Speller, jancisrobinson.com
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
From the oldest parcel of vines in the Arborina vineyard planted in 1948. Just mid ruby with orange tinges. Serious, complex orange and cherry nose with hints of iron. Very soft and gentle and lacking a little in expression on the mid palate for the moment. Complex finish and with Serralunga-like chewy tannins. (WS)
The 2012 Barolo Unoperuno is a selection from Arborina made from hand-destemmed fruit, a long, painstaking process that has a number of implications for the wine. Ripeness levels varied quite a bit from the first fruit that was brought in to the last, while some of the lots saw as much as 13 days on the skins. Deep and powerful, with more intensity than the straight Arborina, the Unoperuno offers striking nuance and plenty of textural depth, all in the finesse style that is typical of the 2012s here. This is a gorgeous showing and superb wine for the year.