2015 Tiziano Grasso 'La Briccolina' Barolo DOCG

The word, after so many years, is finally getting out: in Serralunga d’Alba, the Grasso family has the true pulse of Nebbiolo, caring for older vines on peerless land that they’ve nurtured for more than five generations. In 2012, Tiziano, assisted by his son Daniel and wife Simona, decided it was time for the family to bottle a Barolo wine themselves—at a mere 3,000 bottles per year. Their handcrafted wine, aged traditionally in botti, reflects Serralunga’s proud dark fruit and suave tannins like a mirror. Indeed, Tiziano seeks to “bring to the glass the essence of the land,” through the voice of his old-vine Nebbiolo. The 2015 La Briccolinahas an unrivaled elegance displaying balance & complexity only sought to be found in the Grand Crus of burgundy. Let this rare find take your palate on a ride of sustained ecstasy.

If we think of vine growers as painters, Piedmont offers one of the more diverse palettes in the world of wine. The midnight heft of Serralunga, the floral pastels of La Morra, the bright cherry of Verduno: it takes a top talent to truly master the complexities of Nebbiolo in just one village, let alone them all. But if you are Tiziano Grasso, a grower with five generations of know-how flowing through your veins, the colorful language of Nebbiolo is second nature.

Hand-harvested in mid-October. Grapes destemmed, lightly crushed, and fermented on selected yeasts in wooden vats. The wine is pulled from the skins and transferred to stainless steel tanks until the following spring; when the malolactic conversion is complete, the wine is moved to traditional Slavonian botti.

Aging: 24 months in traditional Slavonian oak Botti