2016 Giacomo Fenocchio, Barolo DOCG “Bussia” Piemonte, Italy.
The nicely aged, ripely full bodied and smooth tannin structured 2016 Bussia (Barolo) from Giacomo Fenocchio is hitting its stride right now with loads of secondary charm, deep fruit concentration, raw Nebbiolo intensity and terroir driven character. This dark garnet/brick Barolo starts with wilted roses, balsamic notes, reduced strawberry, damson plum, black cherry and orange compote, along with sous bois, tobacco, tarry black, salty, licorice and cedary spices. While the tannins feel velvety, they are there and give the wine a raw sense of power and are drying on the finish, cutting into the opulence of the vintage’s fruit and there’s a good lift of acidity, all leaving you in no doubt where this wine is from and what it is in all its naked glory. A big thank you to my friend Jay Lyall, who is moving to France and was downsizing his cellar, and gave this bottle to me to enjoy, which I did very much. Claudio Fenocchio is a huge talent in Barolo, crafting his wine here at Giacomo Fenocchio in a studied, old fashioned, way with a terroir clarity that is only found in the top echelon of producers and I’ve been following his efforts since his 2009 vintage. The Barolo wines here are hand-crafted, coming from organic set on the classic Calcareous clay soils rich in iron and sandy marl at around 300 meters up, with long fermentations on the skins, lasting 40 days, and with aging done, 30 months, exclusively in large, well seasoned, Slavonian oak Botti.
The Azienda Agricola Giacomo Fenocchio, established in 1864, is a famous old school producer in Monforte d’Alba commune of Barolo, in the Piedmont region of Italy and is, as noted throughout the wine world, internationally acclaimed for its Barolos made in the most traditional and rustic style. According to Fenocchio’s importer, Skurnik Wines, most of the production here was sold locally, in bulk, up until 1964, when the ambitious and energetic Giacomo Fenocchio took over the family estate and took more of an interest in the vineyards and focused on bottling the best wine possible. In his quest to make some of the finest wines in Barolo, he purchased prime parcels in Cannubi, which is still considered one of the greatest of all, and nearby Castellero, but his focus was always on what he liked to call the heart of the Barolo area, the Bussia cru, which is the signature Barolo of Fenocchio today. In 1989, Giacomo passed away, leaving his young son Claudio in charge, and over time he elevated the wines here and while still under the radar, is one of the region’s top guns. Claudio now manages 14 hectares of organically farmed vineyards in Barolo, Castiglione Falletto and of course, the Bussia of Monforte and produces around 8,000 cases of wine a year, with his Barolo offerings being the prize each vintage and they are incredibly reasonable in price for the quality on display, as this fabulous earthy 2016 Bussia shows! The regular Barolo by this winery is always a gem, but the single Cru bottlings, like Cannubi and this Bussia, are really something special at Fenocchio and I highly recommend them.
($60-75 Est.) 94 Points, grapelive