Susan Hulme MW SH | Andrew JeffordAJ | Michael Palij MW MP
Firm fruits and firm, dryish tannins, too. But it is generous in style, with fair concentration, so the overall success is related to how one feels about its characterful side. 2025–31. | 86 MP | Complex nose, with cooked red fruit including apple, cherry, and plum, supported by Asian spice including cinnamon, clove, and pepper. Further complexity comes via vanilla, coffee grounds, damp earth, and tobacco. The finish is superb, with high levels of alcohol and tannin supported by masses of both red and black fruit. The sinewy structure is yet to relax but it will, and the aromatic fireworks should get even better. 2030–40. | 98
Ciabot Berton Marco Oberto Barolo Roggeri La Morra 2020 (14.5% ABV)
| 92
SH | This wine has a youthful, deep, ruby color rather than garnet. On the nose, there is a rich mélange of mixed fruit rather than clearly defined aromas, together with a mineral, flint quality. Round, soft first impression, with a generosity of texture often typical of La Morra. On the palate, the wine is nicely balanced but a little simple in range and nuance of flavors, and the tannins are quite drying, conveying a feeling of underripeness on the finish. 2025–32. | 88 AJ | Deep-hued and bright: ox-blood with garnet glints. Currants and dry grasses, some cherry as well as plum, too: complex fruits in a natural frame. Attractive, and with aromatic dimensions that not every wine has this year. Ample and full: lovely ripeness here, and better concentration than many. This is a Barolo that you could dive into, eyes shut: fresh, scrutable, balanced, with a supple tannin undertow and more resonance than most of its peers. Excellent work here. No Barolo lover could not enjoy this, though I wouldn’t stow it away for long. 2025–34. | 91 MP | Jumping out of the glass, this shows a huge smorgasbord of red and black fruit under some oak-maturation notes. There’s red cherry, black cherry, currant, and plum alongside licorice, ink, sandalwood, cedar, vanilla, and char. The palate is engaging and immediate, with layers of fruit and plenty of alcohol. The finish shows moderate length, with the alcohol and tannins currently stealing the limelight. This will continue to develop in bottle, and some of the concerns regarding the tannins will eventually resolve. 2028–36. | 94
Manzone Barolo Castelletto Monforte d’Alba 2020 (15% ABV) | 91
AJ | Light, bright, garnet-red, with scarlet glints. Gently fruited, with a summer-copse fullness: leaf-litter over warm earth. Harmonious and rounded in that style. Relatively dry, restrained, and licorice-infused on the palate, with more of those warm-earth complexities. Fresh and attractive wine, in which there is no vintage strain evident. 2025–35. | 90 MP | Gorgeous nose, with very ripe black and red fruit, including cherry, plum, berry, and cranberry. The palate shows obvious ripe fruit and drying tannins. The fresh acidity lifts the back of the palate but the absence of complex fruit compromises this wine. 2028–33. | 92
Cabutto Tenuta La Volta Barolo 2020 (14.5% ABV)
| 91
SH | There is a lovely, bright ruby transparency to the color, which is appealing. The nose is delicate, pure, very clean, and transparent, suggesting very precise winemaking skills, with a bright red-cherry, citrus, or blood-orange note and very subtle background spice. On the palate, there is a vivid, bright core of acidity and quite fine, delicate, just-ripe cherry and red-currant flavors; the tannins are fine but grainy, silty-textured and quite assertive, but nicely integrated into the delicate framework. 2025–35. | 90 AJ | Bright, light, and mid-scarlet, with ample color saturation. Lots of tar and a whiff of smoke, too. The fruits here are a touch resinous. Attractive aromas, but not sublime or refined. Sound, dry, and sustained on the palate. Clean if rather sinewy fruit. 2025–30. | 85 MP | Simple but pure and appealing, with floral notes of rose and violet supported by red fruit, including currant, cranberry, wild strawberry, and a perfumed tertiary whiff of sandalwood, cedar, and incense. The palate shows perfect balance, with enough intensity, tannins, and acidity to show off the fruit to great effect. Utterly delicious and surprisingly ready to go. 2025–35. | 97
Ceretto Barolo Brunate La Morra 2020 (14.5% ABV)
| 91
SH | There is a touch of very toasted, roasted coffee bean on the nose, which is quite attractive, mixed in as it is with rose petal and just-ripe cherry and a little balsamic green note. Firm, crunchy, quite green flavors on the palate. Attractive freshness and acidity but just feels a little raw and straightforward. 2025–32. | 87 AJ | Pale and translucent garnet-red. Again the tarry warmth, which is almost a bit overdone this year—though to be fair, this wine has elegant, fresh fruit, too. Clean, fresh, articulate fruit on the palate, and qualitative, with well-meshed tannins and supportive acidity. A lovely, pert mouthful of Barolo, and taken all in all, the tarry notes in the end add to the classicism. 2025–32.| 89 MP | Discreet, complex, and perfumed nose, with notes of hawthorn, wild strawberry, pomegranate, and red currant. These are joined by subtle tertiary notes of licorice, ginger, forest floor, game, and cooked black fruit. The finish is elegant, compact, and delivers a lovely hit of
THIS IS A BAROLO THAT YOU COULD DIVE INTO, EYES SHUT: FRESH, SCRUTABLE, BALANCED, WITH A SUPPLE TANNIN UNDERTOW AND MORE RESONANCE THAN MOST OF ITS PEERS
Nebbiolo concentration, with notes of currant, cherry, violets, and tar. The tannins and acidity are all perfectly judged and drive the balance in this wine, which shows the fruit to such good effect. This is a delicious glass to enjoy now or squirrel away for a few years. 2027–37. | 96
Bruna Grimaldi Barolo Badarina Serralunga d’Alba 2020 (14.5% ABV)
| 91
SH | Broad, open nose, with aromas of cooked red and black fruit, Bramley apple and blackberry notes, broad, round, softer mid-palate, with some slightly earthy, green-leaf and green-fruit flavors. This wine is less precise overall and a little more clumsy and “wild,” some bitter, green- olive flavors dominating on the finish. This wine is a little lacking in focus. 2025–32. | 88 AJ | Bright, scarlet red, with scarlet glints. A little dry and grassy aromatically, with a cool sinew underpinning what seems like lightly shaded fruit. Not actually green as such, but a cool cast to the fruit (oddly enough, after such a warm year). This is what you find on the palate, too. Could it be a whole-bunch wine? There is nothing wrong with the fruit qualities, other than that the print of ripeness here is not a serene and resonant one. 2025–32. | 88 MP | A hefty nose, showing black cherry, damson, plum, and black currant, combined with a palate that offers a convincing note of licorice and tar. Although it’s easy to dismiss this wine’s very obvious aromatics, the wine shows a ripe blast of black fruit pasted onto ripe tannins that support the fruit and provide a textural counterpoint. The length is exceptional and the fruit and the structure work in harmony. This is classic Serralunga and it’s pretty much ready to go. 2028–38. | 96
Manzone Barolo Bricat Monforte d’Alba 2020 (14.5% ABV)
| 91
AJ | Bright, light scarlet, with just a little bricking at the rim. Earthy and forceful, a bit cross-grained, without quite the purity of fruit of the best of its peers. Some new wood here? Attractive nonetheless. Mmm: this has much better fruit than the aromatics suggested in terms of penetration/concentration, and its style is excellent, with ample warmth and resonance. If there is wood here, it is very well absorbed on the palate; it’s above all that glowing fruit that one enjoys. 2025–34. | 90 MP | Lovely nose, showing obvious complexity and some ripe fruit, including cherry, cranberry, strawberry, and mineral oil. The palate is simple and dominated by tannins. 2025–30. | 91
Cantina Massara (Burlotto) Barolo Massara Verduno 2020 (14.5% ABV)
| 90
SH | Mid-deep ruby. On the nose, there is a little brown sugar, sun-dried, sultana aromas suggesting warmth and heat. The aromas lack some range and nuance for Barolo, they are appealing but a little one-dimensional. The palate is a little lean and over-stretched, as there is a feeling of greenness and a lack of ripe fruit. The acidity and tannins add bite and crunch but
THE WORLD OF FINE WINE | ISSUE 87 | 2025 | 203
LAYING DOWN: 2020 BAROLO
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