2012 Barolo Villero Riserva

Vietti’s 2012 Barolo Riserva Villero is absolutely gorgeous. In 2012, the Villero is especially lifted and aromatic, showing a distinctly floral and red-toned expression of fruit rather than the darker, more balsamic inflections that are typical of this Castiglione Falletto cru. Light on its feet, fresh and graceful to its core, the Villero is another terrific wine from Vietti in 2012. Veins of Villero tannin and bright acids give the wine energy, vibrancy and tons of character. More than anything else, though, the 2012 Villero is a very clear continuation of a stylistic evolution that can be traced to the 2010 Barolo Ravera in which the Barolos are now made in a more traditional style than in the past, which includes malolactic fermentation in cask rather than barrique. In 2012, that approach was not in place for all the Barolos, but it is very much evident here.

This is the 13th edition that Vietti has come out with, over the span of 38 years, of this stunning Riserva, a wine that ultimately is produced only about once every four years or so. It was not made after the previous harvest, in 2011. The recent editions have been nothing short of spectacular, earning 100-point scores in both 2007 and 2009 and 99 points in its latest appearance, 2010. It's a series that has set the bar extraordinarily high, and this 2012 Barolo Riserva Villero is a little less exciting in comparison. However, the wine holds its own as one of the most beautiful in the entire appellation and one of the best in the somewhat lackluster vintage. Balsamic and truffle notes pepper the palate of this handsome Barolo, but it's just really hard to reproduce that magic, release after release, for a wine regularly expected to sell at several hundred dollars apiece. Some 3,300 bottles of this vintage were made.

Lustrous mid ruby. Hints of autumn leaves over rich cherry fruit and with a hint of malt. Bags of fine-grained tannins and luscious fruit, but this is by no means easy-going. Concentrated and tightly packed with tannins, and with fantastic balance. Really big powerful finish, but not heavy. Lots of potential and in spite of all that full-on fruit, in need of further bottle age. (WS)