2021 Barolo
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Tasting notes
The 2021 Barolo Pio has a lot to offer. Medium in body and quite gracious, the 2021 offers up an exciting mix of dark red fruit intermingled with scents of tobacco, spice, dried herbs, menthol, leather, incense and licorice. This virile yet mid-weight Barolo is such a great example of what makes blended Barolos so compelling, namely the complexity that comes from blending sites from various appellations. I loved it.
Critic scores
Average Score
Walter Speller, jancisrobinson.com
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
Mid ruby with the beginning of orange tinges. Real depth of earthy sweet-cherry fruit with minerally touches. Suave red fruit with gripping, finely ground tannins underneath. Real classic Barolo. (WS)
The Pio Cesare 2021 Barolo draws fruit from various sites, and like the Barbaresco, you get an excellent portrait of the vintage with balanced acidity, firm tannins and bright primary fruit. There is energy and vitality in this pretty Barolo with dried cherry, iris and subtle dustings of iron ore or rust.
Displaying a deeper red color with more pigment, the 2021 Barolo Pio is more layered, savory, and noble in its feel all around and opens to notes of fresh cherries, licorice, lifted clove spice, and forest herbs. It shows a good deal of intensity on the palate, with firm, structured tannins, and while it’s medium-bodied, it feels more expansive and has mineral drive. It demands a bit of cellaring but will drink well over the next 15-20 years.