I’m embarrassed to say I hadn’t ever tasted a Feyles Barolo before an importer shared some back-vintage bottles with us recently. As a Barolo fanatic, I felt like I had completely missed the boat on an important and historic producer—which, of course, I had. But I’m (mostly) over it now, happy to be a new member of the Feyles cult.
Today’s 2008 is a prime example of traditionally styled Barolo, still brimming with life and loaded with all the earthy goodness that makes Barolo so special. All these years buying Barolo wines, and visiting the region, and I never had the pleasure of encountering Feyles wines—which isn’t to say more savvy collectors than me weren’t snapping up bottles when they turned up on our shores. Their spotty presence in the US notwithstanding, these wines have a following, much like those of another old-school Barolo traditionalist, Lorenzo Accomasso. We’re beyond excited to have acquired a parcel of today’s 2008 Riserva, which is sourced from Feyles’ one-hectare “Vigna della Serra”—a subsection of the “Perno”
cru in the village of Serralunga d’Alba. Classically styled Barolo with age—especially at such an incredibly low price—is one of the greatest wine experiences one can have, and this direct-from-the-cellar import is just getting started: Based on our recent tasting, it should celebrate its 30th birthday in grand style. All the trademark Nebbiolo markers are there, swirling around the glass like a tornado, ready to blow you away. If, like me, you were sleeping on Feyles, well, time to wake up and smell the roses!
Founded in 1964 by Maria Feyles and her son-in-law, Antonio de Nicola, the small estate has been run almost single-handedly by Antonio ever since. Now in his eighties, he’s the subject of an excellent
profile by Jeff Miller of Grape Expectations, who was “at a loss for words” upon tasting Feyles’ ultra-traditional Barolo—which, as a rule, is aged at least five years before bottling. Whereas a lot of old-school Barolo like this contains its fair share of flaws, this one is tremendously clean and pure—earthy, yes, but not bacterial from dirty winemaking. When I tasted the ’08 “Vigna della Serra,” the fine-tuned, red-fruited Barolos of Giuseppe Mascarello came immediately to mind.
Overall, the Feyles estate farms just seven hectares of vineyards, most of them planted to Nebbiolo for Barolo. Their “Serra” vineyard is a subsection of the famed “Perno” cru in Monforte, with a southwestern orientation and an altitude of about 380 meters. Today’s Riserva underwent a classically long maceration on its skins during primary fermentation, then spent two years in large Slavonian oak casks and another three in bottle before release—10 years on, there’s still a firm tannic backbone to the wine that softens a bit with time open. It’s a very high-toned, perfumed style that’ll make Barolo nuts swoon.
In the glass, the 2008 Feyles Vigna della Serra has a deep garnet core with flecks of cherry red and orange at the rim. An assortment of age-related “secondary” aromas of leather, sandalwood, and tobacco are starting to creep in and flank the fruit notes of dried black cherry, tiny wild strawberries, red currant, and orange peel. The medium-plus-bodied palate is firm and fine, with mouthwatering “cut” and tremendous aromatic persistence on the finish—in short, everything we expect top-quality aged Barolo to be, except way less expensive than normal. If you collect Barolo wines, you must make room for some of this: It’ll knock your socks off now after about 45 minutes in a decanter, but, if stored well, it’s built for the long haul. Over time it promises to become more exotic, more savory, and more complex. If you can afford it, grab a bunch of bottles so you can re-visit it periodically. Keep the service temperature around 60-65 degrees, pull out your best Burgundy stems, and pair it with a proven classic like
risotto al Barolo, maybe with a dollop of gorgonzola thrown on at the last minute. Pure, Piedmontese perfection. Enjoy!
