These days, most of our Italian wine offers are presented by our Editorial Director, David Lynch, but this wine moved me so much I had to jump in and make my pitch for it. I wasn’t familiar with the wines of Crissante Alessandria prior to our recent tasting, but I am now—and this 2013 absolutely blew me away.
Maybe it’s because I’m such a Burgundy fanatic, but I’m drawn to the prettier, more perfumed styles of Barolo—and there’s no better place to look for those than the village of La Morra, from which this wine hails. Sourced from the southeast-facing “Capalot” vineyard, this wine is one of the more welcoming Barolos I’ve tried in quite some time, with a fine grain to its tannins and a brightness to its fruit that sets it apart from many of its burlier, more earth-driven contemporaries. This is one of those wines that has everything in the right place from the get-go, and we have not just the Alessandria family but the highly acclaimed 2013 vintage to thank for that. In fact, if this wine is indicative of the vintage—one that Antonio Galloni of Vinous praised for “sublime finesse and elegance”—then I suspect we’ll be getting many more 2013s in the pipeline here at SommSelect. But in the meantime, I urge you to add this impeccable wine to your collection: We were only able to get a small allocation, and therefore must limit purchases to 6 bottles per customer. Trust me when I say you should find some space for some.
Based in the La Morra hamlet of Santa Maria, atop the cru vineyard called “Roggeri” (where they farm three hectares), the estate was founded in 1958 when Crissante Alessandria decided to begin bottling some of his own wines from vineyards that had been in his family for generations. Centered on the Capalot and Roggeri vineyards, the family-run property has remained small and focused, and today totals about six hectares—all within the commune of La Morra (which to my mind is the Chambolle-Musigny of Barolo). Eighth-generation vignaiolo Alberto Alessandria joined the family business in 2007, and since then the family has made significant investments in both the winery and vineyards (including converting to organic viticulture) to increase their profile.
The Alessandria family is the best-known producer of Barolo from the Capalot cru, which itself is best known for supplying part of Roberto Voerzio’s “Riserva Vecchie Viti dei Capalot e delle Brunate” bottling (which is no longer made). The vineyard’s exposures range from east to south-southeast in Alessandria’s portion, which sits in an amphitheater of clay and limestone with veins of sand. In general, La Morra’s east-leaning exposures and higher percentage of clay in its soils lead to Barolos with bright fruit and less-ferocious tannins than their counterparts in villages such as Serralunga and Monforte d’Alba. This one is true to form in that regard, and to anyone who remembers the generously oaked, densely concentrated style of Roberto Voerzio, be advised: This is not that. This is lifted, perfumed Barolo that combines power and finesse in much the same way my favorite Burgundies do. It sneaks up on you and stays with you.
In the glass, the 2013 “Capalot” is a brilliant, deep garnet red with pink and orange highlights, with gorgeous aromas of wild strawberry, cranberry, black cherry, orange rind, sandalwood, wet rose petals, and a subtle hint of tobacco. Aged 24 months in large, used Slavonian oak botti, its oak component is very well-integrated, even at this young age. The tannins, as I noted above, are relatively fine-grained—silky even—and in general the wine is just perfectly proportioned: There’s fruit, there’s flowers, there’s earth…everything is in terrific balance, which is perhaps the best indicator of all when it comes to longevity. If stored well, I foresee this wine easily making it to the 20-year mark—which is, frankly, longer than I’m willing to wait before I open another bottle. With about 60 minutes in a decanter, this sings a pretty compelling song right now—serve it at 60-65 degrees in Burgundy stems and let it harmonize with a woodsy, seasonal pasta preparation as in the attached. Absolute fire! Don’t miss it!
