Vintage matters. It seems obvious to wine lovers, but still this basic axiom is often overlooked or sometimes conveniently forgotten. Sure, with mass produced, grocery store wines maybe it doesn’t matter as much, but when we’re talking about top producers in top terroirs, then every vintage has its own story to tell. Take Brovia, I adore these wines, and grab some of them on every release, but some vintages just really blow you away. The 2016 vintage  was a perfect example, as was 2010, and now 2019 seems poised to match and possibly exceed them both. With a warm, but steady summer that avoided heat spikes and drought, thereby allowing the fruit to hang longer and gain additional depth and complexity. This Barolo is a total knockout right now, and will be even better with another three to five years of aging. Piedmont devotées, do not miss this wine!

Over the past two decades, the Brovia family has risen from relative obscurity to today enjoying a status as one of the undisputed top producers in Barolo. Today, the Brovia estate is run by fourth-generation sisters, Cristina and Elena Brovia, along with Elena’s husband, Alex Sanchez. The family’s pride is a small collection of top vineyard sites in Barolo’s top villages of Serralunga d’Alba and Castiglione Falletto. T heir top sites are Villero, Rocche, Brea, and Garblet Sué. The Brovia family bottles these four individual “crus” separately and releases them as the estate’s premium-priced, top wines. But what many collectors don’t realize is that their “Classico” (aka  normale) cuvée is actually a blend of all the top vineyards in one bottle; suffice it to say, there is absolutely nothing “normal” about it.  

All of the Brovia family’s vines are meticulously farmed in accordance with organic methods, and all of the fruit is harvested by hand and gently pressed into stainless steel tanks for fermentation. Just like the estate’s top “cru” bottlings, this wine is then split into a mix of large, mostly old (and a few new) Slavonian and French oak barrels. It ages in said barrels for two years and then spends another two years in bottle before release.

Brovia’s “Classico” bottling is made with the same exacting methods and attention to terroir transparency as the family’s cru offerings. It is a perfect snapshot of the vintage in Castiglione Falletto writ large, and can be enjoyed on the younger side, though it will also greatly benefit from a few years in the cellar. If you open it sooner rather than later, be sure to give it a good 30-45 minute decant, and serve at cellar temperature of about 60 degrees in a large Burgundy stem. This monumental 2019 Barolo erupts from the glass with black plum, black cherry, red currant, wet rose blossoms, sweet red tobacco, toasted black truffles and white pepper. Its refined fruit and cascading tannins are seemingly designed to access every corner of one’s palate. Pair with a simple, but delicious, meal of wild mushroom risotto and you’ll be in a cozy, very happy place.