Nebbiolo
75cl * 14.0% ABV * Barolo, Piedmont, Italy
Mascarello Giuseppe e Figlio is a prestigious Barolo producer in Piemonte, northwest Italy. The company has been closely associated with the legendary Monprivato vineyard, considered one of the so-called Barolo crus, or ‘Vigna Grande’, since the 1920s.
The vineyard itself has been documented in land registry archives from 1666. It is the soil type and south-west exposure here that give the Barolo wine excellent body, finesse of aromas, persistent aftertaste, an unmistakable marked elegance and the ability to evolve very over time while maintaining an extraordinary youth and freshness. The single vineyard Monprivato Barolo has become Giuseppe Mascarello's flagship wine and Mauro Mascarello, the current winemaker, has lifted it to the top table of Piedmontese producers.
Garnet red with orange-coloured highlights, the nose is complex, very fruity, elegant, intense, spicy, with flowery touches. This has excellent body with power and stuffing, demanding, masculine, long, full.
Drinking window: 2025 - 2050
"Classic Mascarello Barolo pale ruby in the glass. Surprisingly together for a young Monprivato with floral notes of rose and Parma violet, red fruit including pomegranate, cherry, cranberry and currant, and black fruit including plum and cherry with sandalwood, incense, liquorice and hay. Silky texture with the finest of tannins and a core of red and black fruit that unfolds impressively for almost a minute. Nifty acidity holds it all together and helps drive the finish. This is the most impressive young Monprivato I can remember tasting in more than 20 years. It has the measure of the 2016 and possibly also of the 2010 and the 2004. I’ve rarely seen Mauro so ebullient when tasting a young wine – I asked him if it was the greatest wine he had ever made and he said he couldn’t say but that it was better than his 2016. High praise indeed from the high priest of Langhe tradition. Of course I am biased – I have always loved these wines - but I was whisked back to the 1982 and the 1970 by its sheer complexity." 98 Points, Michael Palij MW.