Vajra And Baudana's Stellar 2017 Barolos

The Vaira family's parcel in Coste di Rose in Barolo are gorgeously located on the top of the MGA, at 310m above sea level. It's a unique vineyard. The soil is dominated by a pure Arenaria di Diano, a Tortonian sandstone that delivers distinctive floral aromatics and a salty minerality. This cru is one of Barolo’s best-kept secrets, being located right in between Cannubi and Bussia, yet away from the beaten paths. Fruit is picked usually around the third week of October. Vinification occurs in custom-designed vertical tini, with gentle punch down and rinsing of the cap. Maceration lasts 40 to 50 days on average. Malolactic conversion takes place in stainless steel, the following spring. Coste di Rose is possibly the most approachable cru of Barolo at this stage, with roses and a floral-dominated nose, combined with marasca cherry and hints of liquorice and mint. A very elegant and pleasurable structure that flows gracefully on the palate with a lingering and sapid finish. - Giuseppe Vaira

Ripe red fruit, blood orange, mint and nutmeg. Juicy dark red fruits with a bit of orange tang, spicy too, with firm chalky tannin, plenty of chew and energy, and a bit of liquorice on a long firm finish. A little more chunky and open-knit than usual, but still very good. 94 points. Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

With fruit from higher-elevation vineyards in the village of Barolo, the 2017 Barolo Coste di Rose is quite elegantly downplayed and fragile. The wine reveals wild berry, cassis and lots of blue flower or lilac. A pretty mineral note recalls crushed limestone and is present through the long and polished mouthfeel. This wine overperforms, considering the challenges of this vintage that saw extreme weather, from spring frost to scorching summer temperatures. These vineyard sites performed better than most. 94 points. Monica Larner, Wine Advocate

The 2017 Barolo Coste di Rose is pretty, supple and inviting. Some of the tannins need to resolve, but this is a young Barolo after all. The Coste di Rose doesn't have the sensuality of the Albe or the pedigree of the Viole, but it nevertheless has so much to give. Crushed flowers, sweet red berry fruit, mint, crushed rocks and sage are some of the many notes that linger. I won't be surprised if the 2017 is even better than this note suggests once it softens a bit. 93 points. Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

Bricco delle Viole is like a cut of silk: pure, elegant, and ethereal. Born on the highest hill of Barolo, a promontory facing south, embraced by the Alps. It receives the first morning sun and the last ray of the evening. In autumn this vineyard seems to float above the fog, as if detached from time and light. The vineyard features material from 1949 and successive plantings in 1963, 1968 and 1985. Bricco delle Viole possesses extremely white soils. Rich in limestone, magnesium and manganese, with the contribution of high altitude and the afternoon breeze, these soils create wines rich in finesse, floral aromas and freshness. The old vines of Bricco delle Viole are the last to be harvested - a wait that makes our heart beat faster, because the weather can change rapidly in autumn. But the patience of the farmer knows that the wait will be rewarded with high aromatic complexity and extreme finesse. The fruit undergoes a long maceration that might go as long as 45 days, including some time with a submerged cap. Malolactic conversion takes place in steel in the spring following the harvest. It's then aged for 32 months in 25hL Slavonian oak casks before bottling. – Giuseppe Vaira

A fair old amount of perfume here. Raspberry, rose oil, menthol and five spice. Just over medium-bodied, raspberry and red cherry, again the sweet spices, and a bit of tobacco savoury stuff, fresh too, with pumice stone tannin, and a long firm finish. Maybe not quite as fine as some of the better years, but gee it’s still keeping itself pretty tidy. 95 points. Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

The G.D. Vajra 2017 Barolo Bricco delle Viole is packed with medium dark cherry fruit and plum. The wine also shows a savory side, with spice, hazelnut cream, licorice and lightly fragrant potting soil. This vintage sits solid on the palate, wrapping thickly over the senses, thanks to its creamy, fruit-driven consistency and well-managed tannins. These vines are high in elevation, ranging from 400 to 480 meters in altitude. Those higher elevations are key to interpreting a vintage that saw heat such as this. 95 points. Monica Larner, Wine Advocate

The 2017 Barolo Bricco delle Viole is classy and elegant to the core. Medium in body and wonderfully translucent, the 2017 captures all of the finesse of this site. Naturally, the 2017 also shows the ripeness of the year, but it retains its sublime sense of poise. The 2017 Bricco delle Viole is one of the clear stand outs of the year. 95 points. Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

Dark red fruit, nutmeg, dried herbs, new leather and a deeper slightly earthy bass note rumbling away. Succulent mix of red cherry and berries, plenty of spice and orange peel, distinctly earthy and ‘mineral’ feel to tannin here, a bit gravelly and they spread through the mouth so nicely. Pulls savoury on the long finish, but also offers a little rosy perfume as it goes. Perhaps my favourite wine from the 2017 Vajra release. 95 points. Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

The G.D. Vajra 2017 Barolo Ravera shows solid build and consistency, with more rich and saturated fruit compared to the other Barolo releases from this historic estate. The Ravera cru offers broad shoulders with a tight textural fabric. That powerful approach makes a good sounding board for the wine's dark cherry, plum, dark mineral and spice flavours. This is more of a red meat wine. 94+ points. Monica Larner, Wine Advocate

The 2017 Barolo Ravera is gorgeous right out of the gate. I am so impressed with its depth and pedigree. Rose petal, sweet red berry fruit, lavender, spice and dried herbs are all finely delineated in a Barolo of tremendous presence. Orange peel, cinnamon and cedar develop later, adding shades of dimension. Time in the glass brings out the wine's stature and power. The 2017 is going to be fascinating to follow. Today, it is just breathtaking. That's all there is to it. 95 points. Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

Baudana is located on the western slope of Serralunga and belongs to a fine cluster of vineyards among Lazzarito, Parafada, Rionda, Falletto and Francia. The soil is a composition of Marne di Sant’Agata mixed with Formazioni di Lequio. It’s white on the surface and distinctively blue underneath. The site enjoys amazing soil conditions, thanks to higher water retention. Harvest usually takes place in the third week of October. Fermentation starts quite fast and runs smoothly for approximately 30 days, followed by another 10 days of maceration. One Slavonian cask is used to ferment most of the grapes, with some stainless-steel vessels used as a backup. Punch-downs and gentle pumpovers are the only activity over the maceration period. The wine is racked into oak after malolactic conversion and spends an average of 32+ months in large Slavonian oak casks. – Giuseppe Vaira

The 2017 Barolo Baudana is such a gorgeous wine. It, too, conveys the power of Serralunga, but with a bit less heft than is typically the case. Sweet dark cherry, iron, cedar, rose petal, mint and white pepper give the 2017 its effusive, inviting personality. This is such a tremendous showing. 95+ points. Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media February 2020

Toasted hazelnut, liquorice and mint, dark cherry, dried rose and spice, leather and black tobacco. Full-bodied, bold and dark fruited, distinct hazelnut character to taste, lavish stony tannin, sweet slightly toasty fruit, roasted red capsicum, balanced acidity, a firm ‘mineral’ character, maybe some warmth though it feels generous rather than overt, spiced biscuit, and excellent length of flavour. Powerful. The vineyard is giving it loads here. Hello! 95 points. Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

From a historic vineyard in Serralunga d'Alba, the Luigi Baudana 2017 Barolo Baudana takes an extra minute to open and ultimately reveals a consistent and compact package of aromas centred on dark fruit, rusty earth and crushed flowers. It's quite nice the way the wine holds its cards closer to its proverbial chest. It lets its guard down one little piece at a time. There is some sweetness, too, and the wine feels weighty and powerful. I'd definitely give it a few more years of cellar aging so that the wine finds time to focus and flesh out. 93 points. Monica Larner, Wine Advocate

Cerretta lies opposite Baudana on the east slope of Serralunga. The soil belongs entirely to the Formazioni di Lequio: a thin layer of white marl covering a deep subsoil of red clay. Grapes are picked from 40-year-old wines of multiple biotypes of Nebbiolo, representing the incredible heritage of Luigi’s work. Nebbiolo has the longest vegetative cycle among local varieties, and is usually harvested around the third week of October. Fermentation is carried out primarily in one large cask. The Cerretta vineyard always has a slow start to fermentation, which then goes for 35-40 days on average. Post-fermentation “cappello sommerso” (submerged cap) follows for another week in greater vintages. Cerretta is aged in large Slavonian casks for 32 months on average. - Giuseppe Vaira

A dark, sombre wine, the 2017 Barolo Cerretta shows the more potent, brooding side of Serralunga. Black cherry, gravel, smoke, cured meats, cloves and menthol add to an impression of virile intensity and pure power. Readers will have to be patient here, but there is certainly a ton to look forward to. This is another impressive showing from Baudana and the Vajra family. 95 points. Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media February 2020

Pretty ripe offering here, sooty, dark plum and red berries, new leather and menthol. Full-bodied, liquorice and stewed plum, firm graphite tannin, a bit of warmth, but with a stony ‘mineral’ feel to tannin. Juicy baked fruit and earthy flavours to close. A bit of a thumper, but very good. 94+ points. Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

A release of 3,000 bottles, the Luigi Baudana 2017 Barolo Cerretta is the most downplayed of these three wines and the least complicated from an aromatic point of view. A first wave of aromas is focused on wild rose and crushed flowers. More robust tones of ripe cherry, rusty earth and dark spice follow in time. This edition of Cerretta is surprisingly delicate and fine, going against almost everything we know about robust fruit from Serralunga d'Alba and the powerful 2017 vintage. The wine is counterintuitive in a way only Nebbiolo can be. 93 points. Monica Larner, Wine Advocate

These Nebbiolo vineyards are located in Serralunga with slightly varying soil compositions. An average altitude of 340m and vines aged between 20 and 30 years complete the identity of this wine. The harvest takes place in the second half of October, enjoying till the last moment the rich nourishment the soil offers. The grapes are sorted by hand. Fermentation usually lasts 25 days before the wine is moved into large casks for ageing. – Giuseppe Vaira

Poached strawberry, cherry, liquorice, dried herbs, grilled meat and menthol. It’s juicy and succulent, liquorice, strawberry and raspberry liqueur, stony feel to tannin, almonds and dried herbs, moderate acidity, a bit savoury and meaty, goes pretty long and closes with sweet fruit and earthy flavours. Like this. Serralunga ahoy! 94 points. Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

The Luigi Baudana 2017 Barolo del Comune di Serralunga d'Alba reveals a robust and fruit-forward bouquet, with pressed blackberry and plum, followed by licorice, iron ore and some of the candied orange aromas that often come with fruit from Serralunga d'Alba. The wine is tight in terms of structure, and you feel its strength, but ultimately the sensations are polished and smooth. There are no rough edges to these well-managed tannins, and this is especially impressive in an unruly vintage such as 2017. 92 points. Monica Larner, Wine Advocate

The 2017 Barolo del Comune di Serralunga d’Alba may very well turn out to be one of the best wines of the year in its peer group. Dark and wonderfully expressive, yet also light on its feet for a Serralunga Barolo, the 2017 has so much going on. Black cherry, plum, spice, gravel, cured meats, lavender and sage all meld together in this dark yet translucent Barolo. 93 points. Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media February 2021