Michael Hepworth

MASSOLINO WINES and THEIR PASSION FOR BAROLO

HOLLYWOOD<(Spirtisman)5/8/14/–The history of this winery dates back to 1896 when Giovanni Massolino founded the estate, and his son Giuseppe founded the first wine cellar which is in the region of Serralunga d’Alba. They have recently been launched in the USA, and the classic Barolo wine is made with Nebbiolo grapes cultivated 360 meters above sea level.

The entire estate is twenty-three hectares in and around the village of Serralunga, and the portion dedicated to Barolo is 7 hectares. The soil is very calcerous, with variations from zone to zone, and it certainly helps that at least two of the family members Franco and Roberto are oenologists.

All these wines are being imported by the enterprising Vineyard Brands based in Birmingham, Alabama, and have recently hit the market. Production is fairly limited starting with the Barolo Vigna Rionda which produces only 8,000 750ml bottles and is a wine that goes with meat, especially lamb and game, and it has been released six years of harvesting. A good portion of the wine has been held back and will be put on the market in four years.

Barolo Perussi has a solid structure, long finish with hints of sweet spices, sandalwood, tobacco and leather. The grapes are grown outside of the Serralunga d’Alba area in Castigliano Falletto and is best served with stewed meats and medium-long matured cheeses. About 5,000 bottles of this wine are produced annually.

Barolo Parafada is more intense and complex wine than the other Barolo’s, and this robust wine is particularly good with rice and pasta dishes as well as roast meats. Production is limited to 4,500 bottles.

The flagship Barolo (38,000 bottles) is aged in large oak barrels for 30 months and left to mature in bottles placed in dark and cool cellars for about a year. A versatile wine that ages well the tasting notes indicate that this is a wine best served with red meats, truffles and game. It also goes well with egg pasta, risotto and goat’s milkcheeses.

Massolino also does a Moscato d’Asti (15,000 bottles) made from Moscato Bianco grapes in the same region as the Barolo production, and this straw yellow wine is best with desserts of any kind and spicy cheeses. This a fresh tasting wine that benefits from the fermentation process of large pressurized tanks known as autoclaves.

Sticking with the whites, Langhe Chardonnay (15,000 bottles), this wine is fermented for 6 months , and is released for sale after at least an additional 6 months in the bottle.

In a land that mainly produces red varieties, this white wine benefits from meticulous care in the vineyards, and goes very well with fresh fish, in particular trout. It tastesvery structured thanks to the soil of the area it is grown.

www.vineyardbrands.com