The
wines of
Giuseppe
Mascarello, Piedmont, Italy
Giuseppe Mascarello e Figlio di Mauro Mascarello &
Co Azienda Agricola, Stada del Grosso, 1-12060 Castiglione Faletto (Cuneo),
Italy
Tel: 0173 792126 Fax: 0173 792124
Mascarello is one of the leading names in Barolo. It’s a small-ish family firm run by Mauro Mascarello, who
has a reputation for making complex wine in a more traditional style:
you won’t find any barriques here. Rather than try to make deep-coloured,
oaky wines in a sort of international style, Mauro allows Nebbiolo to
do what only Nebbiolo can, producing pale coloured yet intensely
structured wines with a complex sweet and sour character that is quite
beguiling.
Here I got to try a large
selection of Mascarello wines, including very nice examples of
Dolcetto and Barbera. The Barolo Monprivato is verging on the
profound, and judging by the performance of the 1982 and 1988 these
are wines you want to buy, stick in your cellar and forget about for a
couple of decades.
Fresia ‘Toetto’ 2001 Castiglione Falletto
0.68 hectares of vines purchased in 1987, planted in 1989.
Clay/chalk. Lovely open fruit here: it’s savoury, but with a ripe
liquoricey edge to the berry fruit with savoury, fine-grained spicy
tannins. Fine, spicy finish. Very good+ 89/100 (£9.15)
Dolcetto Bricco 2001 Castiglione Falletto
0.63 hectares purchased in 1987, clay/limestone. Vivid purple
colour. Open nose of bright fruits with a savoury, spicy, minerally
edge. The palate shows lovely vivid spicy fruit with firm tannins and
a lovely savoury character. Minerally, delicious and savoury. Very
good/excellent 90/100 (£8.90)
Barbera Scudetto 2001 Monforte d’Alba
1.88 hectares, purchased 1991, planted 1998. Clay/sand. Quite an
intense savoury nose with bold, minerally cherry fruit. The palate is
earthy and tannic with a caramel-like edge and high acidity.
Interesting stuff in a traditional style. Very good/excellent 90/100 (£12.25)
Nebbiolo Langhe 2001
Declassified Barolo. Slightly lighter colour. Earthy, spicy nose
is savoury and a little old fashioned. The palate is open and
expressive with lovely ripe, rounded earthy minerally fruit with
fine-grained, firm tannins. Drinking brilliantly now. Really earthy;
not fruit driven. Very good/excellent 91/100 (£11.25)
Barolo Villero 1998 Castiglione Falletto
Purchased 1985, planted 1988. Limestone, clay, sand. Intense yet
refined nose with some sweet spices and earthiness, with slightly
cherryish fruit. The palate has a lovely roundness with spice, herbs,
hints of tar and some earthiness. Quite intense. Very good/excellent
92/100 (£27.50)
Barolo Monptivato 1999
First parcel of the Monprivato vineyard was purchased in 1904 by
Mascarello; they now own 95% of it, with holdings of 6.13 hectares.
Limestone/clay soil with Southwest exposure. The nose shows some
lovely open sweet, earthy fruit: savoury, intense and perfumed. The
palate is concentrated with spicy earthiness to the fruit. Very bold
and rich: a powerful yet expressive style. Quite minerally and full.
Very good/excellent 92/100 (£33.60)
Barolo Monprivato Ca d’Morissio Riserva 1995
This special release has been made in 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997 and
2001. Complex, spicy earthy evolved nose with great savoury intensity.
There’s a lovely perfumed earthy character. The palate is tannic and
dense with lots of structure. Bold and mouthfilling, this is a massive
wine that needs time. Very good/excellent 94/100 (£82)
Barolo Monprivato 1988
Lovely expressive complex nose is earthy and intense with a nice
spiciness. The palate is open, broad with lovely spicy fruit and more
of this distinctive earthiness. Very open with good acidity. Drinking
very well now. Very good/excellent 93/100
Barolo Monprivato 1982
Tarry, spicy, open earthy nose is very fine and complex, showing
good evolution. The palate is open and spicy with firm, drying,
mouthcoating tannins. A bold, rich style that’s full and expressive.
Drinking brilliantly now. Very good/excellent 94/100
availability
in the UK:
Winetraders/Michael
Palij MW
3 TBAC Business Centre, Avenue Four, Station Lane, Witney, Oxon, OX28
4BN
Tel: 00 44 (0) 1993 848 777 Fax: 00 44 (0) 1993 848 778
For
an older review of these wines click here
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