Barolo, Rocche di Castiglione, 2011

Vietti's flagship vineyard Rocche, from the Castiglione commune, is planted on blue clay soils and faces south east. It is one of the legendary cuvees in Piedmont and was one of the very first single Cru Barolos to be bottled and sold, back in 1961. 2011 marks its 50th year. The wine is typically very tight-knit and intense, Rocche always needs a lot of time in bottle to reveal its full potential. A complex, if reserved wine betraying high toned red fruit, flower and mineral notes, complex touches of saddle leather, with straight, clear, racy fruit character clasped by a firm but fine-grained tannic grip.