The Indelible Legacy of Bruno Giacosa

As politicians, football managers and monarchs have all discovered, it’s not easy taking over from a legend. And when Piedmont pioneer Bruno Giacosa passed away in 2018, at the age of 88, he left an indelible legacy.

One of the true greats of the winemaking world, he was as taciturn as his wines were expressive. Intensely considered, focused and driven, Bruno never did any formal training, instead picking up all his knowledge and skill over 70 years in the cellar and the vineyard. There, his know-how of each individual Barolo and Barbaresco cru was such that Robert Parker once described Giacosa as “the one producer I would buy year-in, year-out without ever tasting”.

Fortunately, Bruno’s daughter Bruna shadowed her father for many years, having effectively been managing the estate since 2006. And since his passing, she has upheld her father’s standards via an unwavering commitment to producing wines of elegance, purity and complexity – and true vineyard expression. It’s this final element that is integral to the Giacosa identity. Piedmont was traditionally a region where wines were a blend comprising different sites. Giacosa, on the other hand, was an early proponent of expressing the character of individual vineyards – initially from purchased grapes, and then from the family’s own vineyards, notably the 14.5ha Falletto vineyard in Serralunga d’Alba.

Today, no wines are more revered than the white (standard) and red (riserva) label Le Rocche del Falletto bottlings, from a subsection of the Falletto vineyard. A monopole befitting from south-to-southwest exposition on clay-limestone soils in Serralunga, Le Rocche del Falleto naturally produces darker and more sumptuous Barolos. And in a moment of generosity – call it festive goodwill – we are delighted to offer a clutch of these wines, plus others from the Giacosa stable, as part of our festive offer, with notable savings.

We have focused on a string of critically acclaimed vintages made either side of Bruno’s passing, beginning with the 2015. This was a warm, dry year, producing broadly ripe, aromatic wines with quite a high level of concentration – though Giacosa ultimately chose not to release a red label Riserva bottling, meaning its white label Le Rocche del Falletto is the year’s top selection from the vineyard. It has been garlanded with 100 points by Italian authority James Suckling, who compares the 2015 vintage as a whole to the celebrated 2010, even suggesting that 2015 may eventually surpass it in quality.

The white label, incorporating the whole Falletto vineyard, was also the only release from the current vintage, the 2019 – a balanced, complete year that combines genuine ripeness with generous structure and acidity. Style-wise, it continues the three-year pattern of the similarly rounded 2010, 2013 and 2016 vintages, though it was deeper in profile than the latter, with a later harvest, starting in October. With an unusual mix of richness and clarity, it seems surprising that Giacosa again chose not to bottle a Riserva/red label Falletto – but perhaps just goes to show the standards the wine is held to. Monica Larner, in the Wine Advocate, heralds the ‘19 as “a generous and expansive wine that hits the palate from all sides, [with] lingering sensations of sweet fruit, a good amount of intensity and muscle power pushing from behind [and] elegance, substance and finely tuned tones with considerable tension and tightness”.

2016 was a standout, benchmark vintage for the region, starting late and finishing late under cool, dry conditions – perfect for extending Nebbiolo hang times. The year saw both a white-label Falletto and a red-label Riserva, the latter drawn from the central, steepest, south-facing part of the cru, closest to the winery. It is a wine built around crispness and detail, with immense depth and complexity that speak of the stature of the site.

2017, by contrast, was a particularly dry year, with next to no rain and heat spikes in June and July. While Serralunga’s deeper clay soils generally suffered less hydric stress than sandier communes such as La Morra and Castiglione Falletto, the harvest was around a month earlier than in 2016, after a welcome small amount of rain preserving freshness. It produced a vintage with less sweetness and concentration than the similarly warm and dry 2015, for example, yielding mid-weight, richly aromatic, charming, red-fruited wines for shorter-term drinking. Bottling a red-label Riserva as the only 2017 wine from Falletto is a statement of intent from Giacosa to show its belief in the quality of the year – and the site. Larner reports Bruna preferring 2017 to 2015, via a wine that is “very open-knit, and reveals dark concentration in the form of ripe blackberry, candied cherry and spice. The tannins show a loose, granular quality that adds considerably to the textural impact of this Riserva”.

As well as the Rocche del Falletto wines, we are pleased to offer two vintages of the Giacosa standard Barolo bottling, and a bonus vintage of Asili Barbaresco, just for good measure. We feel confident in saying that you will struggle to find these wines at more competitive prices.