Piedmont 2016: Ten Years On

2016 was heralded on release as a Piedmont great alongside 2001, 2010 and 2013. We wrote that it “teeters between classical and modern. Classical in the sense that the wines display fresh acidities and veins of pure, crisp fruit, but modern in the sense of greater attention to detail in the vineyard and the cellar; gentle extractions, restraint in favour of power, and tactile, sophisticated, ripe fruit profiles displaying none of the rusticity sometimes seen in the past.”

Reflecting on that statement now, it is also true that in tasting the wines, while we were hearing of a flu circulating in the mountains, the 2016s were not, for the most part, all that showy, but were remarkable more for their sense of balance and energy. 2010s provided more impact and drama. It was clear that 2016 was exceptional, and growers were very proud, but it was also true that the consistently high quality of the wines we tasted meant that the individual peaks within producer ranges were at times less obvious than in a more regular year. Vibrant wines balanced by ripe fruit and fine tannins (it was considered a relatively warm year at the time) became the norm as we drove around Barolo and Barbaresco that February. We wrote of a “newfound clarity” in the wines and described 2016 as potentially “the most graceful vintage of modern times.”

It is hard now to conceive that barely a week on from that trip, Northwest Italy had become the epicentre of Covid-19 in Europe. Worried messages were exchanged with friends in the region, as we all thought initially that a particularly dangerous strain was isolated to that part of Italy alone, and that would be the story of the virus as we understood it – it’d all be over in a month. Global lockdown ensued and arguably the best Piedmont vintage of a generation was released in March 2020 in the most unusual circumstances imaginable.

Feeling at least confident in the wines and being one of the relative few that year to have actually tasted the 2016s on the ground, allocations were snapped up enthusiastically by our customers in a market thirsty for fine wine.

The short answer: yes. The producers we spoke to in February 2026 remain enthusiastic and assert that in vertical tastings the 2016s continue to excel. Silvia Altare said that “2016’s standing is guaranteed, and it will remain a reference point for a long time. When it was released, we thought of it as being riper than we do now, given the years we’ve had since.” Elisa Scavino added that “they are just starting to soften up a bit. Our wines were quite dark and structured for a while, showing beautiful power and complexity, but now we start to see the freshness and the elegance, around what is still a primary fruit expression,” confident of further upside development.

Vittore Alessandria maintains that “a great vintage is defined by a long, balanced season and an October harvest. Cold nights inspire quality and there is a finesse to the 2016s that will continue to impress for many years.” The team at Bartolo Mascarello spoke of the “freedom” they had in 2016, thanks to perfectly warm September days and cool nights that led into a stress-free harvest. The robust health of the grapes enabled them and many others that year, to go for a full 60-day submerged cap maceration, “perfectly polymerising the fruit tannins”. Their uber-classic 2016 is now starting to find its feet.

It is arguably the seamless alliance between tannin and acidity that most clearly signposts the quality of 2016. In re-tasting the wines now, it is evident that their form remains athletic; structured, with intricate perfumes and complexity. The three pillars of Nebbiolo – tannin, acidity and aroma – stand proud, and 2016’s verticality will sustain the wines over decades. Critically, though, there is a precision to the rippling fruit tannin – a snap and bite, no blocks – as saline, mineral notes meet beams of freshness and pure, sweet, at times actually quite deep fruit. But even at their ripest, the 2016s retain an Alpine feel. They sparkle and dance sometimes, glittering with crystalline ruby and violet hues. By way of contrast, the 2015s last year glided with luscious, weighty fruit, less of the dynamism, but suave contours – wines of deep crimsons and cassis that flatter and expand in the drinking.

In the cluster of modern greats, one senses that the 2016s are ageing in a more consistent and refined fashion than the overall more concentrated (but very impressive) 2010s, where at times the winemaking can still be perceived quite squarely, a hangover in places of the glossier wines of the noughties. Next to 2013, meanwhile, the 2016s have a more nervous, cleansing character at age ten, where the 2013s felt more resolved and fruit-forward. These are three gorgeous vintages that offer a little of everything.

It is all still to play for with 2016. Most wines should be kept for another five to ten years. I can’t wait to taste them at fifteen and twenty.

It is important to say that for wine lovers less accustomed to wines with a certain tannic spine, there are Piedmont vintages like 2015, 2017 and 2018, that may appeal more than 2016. These three have more pliancy, open fruit and show earlier secondary development (i.e. truffles, leather and spice). There are beautiful, food-friendly wines to be had from these years and they’ll be in their prime before long.

Where critics and the wine trade may well rate the likes of 2016 and 2010 (and more recently 2019 and 2021) as the vintages to seek out, the best advice we offer customers is to follow your own palate.

Savour wines that you enjoy and that meet your level of patience and socialising habits. This is particularly important in Piedmont where outdated wisdom says that it all needs decades to come around. This is rarely the case in our generation, as both the climate changes and winemakers adapt with more sensitivity to the profile of the year – 2022 is a case in point.

Nevertheless, the potential and energy we see in 2016 does mean that wines should be laid down for another five to ten years. As that becomes the exception rather than the rule, it marks it out as a special vintage for Piedmont lovers.

Mark Dearing

Italy Buyer, Justerini & Brooks.