2017 Massolino Barolo Vigna Rionda Riserva

About The Wine

In a recent survey for Michele Longo and Ian D’Agata’s upcoming book, no Barolo cru garnered more votes from respondents asked to name Barolo’s top five Crus in terms of quality and prestige. Vigna Rionda is historically Serralunga’s most revered vineyard and the source of some of the greatest, finest, longest-lived Barolo. The Massolino family took ownership of their first parcel in 1956, and new parcels directly adjoining the existing vines were purchased in 1967, 1985, and 1987. This took Massolino’s holding to the 3.5 hectares of vines (two planted to Nebbiolo).

On some of the oldest soils of Barolo, there is very little topsoil here, with a high concentration of limestone, oxidised iron and other mineral elements. Vigna Rionda’s soil can be traced back to the Lequio Formation, the oldest soil of the Barolo area, originating in the Serravallian period between 13 and 11 million years ago. The limestone presence differentiates this vineyard from many other Barolo vineyards; the soils limit vigour and ensure consistent phenolic ripeness. In fact, within the Barolo area, Vigna Rionda, at roughly 14%, boasts one of the highest limestone contents in the entire Barolo zone.

The vines are at 250 to 360 metres’ altitude and protected from northerly winds and frost by the south/southwest aspect. This vineyard generates wines with an optimum balance of perfume, finesse, concentration and structure rarely found in Barolo. Excellent acidity and tannins are a feature of Vigna Rionda wines, so they require longer aging in botti and bottle. This is why Massolino’s Vigna Rionda is always released with a minimum of six years of age. Always aged in large cask, 2017 was the second vintage where Massolino’s Vigna Rionda also fermented in large wood. It spent 20 days on skins and then aged for 30 months in a 7,000-litre Stockinger botte.

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