M. Marengo Barolo Brunate 2018
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Robert
Parker - Decanter
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James
Suckling -
Wine
Spectator
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Ruby red tending to garnet. On the nose, intense, complex, delicate, very elegant and very powerful at the same time. Small red berries, balsamic notes of sage and mint that become gradually more evident when the wine opens up in the glass. Floral and flint notes follow. In the mouth the tannins are silky and well integrated together with a lovely balance.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Fruit for this wine comes from a 1.2-hectare site with classic calcareous soils. The 2018 Barolo Brunate is very different from the other two wines in this portfolio. Brunate shows a higher level of intensity and boldness with dark fruit, sweet plum, rusty nail and garden soil. This expression is also best equipped with integrated tannins and freshness to continue on a steady aging trajectory. I love that subtle note of sweetness that appears on the finish.
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Decanter
Marengo owns two plots among the highest and more eastern parcels of the Brunate MGA. His 2018 shines for floral complexity of macerated roses with pomegranate and cherry. There is a great concentration of fruit on the palate with more pomegranate and cherry enhanced by sweet spice, dusty tannins and a refreshing velvety finish (despite the 15% of alcohol, which is very well integrated). A Barolo intended for the long haul, despite the lighter vintage.
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James Suckling
Ripe red berries with floral aromas follow through to a medium-bodied palate with fine, firm tannins that for now are coated with very bright, tangy fruit flavor. Very intense and tight, even racy, this needs some time for the flighty edges to settle down and the real core to expand. So youthful. Try from 2024.
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Wine Spectator
Falling into the savory camp, this Barolo evokes eucalyptus, mint and tea flavors, with black cherry and plum. The tannins are on the dry side now, yet this remains elegant, vibrant and long.
Other Vintages
2017-
James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine
Spectator
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine
Spectator
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James
Suckling
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker
Responsible for some of the most elegant and age-worthy wines in the world, Nebbiolo, named for the ubiquitous autumnal fog (called nebbia in Italian), is the star variety of northern Italy’s Piedmont region. Grown throughout the area, as well as in the neighboring Valle d’Aosta and Valtellina, it reaches its highest potential in the Piedmontese villages of Barolo, Barbaresco and Roero. Outside of Italy, growers are still very much in the experimentation stage but some success has been achieved in parts of California. Somm Secret—If you’re new to Nebbiolo, start with a charming, wallet-friendly, early-drinking Langhe Nebbiolo or Nebbiolo d'Alba.
The center of the production of the world’s most exclusive and age-worthy red wines made from Nebbiolo, the Barolo wine region includes five core townships: La Morra, Monforte d’Alba, Serralunga d’Alba, Castiglione Falletto and the Barolo village itself, as well as a few outlying villages. The landscape of Barolo, characterized by prominent and castle-topped hills, is full of history and romance centered on the Nebbiolo grape. Its wines, with the signature “tar and roses” aromas, have a deceptively light garnet color but full presence on the palate and plenty of tannins and acidity. In a well-made Barolo wine, one can expect to find complexity and good evolution with notes of, for example, strawberry, cherry, plum, leather, truffle, anise, fresh and dried herbs, tobacco and violets.
There are two predominant soil types here, which distinguish Barolo from the lesser surrounding areas. Compact and fertile Tortonian sandy marls define the vineyards farthest west and at higher elevations. Typically the Barolo wines coming from this side, from La Morra and Barolo, can be approachable relatively early on in their evolution and represent the “feminine” side of Barolo, often closer in style to Barbaresco with elegant perfume and fresh fruit.
On the eastern side of the Barolo wine region, Helvetian soils of compressed sandstone and chalks are less fertile, producing wines with intense body, power and structured tannins. This more “masculine” style comes from Monforte d’Alba and Serralunga d’Alba. The township of Castiglione Falletto covers a spine with both soil types.
The best Barolo wines need 10-15 years before they are ready to drink, and can further age for several decades.