2017 Paolo Scavino Barolo "Prapò", Piedmont, Italy

ABOUT THIS WINE

Nebbiolo from the Prapò cru within Serralunga d’Alba. The soil here is precious, rich in minerals which sparkle under the sun. The slope is steep and despite the vineyard is sunny throughout the day and especially during the morning, this cru is never sultry because of the good exposure and air currents.

The 2017 Barolo vintage is generally seen as good, though it was somewhat more challenging for producers due to extreme weather conditions during the growing season. While the vintage was not as difficult as others, such as 2002 or 2014, it still required careful management in the vineyards and cellar to produce high-quality wines. The year was marked by a hot, dry summer, which led to early ripening and lower yields, but overall, the best Barolos from 2017 show a balance of concentration, elegance, and freshness, making them wines with good aging potential.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

The most remarkable thing about Enrico Scavino is that even today, this man ever longs to make better Barolo. Generations at the helm of his family estate, founded in 1921, have already proven him a leader in the qualitative advances that have occurred in the Barolo area. And yet, he has never stopped the experimentation that has always kept him on the avant-garde of the Langhe area. He continues to vinify his wines parcel by parcel, taking advantage of these small fermentations to try to make better wines. In fact, in 2007 Enrico has even designed and fabricated his own fermentation vessel, used exclusively on his Barolo, to improve the finesse of extraction from his nebbiolo. Now with his daughters Elisa and Enrica working with him full-time, it would seem possible for this statesman—contemporary of Domenico Clerico and Elio Altare—to take a step back. Instead, Enrico’s passion is further bolstered by the presence of the next generation! And speaking of family, I’d be remiss not to mention that Enrico’s first cousin and neighbor is Luigi Scavino of Azelia fame. Alfonso, father of Luigi, and his brother Paolo, father to Enrico, divided ownership of the 11 hectare Scavino farm in the 1950s, giving each an equal share of the famed Fiasco hill.

Winemaking at the estate has evolved over time—but the one constant, even from the days of Enrica and Elisa’s grandfather, was hygiene: the cleanliness of the winery and health of the grapes remain paramount. Technology has had its influence: Enrico recalls working the vineyards with oxen and horses, and said of the purchase of his first tractor “I couldn’t have been happier if my father had gifted me a Ferrari!” In 1993, rotofermentors arrived at the estate, and between 1996-1999, Slavonian casks were replaced with French oak—but barriques here were always and only used for the first 10 months of aging to help fix color before the wines were transferred to larger oak botti. The percentage of new oak has been much reduced from a height of 30% from the 1990s to 2004, to only 20% new from 2004 – 2008, 17% new in 2011 & 2012, and for the 2015 harvest they have even reduced to a further 14% new. Quality control is crucial. Scavino could make more wine—but the estate chooses to sell off from 10-30% of the production in bulk to maintain their super high standards. This small family farm—which essentially started with 5.5 hectares—now manages 29 hectares of vineyards, and regularly finds itself classified amongst the other top estates of the region.