Into the 1980's, one of Italy's most famed wine regions was intensely divided by a rift in winemaking philosophy - they called it the Barolo Wars.

It was Traditionalists versus Modernists, with winemakers young and old, and everyone in between, tussling it out on how the local Nebbiolo grape should be made into wine. And whilst no one got hurt, and there wasn't any actual fighting, don't for one second think this dispute was tame - feelings were certainly hurt, and family ties were cut. Barolo, up in the north of Italy, is after all a deeply traditional region, and this means that beliefs regarding every aspect of life - including winemaking - was passed down generation to generation, to be religiously adhered to, and to do otherwise was simply an act of sacrilege. It was about protecting a sense of sacredness of the region's identity.

The young winemakers who had wanted to reinvent Barolo.

Yet, into the 1980's it became clear that some young winemakers - they call them the Barolo Boys - started pitching new ideas about winemaking. They were the first generation in an entire lineage to visit foreign vineyards (notably France) and for some, to attend oenology courses in university. Suddenly it seemed like there was a so-called new and better way to go about winemaking - lowering yields on vines, shorter fermentation times, lesser extraction, the use of smaller French oak barrels, all practices more popular in France, whose wines are of course internationally consistently held in high regard. This was of course intensively divisive, and it felt as though these young guns were going against generations of good sense and expertise on how best to make the region's wines. In hindsight, it almost seems painfully obvious that what these Modernists really wanted was for the region, which they so deeply revered and loved, to be given the high recognition they believed it deserved - they wanted Barolo wines to be the number one choice when it came to the pick of a wine list, and no longer be thought of as mere village or table wines! 

Four decades later and even with subsequent winemakers getting to choose their school of thought, rather amusingly, it seems like neither side has achieved any clear victory. Just as many new winemakers pursue the traditional methods, as they do more internationally followed practices - in fact, most meet somewhere in the middle, adopting alittle bit of both sides, choosing what works in delivering the style they seek to achieve. Perhaps the Traditionalists didn't have too much to worry about after all, the world still cherishes the intuition guided wisdoms of its predecessors it seems. What is for certain is that wine lovers today have more choices than ever, and the quality of Barolo's have improved drastically as a result of the intense competition on both sides to prove that they can produce the best wines.

Mauro Mascarello

Yet, the stark reality is that forty years in is a long time and many of these original Traditionalists have had glorious careers and have in their time produced many legendary vintages, and thus one by one they've begun to hand of the reins and have passed on. Nevertheless one man still stands, and that's Mauro Mascarello.

Mauro Mascarello has led his family's winery, Mascarello Giuseppe e Figlio (which translates as "Giuseppe and Sons"), since 1967 in which he is the fourth-generation to do so. Not an absolute Traditionalist, Mauro is often thought of more as a somewhat progressive traditionalist that is less about following a school of thought than he is about pursuing his own intuition and ideals, wherein much of his work would still be characterised as traditional. Yet, it is in his deliberate choices whether it is to preserve historic practices or to break away from them that many consider him amongst the greats.

The Mascarello family crest.

Mauro did not come without context of course, with his great grand-father Giuseppe Mascarello having served for many years as a grower for the Marchesa Giulia Colbert Faletti di Barolo (a noble woman), overseeing her family's Manescotto estate in La Morra of Barolo. It was thus in 1881 when Giuseppe had managed to purchase a small parcel of vines in Monforte d'Alba that the family business Mascarello Giuseppe e Figlio was born. As suggested by the name, Giuseppe was not alone, having worked alongside his son Maurizio (or Morissio as per local dialect). Maurizio was an ambitious man and would take on great initiatives that would pay off over generations after him - he would acquire the Monprivato parcel in 1904 and also the Monchiero cellar in 1919, both of which the crown jewel of the Mascarello family till this day! It was Maurizio who had first introduced the very special Nebbiolo clone, called Michét, to the Monprivato vineyard. Today the Michét clone is understood to showcase more structure and age better even though it is lower yielding.

Those 70 year old massive Slavonian botti barrels.

Maurizio would eventually pass along his business to his children Giuseppe (not to be confused with Giuseppe, his grandfather) and Natale - they did not get along. And so the family's vineyards would be split in two. Giuseppe was incredibly passionate about winemaking, and would even choose to forgo a very profitable building materials business started by Maurizio, so that he could focus entirely on winegrowing. It was under Giuseppe that specially made Slavonian oak casks were introduced (and are still used till this day making these casks over 70 years old!). Under the watchful eye of Giuseppe, the family's Barolos leapfrogged in quality, and if ever he felt that his prized Nebbiolo vines were underperforming, he had no remorse in removing and replanting them - such was his commitment to quality! He was recognised for his great wines and became quite the hit amongst Italy's art community, and his wines were even presented by Italian embassies abroad.

And then we get right today with the fourth-generation Mauro Mascarello. Much like his predecessors, Mauro got off to an early start working the family winery from a young age with his father, Giuseppe. Mauro was an inquisitive man who was also very much guided by his intuition - he would early on experiment with different fermentation lengths, and would also explore the effects of pump overs of the must and the submerging of the cap (processes to do with the fermentation phase). There he concluded that he did not like the results of short fermentation and yet the traditional long fermentation cycle was also not doing it for Mauro - he would settle on a 30 day fermentation period, which places him somewhere in the middle of the Traditionalist and Modernists.

The Monprivato vineyards.

In the 1970's he would also begin vinifying parcels separately, which led him to appreciate just how special the Monprivato vineyard was - he would fully acquire the Monprivato vineyard, marking one of Barolo's most prized vineyards (the equivalent of a Grand Cru) a monopole (owned solely by one entity). It was from then that Mauro would debut the family's first single vineyard bottle - the legendary Monprivato. This was another divergence from Barolo tradition which insisted on the blending of fruit sourced from across the region (he would take it a step further by bottling the Ca' d'Morrisio in select years which is named in honour of his grandfather, and centered on select parcels of Michét Nebbiolo from within the Monprivato vineyard). Mauro would also importantly reunite the family's vineyards following the dispute between his father and uncle. and expand on the family's Michét Nebbiolo's, which he believed had become uniquely adapted to the Monprivato terroir.

Delving deeper into the fabled Monprivato vineyard, the 6 hectare southwest-facing slope in Barolo's Castiglione Falletto is composed of white and grey marl soils, which are perfect for Nebbiolo. The site had long been recognised as deeply special since as early as the 1600's when Renato Ratti had ranked the vineyard as amongst Barolo's ten greatest vineyards - as such few sites in Barolo command nearly as much reverence as the Monprivato, which today sits as the crown jewel of the Mascarello family. Yet Mauro was well aware that possessing such a great vineyard was pointless if the wines produced from it did not reflect its terroir, and thus Mauro was ahead of his time in adopting sustainable practices in farming his vineyards. He eradicated artificial fertilisers that were common in the 1970's and pruned the vines rigorously to limit yields and concentrate the fruit's character, if anything leaning a tad towards the Modernist here.

The fruit is then carefully sorted before its long stay in the cellars. As mentioned, Mascarello uses a 30 day maceration period (long by modern standards, yet shorter than the traditional 90 days in Barolo), wherein he left the cap submerged, before allowing the wines to matured in old Slovenian bottis (large oak barrels; Mascarello uses the same barrels selected by his father in the 1950's) for anywhere between 30 months to 6 years, before finally it is bottled unfined and unfiltered - almost accidentally all natural. Consequently Monprivato has been known to deliver concentrated red fruits, earthy truffles and forest floors, expressively vibrant with red florals and autumnal qualities.

“Because I let nature do her work, I try to let the earth express itself through the fruit. I try to do as little as possible in the cellar,” said Mauro at a wine tasting showcasing a collection on Monprivato through the ages.

Mauro and his wife, with their children Elena and Giuseppe.

Beyond the Monprivato site, the Mascarello family holds about 15 hectares of vineyards all in Barolo, with vines in Bricco, Codana, Roetto, Villero and Santo Stefano di Perno, producing also Dolcetto, Barbera and Freisa varietals, alongside of course its famed Nebbiolo.

Today Mauro has begun handing the family's winery over to his son and daughter, Giuseppe and Elena.

And with that let's get down to the tasting this legendary Monprivato Barolo DOCG from Mascarello - this is the 2017 vintage.

Wine Review: Giuseppe Mascarello e Figlio Monprivato Barolo DOCG

Tasting Notes

Colour: Garnet

Aroma: Bright, fresh, and clearly defined by tart red fruits. There's also fresh whole strawberries and raspberries immediately, layered subtly with mint, rosemary and a bouquet of herbs. This is wrapped around by intense rosey scents of potpourri, grounded by some earthiness of soil, forest floors and just harvested black truffles.

Palate: Very crisp, lively. Fresh red fruit from the nose continues to dominate on the palate, complemented by subtle floral touches. The initial sip reveals lilacs and elderflowers that transition seamlessly into juicy pomegranate, strawberry, raspberries, and red cassia, and continue to grow increasingly expressive. Tannins are restrained initially, almost unnoticed, but they do become a little more present with slight dryness emerging as we approach the finish. Into the finish, the spring water minerality becomes more evident.

Finish: Fresh yet nuanced. Some delicate creaminess reminiscent of yoghurt and more prominent mineral wet stone character accompanied by subtly savoury hints of tobacco, mint and a soft citrus undertone. The finish is firm yet supple, with a touch of salinity as well. Lingering potpourri aromas of roses that persist.

My Thoughts

The Giuseppe Mascarello Monprivato is vibrant, racy and remarkably drinkable with prominent but gentle acidity. True to the Monprivato style, it carries a refined, almost Burgundian minerality joining that pure expression of red fruit. It may seem a little shy initially but give it a bit of time for the subtleties to gradually show.

The 2017 vintage also presents itself with slightly more structure and tannic presence than usual, which along with the current acidity, indicates great potential for further aging for several years still. Yet perhaps what is most impressive here is that supple yet firm texture that almost seems to grow beyond its outline, almost blossoming. It's incredibly elegant and feels completely pure and delicate, yet expressive and vibrant.

Kanpai!

@111hotpot