2014 Italy

This Chardonnay balances ripeness and elegance with fresh acidity and juicy fruit. There is a glossy and mouth-coating quality to the palate imparted by the use of 500-litre barrels for fermentation and maturation. Yellow peach and citrus pith layer with salinity and leesy notes. Drink now to 2019. 

The higher evolution of the La Serra vineyard always produces feminine and Burgundian styles of Barolo. Fermented in stainless steel and concrete tanks with long maceration on the skins for up to four weeks, the wine is then aged for two years in Slavonian oak followed by one year in bottle. The results from the La Serra Cru are exceptional – high-toned, intense and ethereal. With floral notes, dried leaves, violets and orange skin, the palate is firm yet velvety, with great balance and intensity. Drink now to 2040.
Davy Zyw, Wine Buyer

This is one of the iconic Crus of the Langhe, and Marcarini’s flagship wine. Only half the average production was made from the Brunate vineyard in 2014 due to extreme weather, which led to severe selection in the vines. The results, though, are exceptional. The Brunate style showcases incredible depth and complexity with spice, a menthol character and an intense yet sweet tannic profile. Although more broad-shouldered than La Serra, the 2014 vintage has more finesse than other vintages, with mountain herbs, bright cherry, tobacco and hints of sweet wood. The palate is filled by an amazing purity of fruit with crunchy, mouth-watering energy. Drink now to 2040.
Davy Zyw, Wine Buyer

The south exposure of the Paolin vineyards alongside the sandier soils give more immediacy and openness to the wines from this Cru. Agile fruit – plum, cherry and orange peel – is interwoven with ivy leaf, tobacco and black truffle. The tannins are ceramic and well-polished, thanks to the time spent maturing in Slavonian oak botti. This wine needs time to develop and broaden across the complex and intense palate. Drink 2020-2035.
Davy Zyw, Wine Buyer

Aromas of kirsch and rose petal on the nose lead to a generous palate with lots of juicy red berry fruit. There is plenty of refreshing acidity and elegant tannins, with subtle notes of sweet spice and nutmeg. It is long, concentrated and delicious.

Mario decided not to make a Barolo del Comune di Castiglione Falletto in the 2014 vintage, so this is very much a “super-Barolo”, with a higher percentage of Castiglione Falletto (75 percent) than in 2013 when it made up 60 percent. The remaining 25 percent comes from their La Morra Giachino vineyard. Cassis, rose petals and rosemary dance on the nose. The palate leads with these flavours but also shows more La Morra characters, earthiness and orange peel. The quality of Castiglione Falletto is perhaps more evident on the tight, more chiselled palate, with a gleam of coiled cassis. It’s taut, exciting, sapid and long. Drink 2022-2035.
Davy Zyw, Wine Buyer

Cherry tea, savoury herbs and a wave of chalky minerality on the nose leads onto an upfront palate, showcasing the depth and quality of this amazing site. Limestone soils give Asili more minerality and direction on the palate, supported by purity of fruit and light-footed intensity. Complex, poised and deep. Drink 2022-2040.
Davy Zyw, Wine Buyer

Barbaresco was 40 percent drier than Barolo during the 2014 vintage and the wines do show a different profile because of it. Roberto’s Rabajà vineyard is one of the great sites of Barbaresco; west-facing with deep, grey, marlclay soils. The nose is fine and compact; dried roses, truffle and bright fruit jump from the glass. Broad and mineral, it has a plump mid-palate fruit core and loads of juicy, fruity flavours, seasoned by flashes of minerality and floral top-notes. Charming and serious. Drink 2022-2040.
Davy Zyw, Wine Buyer

By “Old Vine”, we’re talking 75-year-old, free-standing vines – knotted, gnarled and twisted together. Thanks to the biodynamic approach in the vineyard, this richly flavoured wine has freshness and precision. The nose is beautifully concentrated with notes of cherry and cinnamon, leading on to a full-bodied, rich, powerful and unctuous palate with bramble fruit, tobacco and chocolate notes. Drink now to 2025.
Davy Zyw, Wine Buyer

Like the Vigna del Sorbo, the 2014 Flaccianello della Pieve spends a few additional months in botte grande than usual. The wine still breathes in large oak cask, but the environment is slightly more reductive (oxygen-free) compared to smaller barrique, thus allowing for a more complete and slower integration that is necessary in a cool vintage like this. The result is a beautifully complete wine that takes a few minutes to spread its wings. The bouquet starts off with a timid personality, but soon reaches a full regime of red fruit and spice that is so specific to this celebrated selection of Sangiovese from Panzano in Chianti. The September heat (following a gray, soggy summer) helped to eventually achieve fully ripened tannins. There is no greenness or astringency to disturb the soft and velvety mouthfeel. Thanks to severe fruit selection, production of the 2014 Flaccianello della Pieve is one-third less than average. Giovanni Manetti calls 2014 a vintage of opportunity. Although Panzano saw less average rainfall in 2014 compared to neighboring villages, Fontodi vineyards required double the work that year. This is an impressive achievement.
Monica Larner - 28/04/2017

This vineyard is one of the most prized in La Morra. Nicola has aged the 2014 in 98 percent botti grandi and two percent barriques for a touch of sweet seasoning. Still very young to taste, this is already fine, with incense perfume. It’s complex to taste with taut cassis and wild strawberry, a focused minerality. It’s crunchy, cool and zippy. This wine already shows great complexity typical of this special vineyard. Delicate, refined and long. Drink 2020-2040.
Davy Zyw, Wine Buyer

Pure notes of red and black fruit on the nose, reminiscent of cherries, raspberries and damsons, with hints of medicinal herbs in the background. Lovely depth on the palate, with juicy red and black fruit flowing in waves and filling the mouth, tempered by bright acidity and microscopically fine tannins. The finish is very long, velvety and elegant. A fabulous wine with amazing concentration, energy and balance. Quite forward for Vigna Rionda, this will give very pleasurable drinking while we wait for the 2011, 2012 and 2013 vintages to come round. 
Chris Pollington, Private Account Manager

Vigna Rionda is sited on a slope at elevations ranging from 820 to 1180 feet above sea level; the beneficial siting of this hill insures a great deal of sun throughout the day. The soils are a combination of marl, calcaire and a touch of sand; the vineyard is sheltered from excessive winds by the nearby Castelleto hill.

These vintages have been offered to our customers to allow them to take part in the regeneration of this outstanding vineyard and the latest 2014 offering proves once again that this perfectly situated and incredibly special vineyard will always capture the very best of vintage conditions.