Michele Chiarlo Cerequio Barolo 2016
-
Enthusiast
Wine -
Parker
Robert -
Suckling
James
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Ruby and garnet red with brilliant hues. Complex, great character with notes of mature fruits, mint, eucalyptus, gentian and fine spices. A rich palate in structure with a tight weave of fine tannins, standing out for its elegance and harmony which highlights this truly unique Barolo cru.
Ideal alongside egg with white d’Alba truffle, pan-fried lamb steak, veal braised in Barolo, Castelmagno cheese.
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Enthusiast
Fragrant purple flower, dark-skinned berry, chopped mint and pipe tobacco are just some of the aromas you'll find on this captivating red. The delicious palate combines structure, finesse and earthiness, delivering juicy Marasca cherry, black raspberry, licorice and truffle framed in taut, fine-grained tannins. Fresh acidity keeps it youthfully focused and well balanced.
Cellar Selection
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Barolo Cerequio is born in the vineyard cru that best represents the excellent winemaking efforts of the Michele Chiarlo team. The estate owns a beautiful boutique hotel and restaurant in the middle of the vineyard and fittingly uses this spot for most public functions. This is a terrific expression, showing the power and balance of the vintage with pretty accents of wild fruit, rose and dark earth that render volume and intensity to the wine's overall performance. Rating : 96+
-
James Suckling
Loads of roasted chestnuts, glazed cherries, licorice and dried rosemary. Excellent depth and concentration here; think dried berries and forest floor. Tightly strung with raw, powerful tannins and lots of flavor. Long and chewy on the finish.
Other Vintages
2019-
Enthusiast
Wine -
Parker
Robert -
Suckling
James - Vinous
-
Parker
Robert -
Spectator
Wine -
Suckling
James
-
Enthusiast
Wine -
Spirits
Wine & -
Spectator
Wine
-
Enthusiast
Wine -
Parker
Robert -
Suckling
James -
Spirits
Wine &
-
Parker
Robert -
Wong
Wilfred -
Suckling
James -
Spectator
Wine
-
Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert -
Wong
Wilfred -
Spectator
Wine -
Enthusiast
Wine
-
Enthusiast
Wine -
Parker
Robert -
Suckling
James -
Spirits
Wine & -
Spectator
Wine
-
Parker
Robert -
Suckling
James
-
Parker
Robert -
Spectator
Wine
-
Parker
Robert -
Enthusiast
Wine -
Spectator
Wine
-
Enthusiast
Wine -
Parker
Robert -
Spirits
Wine &
-
Spectator
Wine
The wine producing firm of Michele Chiarlo was founded in 1956 by the sole and present owners, Michele and Giuseppina Chiarlo. Son of over seven generations of esteemed wine growers, Mr. Chiarlo is today one of the most respected producers of the fine wines of Piedmont and a leading figure in its viticultural industry.
At the production and vineyard level, where quality begins, Michele Chiarlo has for thirty years pursued an endless search for control over the finest vineyard sites in each of the zones from which he produces his wines. Perhaps the crown jewel among these is the vineyard of Fornace di Tassarolo in the Rovereto area of Gavi, a small parcel planted in 1910 which yields a brilliant and intense Gavi of exquisite refinement. He also has long-term agreements with the owners of two spectacular vineyards in the Castiglione Falleto and Serralunga crus of Barolo, from which he produces Barolo Riserva Rocche di Castiglione and Barolo Riserva Vigna Rionda di Serralunga. In addition to these contracts, he has also purchased the Antico Podere Averame in the Cerequio cru of Barolo, considered one of the zone's finest Nebbiolo vineyards; and an estate, also in Barolo in the cru of Cannubi, which due to its extremely sharp gradient had never been cultivated. With considerable capital investment, this vineyard has been terraced and brought into production, the first time such a project has ever been undertaken in Piedmont.
In 1995, Michele Chiarlo acquired the estate of Azienda Agricola Aluffi in Castelnuovo Calcea, considered to the most beautiful and prestigious property in the heart of the classic Barbera d'Asti zone. The estate is comprised of two separate vineyard holdings, La Court and Il Castello, with a total area of 62 acres of which 50 are planted in Barbera vines, quite extensive for this area. The principally southwest and easterly-exposed slopes support superb, calcium and mineral rich soils which are of ideal composition for the production of great Barbera d'Asti.
Michele Chiarlo directly manages or personally oversees every aspect in the production of his wines. Eminently qualified through the expertise acquired through his involvement with the company under his father, he also holds a degree from the prestigious School of Enology at Alba. His ceaseless innovation, both in production and in marketing, has gained him the respesct of his industry.
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.