Cogno Barolo ‘Bricco Pernice’ MAGNUM 2016

Why is this Wine so Yummy?

Cogno makes 4 Baroli from different parts of the Ravera Cru. When you look at the map of Barolo below it’s clear that the Ravera Cru is quite large with many different aspects. It’s great to see Cogno separating the unique parcels. The 4 wines from top to bottom are:

Walter Fissore and Nadia Cogno’s 2015 Barolos are compelling, as are their later-release 2014 and 2013 wines. All of these Barolos share the sense of translucence and weightless energy that is the single most important signature of Ravera, where the estate and all of the vineyards are located. Antonio Galloni

Located in a warm and naturally sheltered area, Barolo Bricco Pernice, named after the rock on which courting partridges build their nests, is the very latest wine from Cogno. The fruit of years of hard work, it is a dream come true. First envisioned by Elvio and then achieved by Valter, the project was to create a wine from the beautiful vineyard in Novello in the most historical part of the Ravera cru where the exceptional microclimate makes for superb Barolo. Barolo Bricco Pernice is the latest chapter in a story — Elvio Cogno’s — that began in La Morra. An expression of all the technical and stylistic precepts of the maestro himself, it fully deserves its place in the ‘Riserva di Elvio.’ A peculiar characteristic of Barolo Bricco Pernice is its enveloping softness, capable at once of revealing all the allure and potency of Bricco Ravera. The graphics on the Bricco Pernice label show the artistic growth of Elvio’s granddaughter Elena, who presents the wine today with the same label as Vigna Elena, the Barolo named after her when she was three.

The white color of the soil attests to a high amount of limestone interspersed with clay, which distinguishes it from the other areas of the Ravera cru. Two of the three land parcels that make up Bricco Pernice are planted with twenty-five-year-old vines, while the third has an average age of fifty years.

The microclimate and the particularities of the terrain give this wine power, smoothness,and an enveloping softness with pronounced mineral notes.

Area: 2 hectares
Grape variety: lampia, sub-variety of Nebbiolo
Density: 5,000 vines per hectare
Cultivation: vertical trellised, Guyot pruning
Altitude: 320 m above sea level
Harvest period: October
Wine making: in stainless steel, temperature-controlled, automatic pump-over, post-fermentation maceration for 30 days with submerged cap
Aging: 30 months in large Slavonian oak barrels of 25-30 hl
Lysis: 90 days
Bottle aging: 18 months

Cogno’s Style

Cogno’s wines are down the traditional wine with modern fermentation tech, stainless steel. The wines are clean, not clinical, the elevage, largely time in large old wood makes for beautifully developed wines. Fine and feminine, they all have a great core of fruit, balance and lovely mouthfeel. You will be seeing many more of their wines on our list!

About Elvio Cogno

The Elvio Cogno Winery stands at the top of the Bricco Ravera Hill in Novello, in the Piedmont territory of the Langhe. The farm occupies 11 hectares of land, all under vine. It has the unique feature that it is almost surrounded by forest (bordered at least) creating a unique, possibly slightly cooler more natural micro climate.

The Cogno family has been making wine for four generations, managing the vineyards with great care. They do not force the natural way of the vines, but cultivate low yields per hectare in respect of the biological balance of the vines. In Elvio Cogno’s wines today, we find the characteristics of history and tradition as Papà Elvio advised, and freshness and innovation that his daughter Nadia and her husband Valter Fissore contribute. The style is traditional: organic vineyard management, extremely low yields, a long maceration time and ageing in large oak. Always looking for balance the wines have immediate appeal but of course the longer you spend with them the more they reveal their multifaceted structure. This is true for all their wines, not only the top cru‘s.
Organic and biodynamic principles are employed in the vineyard and winery.

Where in the World is Cogno?

The estate great vineyards are based in the Commune of Novello in the south-east of the Barolo region. Their prized vineyard, Ravera (not to be confused with Ravera di Monforte) is on the north-eastern boundary of the Commune.