Unearthed – Paolo Scavino 2015 Barolo Offer

For a few years running now, this has been one of the Scavino family’s signature bottles. The goal here is to aim higher than your standard “base” or “classico” Barolo. The Paolo Scavino 2015 Barolo is made with a complicated blend of fruit from seven vineyard sites spread clear across the appellation from Castiglione Falletto, Barolo, Serralunga d’Alba and more townships. Each parcel is fermented separately, and some parcels are split into two or more individual fermentations. In order to maintain the highest quality standards, some 10% of the fruit is sold off as bulk, and once the overall selection is whittled down, the best fruit remains in-house. This is a compact and darkly saturated wine with bold blueberry and blackberry fruit. The wine shows a steady center of gravity in this warm, fruit-driven vintage.

I’m loving the combination of dried cranberries and incense with fresh rose petals and fruit tea. While the tannins are firm and serious, the medium-to full-bodied palate remains supple and elegant. Drink in 2021.

The 2015 Barolo Bricco Ambrogio is Scavino's cru from this northeastern-most vineyard in the Barolo appellation, in the village of Roddi, and comprises seven hectares of mostly Nebbiolo but also some Dolcetto and Barbera. These vines with their southeastern exposure are not protected from the elements very well, allowing for more diurnal temperature shifts. Therefore, this site always produces much fresher fruit flavors. Indeed, you get noticeably crunchy, tonic fruit here along with a more detailed aromatic portrait. The wine is more precise compared to Monvigliero, for example, which offers more dense fruit, while Bricco Ambrogio is more delicate in the mouth. These soils are gray marlstone, with some yellow veins of clay in there and some sand, whereas Monvigliero soils are far whiter in nature. A fresh Barolo like this would pair well with any fatty sausage.

Plenty of burnt oranges and lemons, wild strawberries, cedar and spices. The palate is muscular and powerful, veiled in a sheen of grainy and chewy tannins that surround layers of vibrant red fruit. Drink in 2023.

The Scavino family has had access to fruit from the Monvigliero cru for almost 20 years. They have farmed a small parcel (under one hectare) since 2000, and the grapes were previously added to their “classico” Barolo blend. In 2006, Monvigliero became its own single-vineyard expression because Enrico Scavino always had a big passion for this site. The 2015 Barolo Monvigliero is a bright and beautiful wine with a strong floral signature of violets and roses that accompanies this wine from start to finish. The wine is very characteristic of Monvigliero in terms of the softness and silky nature of the tannins as well.

The sour cherries really lift this off on the nose, catching suggestions of candied citrus, tile, roasted herbs and cedar. Racy and sexy, drawn out into shape by the forthright acidity and steely tannins. Drink in 2023.

Here is another rookie in the lineup for Paolo Scavino. The Ravera vineyard was purchased in 2015, at 2.7 hectares and about 360 meters in altitude. It is their highest vineyard and the last to be harvested every year. This east-facing parcel is never too hot, always showing cooler-climate conditions than the others, with fine tannins and a good dose of acidity. The 2015 Barolo Ravera is a very tight and and precise wine, with notes of exotic tea that follow blackberry, dried cherry and licorice. This is a great new addition to the Scavino portfolio at this time of important changes for the winery.

The nose is really spot-on here, delivering a wholesome array of fresh hibiscus, redcurrants, fruit tea and rose petals. The palate is very silky and polished, weaving its way neatly through finely arranged layers of bright red fruit. Medium-to full-bodied and wonderfully elegant. Drink in 2022.

This is also a new wine, coming from less than a hectare in the Prapò vineyards, from which only five producers draw their fruit. It's a beautiful plot at about 1,000 feet in altitude and with a full southern exposure, producing some very meaty fruit with a high phenolic presence, as the color is darker and there is more perfume. The 2015 Barolo Prapò is a distinctive vintage of a wine that is one to watch, for sure. The vineyard makes the difference, with brown and orange sandy soils, along with marlstone and veins of soils more typical of the area. The Scavino family bought this plot in 2008 and let the land rest for two years before they replanted. The goal, they said, was to steer away from more productive clones in favor of those that wouldn't take away too much from the quality. They took wood from the mothership vineyards in Bricco Ambrogio for this experiment, grafting them onto the rootstocks they carefully selected. The result is a soft and delicate Barolo with a lot of personality to go along with its firmness and power. This is an easy cru to recognize. Enrico Scavino said they could have waited longer for this experimental harvest, but they felt the time was right, explaining that "this work is all about feelings and instincts."

Glazed cherries, orange peel, citrus, dried cranberries and tulips. A grainy and very refined palate follows, which rolls irresistibly through taut cherries and bright acidity. Chewy and long on the finish. Drink in 2023.

The 2018 vintage will be the last edition made of this wine. The Scavino family lost its lease in Cannubi, and the estate wine portfolio is being redrawn as a result. The 2015 Barolo Carobric remains a blend of fruit from Rocche di Castiglione (60%), Cannubi (20%) and Bric dël Fiasc (20%). That blend has been carefully contemplated, and the absence of the Cannubi changes the formula too drastically. Cannubi adds richness and flavor to the blend,while Rocche di Castiglione with its sandy soils adds delicate mineral and light fruit nuances. Bric dël Fiasc offers both power and elegance and is the proverbial glue that keeps harmony between the two sides. This wine was first produced in 1996, and the end of an important chapter in the Scavino family legacy is upon us.

Dried berries, rose petals, rose stems, tar, cedar and tobacco. Structured and very serious indeed on the palate, where chewy tannins caress, but also strengthen the vibrant but dried red fruit that permeates this red. Drink in 2023.

This wine draws its fruit from a half hectare of vines that have often suffered in the hot years, and it will be discontinued as of the 2018 vintage. The Scavino family was not able to renew their lease here. There is a lovely elegance to this 2015 Barolo Cannubi, due largely to the high elevation of this parcel, where there is more dryness in the topsoil and more erosion, resulting in less plant vigor. It is made from smaller grape clusters. There is more concentration to this Barolo as well, and the tannins are never too powerful. But the low yields in the past and the general challenge to growing here make for more difficulty than it is worth, so I suppose this 2015 vintage could be considered something of a collector's item as a result.

It’s the fruit tea and hibiscus that really lifts this, not to mention the roasted herbs that lurk beneath the surface. But there’s no shortage of dried fruit either, whether it be dried cherries, dried plums or Christmas cake. It’s a real mouth-coater, showing sheer elegance in a bottle, encapsulated in the tannins that weave an ornate tapestry, hung between every corner of the palate. Full-bodied and very, very long. Best ever? Drink in 2025.

From the Scavino family’s home-turf vineyard, the 2015 Barolo Bric dël Fiasc (with fruit from Castiglione Falletto) delivers structure, firmness and power. This is a classic interpretation of a historic cru, and the wine offers linear, crisp lines. Fruit from this site was fermented separately for the first time to make this wine in 1978. The family had long recognized the consistently superior quality of the fruit from this location, and they saw its special potential. Enrico Scavino told me about the rush of adrenaline and pride that washed over him when he first tasted this wine with his peers Gaja and Conterno during those Golden Years of the past and saw the enthusiasm their eyes. This is the go-to Barolo if you want to taste classic Scavino.

The redcurrant-compote character really pops out here, before dried cranberries, licorice and spice box all come to the fore. Tannic and very expansive, sweeping through a whole array of red berries via linear acidity and wrapping itself up in a long finish. Drink in 2023.

The 2013 Barolo Rocche dell'Annunziata Riserva was released in January of 2019, and once again it looks to be a top prize. Licorice and flowers
dominate the bouquet, and its beautiful red fruit is generous throughout. This wine has always been a beauty and consistently has had a high price tag to reflect that quality, going back to the first vintages of the 1990s. It has regularly sold for about $200 every year for the last decade. These vines are old, some of them very old (reaching the ripe age of 60 years old in 1990s, when many of them were replanted with carefully selected clones), producing an elegance and concentration that brings intensity and a high standard of aromas. This Barolo without a doubt shows its pedigree and a quality of noble perfumes that demonstrate characteristics of the greatest Nebbiolo vintages, all delivered with excellent concentration. The magic lingers on the palate, right up to the finish.

Aromas of white truffles and dried red cherries here with an earthy nuance that makes for a complex and compelling nose. The palate has a deep and dense shape and delivers a wide array of rich cherry and plum flavors. Some handy spice here, too. Drink or hold.