Wine Advisor
Elio Grasso, Barolo Gavarini Chiniera 2022
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2022 Barolo Gavarini Chiniera is soft, layered and quite expressive. Macerated cherry, cinnamon, mocha, blood orange and rose petal all meld together in the glass. Readers will find a Barolo of density and volume. The Gavarini signatures are present, most notably the wine's brilliant energy, but in a smaller-scaled package that is quite appealing.
Reviewed by: Monica Larner
The Elio Grasso 2022 Barolo Gavarini Chiniera opens to dark fruit aromas of blackberry and wild plum followed by licorice and a pretty smoky note that reflects both its careful 30-month aging in large oak casks and the warmth of the vintage. A distinctive chalky mineral note emerges with time, speaking to this high-elevation site where limestone-rich soils meet the boundary between the Sant'Agata and Lequio formations at 450 meters above sea level. Framed by cooling forests, Gavarini Chiniera is known for producing Barolos of finesse and complexity, and that signature elegance remains intact despite the wine's generous fruit profile and 15% alcohol. I find more licorice in this vintage, along with a sweet cherry note that carries through the finish. Some 14,000 bottles were produced.
About the Producer
Elio Grasso’s History Born within an old family of Monforte d’Alba with substantial vineyards in the prestigious parts of the town, Grasso may seem destined for a career as a Barolo producer . But instead he chose a different path, at least in the early stages of adult life, choosing to work in the world of finance and living an urban existence that was decidedly different from that of the rural world in which he was born and raised. The wines of Elio Grasso The call of the land, however, eventually proved strong, and the return to Monforte d’Alba was probably only a matter of time. And what he returned to was in fact an impressive patrimony: 18 hectares of vineyards that include first-rate sites such as Chiniera , Casa Matè , and Runcot . Grasso, in fact, just in 1978, decided to ferment and age on his own the grapes of his best plots and was a pioneer in selling both a regular Barolo and also a series of crus . As a producer, Grasso has always been attentive to tradition, but, given the important experiences linked to the numerous generations of his family in the area, he has never wanted to radically transform his wines: both Chiniera and Casa Matè are aged in barrels; only the Runcot , a Riserva , ages in small barrels. Innovation, on the other hand, is represented by two other wines from the line: the excellent Barbera Martina aged in barrels and Educato , a Chardonnay fermented in barrels.
