Barolo 2017 – San Silvestro

The winery San Silvestro is located in Novello, in the heart of Barolo district, Piedmont. Here, Paolo and Guido Sartirano run the businness with wisdom and respect for the tradition and for the history of this company. They represent the fourth generation and want to be respectful towards the work their family did to be where they are today. Investments for the future focusing on values they’ve learned from their ancestors: authenticity and innovation.
Each glass embodies these principles to return wines that reflect the uniqueness of this great area. Working closely with grapegrowers from different wine-areas, San Silvestro offers a range of wines that go from Gavi to Barbaresco through Asti and Barolo districts.

Nebbiolo

Hailing from Northern Italy’s Piedmont region, this grape is known for producing powerful, full-bodied, and mercilessly tannic wines—all while looking as pale as Pinot Noir. Most famously, it’s the grape that goes into Barolo and Barbaresco, two of the world’s most revered wines.
Nebbiolo is an incredibly fussy variety to grow. It flowers early, ripens late, and can struggle to ripen fully. It also seems to prefer specific hillside locations and clay and silt based soils.
Nebbiolo is considered to be a “terroir-expressive” variety, in that it picks up more of the earth, soil, and climate characteristics versus other grapes, which means it can taste wildly different depending on where it’s grown.
The name Nebbiolo derives from nebbia, the Italian word for fog. This is likely from the white “powder” natural bloom on the grapes that appears during harvest season. Or, from the fact that the best Nebbiolo sites are located above the fog that collects in the valley.

Barolo

Piedmont’s most famous red wine is made with 100% Nebbiolo grapes.
The famous “tar and roses” aroma, a bright ruby color (which fades to garnet over time), firm tannins, elevated acidity, and relatively high alcohol, define the classic Barolo style.
To earn the name Barolo, the wines must undergo at least 38 months aging prior to commercial release, of which 18 must be spent in barrel (the remainder in bottle). For the added designation of riserva, the total aging time increases to 62 months. As the tannins soften over time, the complexity shows through with hints of earth, truffles and dark chocolate.