Nervi - Conterno

Giacomo Conterno - arguably the legend of Piedmont

The Conterno style of Barolo has always been ultra-traditional, with a long maceration followed by extended aging in large, old oak casks (botti). In the old days, aging was anywhere from four to ten years prior to bottling, and often longer, sometimes with multiple bottlings from the same vintage. For the Monfortino, it used to be held in a single 4,000-5,000 liter botti for a minimum of ten years prior to its bottling (the 1970 Monfortino was not bottled until 1985!). 

Today, the “regular” Barolos are aged for four years before bottling, and the Monfortino for seven years – the only “modernist” concession in the entire vinification and aging process!