Vinous 95 pts, Wine Advocate 94 pts

Giacomo Conterno is regarded by many serious Barolo enthusiasts as the most important producer in the appellation, and the Barolo from the Cascina Francia vineyard in Serralunga d’Alba as the definitive expression of the estate’s traditional approach to Nebbiolo outside the legendary Monfortino Riserva. The domaine was founded after the First World War and has been operated for the past two decades by Roberto Conterno, Giacomo’s son, who has continued the estate’s uncompromising commitment to extended maceration, ageing in large Slavonian oak botti and release schedules that prioritise readiness over commercial expediency. The Cascina Francia vineyard was acquired in 1974 and has been the estate’s sole non-Monfortino source since that date, producing approximately 1,500 cases of Barolo per vintage. From the 2010 vintage the wine was relabelled ‘Francia’ in compliance with Barolo cru name standardisation, though the wine remains universally known as Cascina Francia.

Serralunga d’Alba is the most austere of the Barolo communes, producing Nebbiolo of exceptional structural depth from its distinctive Helvetian Tortonian soils whose compacted, calcium-rich subsoil produces wines of remarkable minerality and firmness that require a decade or more of bottle age to fully express themselves. The 2018 Barolo vintage in Piedmont was warm and generous but produced wines of excellent concentration and aromatic precision at the finest addresses; for Conterno, whose traditional winemaking approach draws out the maximum complexity from Serralunga’s inherently structured terroir, the 2018 is a vintage combining the richness of a warm year with the mineral clarity of the finest Serralunga sites. The wine-searcher aggregate score for the 2018 Francia across approved publications is 95/100.

Acquiring a magnum of Conterno’s Barolo Cascina Francia is an exceptionally rare proposition. The wine is produced in limited quantity and sold primarily through the estate’s small circle of long-established importers; magnums are a tiny fraction even of this limited production. The combination of one of Barolo’s most celebrated producers, one of the appellation’s finest Serralunga crus, an excellent vintage and the ideal ageing conditions of the larger format makes this one of the most compelling Italian wine acquisitions available in the current market.

Pale garnet with a concentrated and mineral nose of wild rose, dried cherry, iron, graphite, licorice, tobacco and the distinctive austerity of old-vine Serralunga Nebbiolo. Full-bodied with powerful, structured tannins, electric natural acidity and a finish of extraordinary length and mineral persistence. Requires considerable patience; best from 2032 through 2060.

The 2018 Barolo Francia is powerful, deep and also a touch austere. It shows the edginess of all the 2018s, but also has a feeling of textural creaminess that adds tons of character. Spice, menthol, leather and a whole range of balsamic overtones build into the deep, imposing finish. Roberto Conterno decided to forego his Barolo Monfortino in 2018, opting instead to blend all the casks into his Francia bottling. When that happens, Francia often surprises down the road. That could very well turn out to be the case here. - Vinous