Burlotto Dolcetto d'Alba 2020

During his 77 years as a winemaker (1850-1927), G.B. Burlotto’s accomplishments were rivaled only by those of Biondi-Santi and Vega Sicilia. G.B. achieved superstardom in a world dominated by French wines, with his authentic Piemontese reds wines grown in northern Italy. Today, Burlotto has emerged as one of Piemonte’s great small producers, thanks to the brilliant and highly traditional winemaking of G.B.’s great-great-grandson, Fabio Alessandria. 

G.B. Burlotto pioneered selling Barolo in bottle (not cask or demijohn), pre-dating even Giacomo Conterno’s Barolo Monfortino. As the official supplier to the Royal House of Savoy—which once ruled Piemonte—he not only achieved personal fame, he made his village of Verduno as renowned as Serralunga or La Morra. G.B.’s death in 1927 not only took away Burlotto’s driving force, it also deprived Verduno of its greatest champion. And so both faded into obscurity in the decades that followed. But now, with G.B.’s great-great-grandson Fabio Alessandria as winemaker, Burlotto’s star is again rising, reclaiming its position as one of Piedmont’s great small producers.

The wine we have here is the family's traditional Dolcetto d'Alba, made from several small vineyards they own in Verduno and Roddi. The calcareous soils, well balanced by the presence of clay, silt and sand, are geologically attributable in part to the laminated fossil Marls of Sant’Agata as well as to soils of the Cassano Spinola Formation. Altitudes range between 270 and 350 meters above sea level. Guyot training system of vines.

The harvest is carried out by hand, in order to preserve the integrity of the fruit and to allow for, if necessary, a selection of the grapes which are then transported to the cellar in 20 kg boxes. The bunches are only partially de-stemmed, utilizing a significant percentage of whole clusters for alcoholic fermentation. During the maceration, delicate pumping over and punching down are carried out daily. Malolactic fermentation is followed by 9 months maturation in stainless steel tanks. In some vintages they also allow for a period of aging in large barrels but not to impart a woody flavor. Bottling is usually carried out in the summer following the harvest.