A “Miracle” Parcel of Back Vintage Boggione

Claudio Boggione is a secret Barolo producer. He has just one hectare of land. His production is so small that it does not require any "distribution." Instead, a few in-the-know fans drive to his tiny winery and ask to buy a case or two. That is how he sells his entire production.

Piedmont is actually full of these sorts of small-scale growers, but very few of them are in Barolo, which is the one part of Piedmont where most wines are produced by large firms. The few micro-growers that do exist in Barolo tend to contribute grapes to the local co-op, where quite ordinary wines are produced from most producers' left-overs (in sharp contrast to the masterpieces produced by Barbaresco's great co-op, the Produttori del Barbaresco).

But Claudio B's hectare of land is special, lying in the sweetest spot of the great cru of Brunate, that famous high-altitude site that straddles the communes of Barolo and La Morra. These organically farmed vines were planted 60 years ago. Each grape he grows is a mini-treasure, and it would be a shame to contribute them to the co-op, where they would get lost among the oceans of rejected Barolo grapes. So he makes one wine and bottles it himself, and it is Barolo Brunate.

Claudio still has no need for distribution. But a friend of ours (an entrepreneurial Londoner who has brought us many wonderful secrets over the years) now makes the drive to Claudio B's winery to see what wine he can pick up. It’s not much. But he has managed to put together a nice parcel for us and he sent it across the Atlantic.  

Claudio is a staunch traditionalist and his wines take a bit of time to unfold. Fortunately, these wines have been given time, as the parcel consists of 2013s and 2016s. It’s a “miracle” parcel, but it’s also a small one, and it won’t be around for long.

Claudio Boggione, Barolo Brunate, 2013 $69.99

Claudio Boggione, Barolo Brunate, 2016 $75.99