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Bartolo Mascarello, Freisa, 2022

Red Wine from Piedmont, Italy
$69.99
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A dry red Freisa from a revered Barolo traditionalist, and one of the rarest wines this tiny estate makes. Freisa is one of Piedmont's great oddball grapes. It's a relative of Nebbiolo with a wild, slightly rustic streak, and it's traditionally sometimes made faintly fizzy or off-dry. Bartolo Mascarello has always taken the serious route with it: the house makes its Freisa dry and treats it like its Barolo, with organic farming, native yeasts and big old casks. Everything at the estate follows the same old-school approach, from very low yields to fermentation in old cement vats. Maria Teresa Mascarello, who now runs the estate that Bartolo made famous with his hand-drawn "No Barriques, No Berlusconi" label, makes only tiny amounts of Freisa. Much of the estate's wine still goes to private clients who come every year to taste and collect their allotment. For anyone who loves traditional Piedmont, this is a chance to taste the house style through a different grape.

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Antonio Galloni

92 points

"The 2022 Langhe Freisa is another fine offering in this range from Maria Teresa Mascarello. It shows the fruit richness of Barbera but boasts the tannic presence of Nebbiolo. That's a pretty appealing combination in my book. Dark red cherry, leather, cedar, iron and menthol build over time." —Antonio Galloni

Robert Parker

92 points

"This wine comes to market two years after the harvest. The Bartolo Mascarello 2022 Langhe Freisa goes through nine months in large oak casks and spends a little extra time in glass. The reason the wine is kept longer in bottle, Maria Teresa Mascarello explains, is because traditional interpretations of Freisa were left with some fizz from a second fermentation in bottle. But by 2020, and with a changing climate, the team was having a hard time achieving that second fermentation with increased alcohol levels. "It was a very painful decision for us to stop a tradition that has lasted so long," she says of eliminating the bubbles. However, it does stay in bottle for a full year nevertheless. Fruit comes from the foot of the Monrobio di Bussia site, with 22-year-old vines planted across a tiny 2,000-square-meter patch. "This area makes Freisa with substance," she says. With blueberry and wild cherry, the wine offers a charming but slightly rustic personality. The 2022 is a little darker and more concentrated (with more dry extract) than the norm due to less liquid in the pulp of the fruit." —Monica Larner

Jancis Robinson

17 points

"Mid-to-deep crimson. Deep nose of pure, sweet blueberry with hints of black pepper and mace. Fluid blackberry fruit, elegant and with bittersweet, grainy tannins." —Walter Speller

Kerin O'Keefe

92 points

"Full-bodied and linear, the 2022 Freisa from Cantina Bartolo Mascarello offers aromas and flavors of dried cherry, botanical herb, blood orange and star anise before closing on a hint of bitter almond. Aged in large casks for nine months followed by one year in the bottle, it has a tannic backbone that provides firm support. Drink through 2030." —Kerin O'Keefe

More about Bartolo Mascarello

Bartolo made a name for himself resisting the modernizing trends in the region, encapsulated by a message he put on a hand-drawn bottle label: “No Barriques, No Berlusconi”. He died a few years ago but the domain is now in the gifted hands of his daughter Maria Theresa, who has raised the profile even further with a series of fabulous vintages. Still hewing rigorously to tradition (long macerations, and no barriques!), they are one of the very few domains to still release just one Barolo made from a blend of all their parcels (as was generally the case before single vineyard cuvees started to appear in the 1960s). 30% of the Barolo comes from Rocche di Annunziata in La Morra; the rest from three different vineyards in the commune of Barolo: Rue, San Lorenzo and Cannubi.

Wine Details

  • Grape Variety

    Freisa

  • Vintage

    2022

  • Size

    750ml

  • Farming Practice

    Traditional

  • Style

    Elegant

  • Sweetness

    Dry

  • Body

    Light Bodied

Flatiron's Take

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Tasting Notes & Food Pairings

Perfect Pairings

Agnolotti del plin in brown butter and sage, braised rabbit with olives, bollito misto with salsa verde, or a plate of salami and aged Toma.

Tasting Profile

Expect a dry, serious take on Freisa: tart red cherry, raspberry and wild strawberry with floral notes, an earthy, savoury edge and a hint of dried herbs. Typically medium-bodied, with lively acidity and firm, slightly grippy tannins shaped by large old casks rather than new oak. Think of a wilder, more rustic cousin of Nebbiolo, finishing dry and savoury.

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