The dream of the single-vineyard bottling began in 1960 upon the sudden passing of Alfredo’s father, Mario Vietti. At this time, Alfredo took over the family business and began researching the local terroirs. He soon discovered that the Rocche vineyard’s southern exposure, combined with the microclimate and its unique soils, proved ideal for growing the Nebbiolo grape variety. He bottled Vietti’s first vineyard-designate Barolo from the site. Today, the winery is synonymous with single-vineyard Barolo bottlings from some of the most celebrated cru vineyards in the Langhe.(February 5, 2015; Napa, CA)—2015 marks a significant milestone for Vietti, an iconic family-owned Barolo producer located in Piedmont, Italy. Luca Currado, fifth-generation owner and winemaker, will release the 2011 Barolo Rocche di Castiglione (SRP $150), celebrating the 50th anniversary of the very first single-vineyard cru Barolo bottling to ever be produced in the Langhe region. To commemorate the anniversary, the wine will be adorned with a special back label paying homage to Alfredo Currado, Luca Currado’s father, who produced the first vineyard-designate wine in Barolo from the Rocche vineyard, a half of a century earlier with the 1961 vintage.
“It was a risky gamble, but today single-vineyard wines from our region continue to proliferate,” says Luca Currado. “My father’s foresight substantially changed how winemakers interpret the special terroir of their vineyards. Essentially, it was the first time that the notion of “terroir” was introduced in the Barolo region.”
Currado believes that the 2011 Rocche di Castiglione will prove to be one of Vietti’s long-lived, traditional Barolos. The Nebbiolo grapes used to make the wine are selected from 46-year old vines. After four weeks of malolactic fermentation in barriques, the wine was aged in Slovenian oak casks for 31 months.
Vietti wines are imported exclusively by Dalla Terra Winery Direct® and the wines are offered at an incredible value due to Dalla Terra’s unique business model. Dalla Terra forgoes the traditional three-tiered distribution system, allowing distributors to purchase and ship wine direct from the wineries, eliminating an average of 25% in mark-ups on each bottle imported.
About Vietti
The Vietti winery, now owned by the family’s fifth generation, is based in the small medieval village of Castiglione Falletto, the heart of Piedmont’s famous “Langhe” wine region. Here, the Currado family carefully and patiently handcrafts lauded wines that are the result of a unique combination of sun and soil. While the family has made wine for two centuries, the first Vietti-labeled wines were produced by third-generation Mario, who transformed the family’s farm into a grape growing winery. In 1952, Alfredo Currado married Mario’s daughter Luciana and made a name for Vietti’s single-vineyard Barbera and Barolo. Alfredo was responsible for putting the native Piedmont varietal, Arneis, on the wine map. In 1990, Alfredo and Luciana’s son Luca returned to Italy to take the role of winemaker after working at California’s Simi Winery, Opus One, Long Vineyards and Bordeaux’s Mouton-Rothschild. His innovative winemaking blends the best aspects of the modern and traditional.
About Dalla Terra Winery Direct®
The Dalla Terra Winery Direct® roster reads like a who’s who of some of the most esteemed family-owned wineries in Italy. Each producer has played a major role in the significant strides Italy has made over the last twenty years in improving the quality of its wines. Dalla Terra Winery Direct® is changing the nature of the wine importing and distribution business. The company’s unique business model skips the national importer level in the three-tier distribution system, allowing U.S. distributors to buy directly from the producer. Dalla Terra’s business model offers a more efficient, economical and consumer-friendly way of shipping, distributing and marketing wine, eliminating on average 20 to 25% in markups on each bottle. While Dalla Terra’s services are sought after by winemakers all over Italy because of the company’s economically competitive edge, producers are also attracted by the company’s commitment to highlighting individuality by choosing to work with only a few top producers from each wine-growing region in Italy. Founder Brian Larky considers each of the producers he works with part of a roundtable on innovation and quality, at which each producer has a voice. In 2009, Wine Enthusiast nominated Dalla Terra for Importer of the Year for its annual Wine Star Awards. On January 24, 2011, Larky was inducted into the Italian Trade Commission’s Wines of Italy Hall of Fame at the opening reception for Vino 2011 at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York, NY. This marks the highest level of distinction presented by the Italian government to wine industry leaders. For more information on Dalla Terra and the wineries they work with, go to www.dallaterra.com or call 707.259.5405.
