2016 Andretta Barolo Riserva 750 ml

Barolo winemakers are still dreaming about 2016.

With mild temperatures and dry days, the start of the season crept along slowly—until Mother Nature started turning up the thermostat. July, August, and September were hot, with showers occasionally breaking up the summer heat and keeping temperatures in fine balance. A cool end to the season pushed the start of harvest back five days later than average.

When all was said and done, Barolo was looking at one of the best vintages in two decades—one that Wine Advocate rated 97 points, and one we’re still talking about today. 

The ‘16 Barolos, of course, are largely spoken for, which is why we were thrilled when our friend Guido Andretta brought out a bottle of his ‘16 Riserva when we met up with him in Verona. Powerful and seductive—just like the Andretta Brunellos that clock consistent sell-outs among our members—it’s a spectacular, dazzling, aromatic wine that’s beginning to soften after seven years of aging in the Andretta cellars. 

We’re fairly certain Andretta is the only wine we’ve ever sold that’s made by a philosophy teacher and an aerospace engineer. In 1994, Rosalba Vitanza took a break from Hegel and Kant for a romantic weekend escape to Montalcino with her husband, Guido Andretta, who ran an aerospace consulting business. They fell in love with the area, and ended up buying a beautiful property there that included four acres of vines. 

Based in Tuscany but with connections all over, the couple apply their outstanding skill to other regions as well. The 2016 Barolo Riserva is the first Barolo we’ve offered from Andretta—but won’t be the last.