2020 Collina San Ponzio Fossati Barolo 750 ml

By any measure, Barolo’s Fossati is a special vineyard.

Bordered by La Serra to the north, Liste to the east, and the famed Bricco delle Viole to the south, this site is in a remarkable neighborhood—even by the standards of the towns of La Morra and Barolo.

Vinous calls Fossati “noteworthy,” and single-vineyard bottlings from the lofty cru are usually priced to match. Voerzio makes the most famous wine from the site, and it will easily set you back $375. Borgogno’s is $125. Even the known value plays from the vineyard—Cascina Adelaide and Enzo Boglietti—are both over $75.

That makes the hard-to-find 2020 Collina San Ponzio so remarkable—and when we first tasted it, we knew we had a sensation on our hands. From an outstanding vintage and a winery that has a beautiful blend of traditional sensibilities and modern technology, this structured, vibrant bottle is everything we love about Barolo. 

Fossati’s soils have retained sand from the ancient Padano seas, carried into its hillsides during the uplifting of the Italian peninsula. That means easy drainage and southeastern exposure, which provide San Ponzio’s sixty-year-old Nebbiolo vines with an easy life. They reward the winery with exceptional aromatics of dark cherries, overlaid with dried orange peel, rose petals, and a dusting of herbs. 

The 2020 edition presents a golden opportunity for lovers of classical Barolo who want to enjoy it soon. The season was warm, but lacked notable heat spikes, resulting in beautiful ripeness. Temperatures lowered a bit into fall, making for a true harvest in the nebbia, or fog, of the second half of October—the mark of many classic vintages in Barolo.