Barolo Convento Luigi Oddero 2018

Given Oddero's staggering 35 hectares worth of Nebbiolo di Barolo, the estate has historically sold off a portion of its production in bulk, reserving the best-exposed sites in the best spots for its Barolo “Tradizionale”. In exceptional vintages, however, they now bottle a second Barolo, mainly from parcels in La Morra. They named it “Convento”—a nod to the fact that their estate was a convent in the early 17th c. It is vinified and aged just like their Barolo “Tradizionale”: natural fermentation in stainless steel with a 25-day maceration, followed by two years in large Slavonian-oak casks. Convento emphasizes purity of fruit over structure, with a lifted mineral streak of lovely clarity. That said, it is still very much a traditional Barolo in the style of Oddero, bearing no trace of oak aromatics or wood tannins, and with a perfume simultaneously ethereal and savory.