A LOOK INTO THE 2013 VINTAGE

& PARUSSI VINEYARD

2013 VINTAGE

In my mind, 2013 has always been considered a classic vintage that was tight and peppery from the very beginning. In theory these wines, 13 years later should be spectacular and most definitely in their prime! Let’s take a look into what the weather was like and why it is unique.

SPRING

This particular vintage had about a 15 day late start and carried on with wet weather. This made it challenging for vineyard work and disease/mildews.

SUMMER AND FALL

The summer turned everything around with beautiful sunny days. The same held true for the Fall where the days were warm but the nights were cool. Perfect for phenolic ripening and developing beautiful aromas.

Overall the wines can be generalized as complex and balanced, structured but not heavy in body with moderate alcohol, high to medium tannin and good acidity levels.

Therefore, this would predict good agebility  and for me would classify as a “collector vintage” These kind of wines generally reflect the sense of place, where you can see the differences from hillside to hillside. This brings us to talk about the MGA Parussi.

PARUSSI MGA

POSITION

As you can see from the map, Castiglione is right in the middle of the Barolo appellation and can have quite a bit of variety. The side that Parussi is located on (West facing) towards La Morra actually shows more similarities with the MGAs like Rocche dell’Annunziata and Gattera.

The elevation of the Rosoretto property is quite low and this results in Barolo with balance, roundness but with the lifted floral and fruity character similar to wines usually associated with La Morra.

SOIL

Parussi’s soils on the lower part of Castiglione Falletto hill can be generalized as St. Agata Fossils with some evolved soils. Rosoretto was an old traditional name for the vineyard and not surprisingly the MGA is planted with 99.4% Nebbiolo grapes according to Masnaghetti’s Barolo Vol.1 3rd Edition. Sant Agata soils tend towards a greyish blue crumbly soil that are rich in lime and come from the ancient sea bed.

PARUSSI FUN FACTS:

• Parussi tends to be one of the earliest ripening sites in Castiglione Falletto due to its lower sunny elevation perhaps!
• Parussi could be considered a type of hybrid cru with younger sant agata marls down low and older compact soils on the top giving it the “aromatics of La Morra and the backbone of Castiglione”.
• It shines in cooler vintages just like in 2013 or 2014!
• Some of the well known wineries with Parussi are: Massolino, Sordo, Francesco Sobrero and Rosoretto.

If you’d like to try some Rosoretto Parussi 2013 or 2014 vintages, please feel free to contact us!