G.D. Vajra, Barolo, Ravera 2019

The organic G.D. Vajra 2019 Barolo Ravera (with fruit from the most sought-after cru in the village of Novello) reveals gorgeous tonality and color. The wine shines bright with dark ruby and garnet gemstone. Healthy Nebbiolo colors like this can be admired across the 2019 vintage. Ravera represents a union of different geologies from Barolo and Castiglione Falletto. The site has shown extraordinary versatility, especially in the face of climate change, to make wines of both strength and elegance. It is softly textured but also strong in fiber, with silky sensations followed by dark fruit and concentration. Ravera has a character all its own, and the operative word here is power.

The 2019 Barolo Ravera is redolent of red fruit, mint, chalk, white pepper and orange peel. A Barolo of tension and energy, the 2019 is intensely bright and saline to the core. I would not dream of touching a bottle anytime soon. This is an especially taut style, even for Vajra.

Vajra's Ravera vines occupy an amphitheatre on marl, sandstone and clay soils with iron oxide present, between 320 and 340 metres above sea level in Novello. Vinified in tini followed by a 28-day maceration under submerged cap, the wine went through spontaneous malo in spring 2020 before ageing for 28 months in 25 and 50hl Slavonian oak casks. Dark berries, black cherry, balsam and spiced raspberry rise from the glass, while in the glass the raspberry and pomegranate attack is characterised by very high, fresh acidity which slowly reveals a sturdy yet vertical palate of stony black fruits struck through with incisive red berries. The tannins are super-fine and round, giving a classy feel to this energetic and vibrant expression of Nebbiolo, and the finish lasts long into the evening.

Moving into a touch of purple flowers, the 2019 Barolo Ravera also has a touch of darker pigment as well as a more assertive nature, with black raspberry, mineral-rich earth, and pepper. It is medium to full-bodied, with more ripe, sweet tannins and notes of kirsch, tea leaf, and iron-rich earth. It is long on the palate and has broader shoulders in its profile, with both its fruit and its structure. Hold another few years and drink 2026-2046.