Vintages
Drink, hold, or be careful.
Last fifteen years. Floor-staff calls, not scores. A modest year from a good grower beats a legend year from a lazy one.
- Drink
Open it. Waiting rarely helps.
- Hold
Too young for the typical bottle. Cellar it.
- Careful
Uneven or weak. Buy a grower, not the year — or drink up what you have.
Barolo and Barbaresco
Piedmont
Nebbiolo, fog, and laws that force patience. The year tells you whether to decant for tonight or wait a decade.
Barolo is released in the fourth year; 2022 is the current new vintage in 2026. Langhe Nebbiolo drinks earlier. Barbera almost always drink.
| Year | Call | Character |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Hold | Not Barolo yet. Watch; too early to buy by the year. |
| 2024 | Hold | Cooler, wetter. Langhe Nebbiolo is the play; Barolo not out. |
| 2023 | Careful | Humidity and mildew. Uneven. Wait for releases and pick names. |
| 2022 | Hold | Drought year, dark fruit, surprisingly fresh if the grower kept their head. |
| 2021 | Hold | Modern benchmark: tannin, acid, time. Do not rush. |
| 2020 | Drink | Perfume and rounder tannin. The restaurant vintage. |
| 2019 | Hold | Classic and still shut. Decant if you must open. |
| 2018 | Drink | Lighter, fragrant, ready. A weeknight Barolo year. |
| 2017 | Drink | Hot and smaller. Open them. |
| 2016 | Hold | Legendary bones. Keep. |
| 2015 | Drink | Ripe and giving. Drinking well. |
| 2014 | Careful | Rain and hail. Drink what’s left of the good growers. |
| 2013 | Hold | Late and classical. Still taut at the top. |
| 2012 | Drink | Solid, savory, ready. |
| 2011 | Drink | Warm and open. Don’t wait. |