Benchmark Barolo: 100 Points For 2019 Vietti Ravera

"Vietti’s 2019s are off the charts"

- Antonio Galloni, Vinous

Italian expert Antonio Galloni acknowledges the above quote with 100 perfect points for Vietti's Barolo Ravera, placing it at the top of the podium. Not just in his own ranks - but in all of Barolo. There are almost no 2019 Barolos that have not yet been released, and Vinous has tasted just under 200 of them. Only one has been awarded maximum points, and that is the 2019 Vietti Ravera. Read more here.

Vietti - One Of The Finest Wineries In The Langhe Wine Region

The history of the Vietti winery dates back to the 1800s, but it was not until the early 1900s that they started bottling their own wines. The winery is located in the small village of Castiglione Falletto in the famous Langhe wine region of Piedmont. From here, world-renowned wines are produced in a modern and traditional symbiosis.

Until January 2023, Luca Currado was in charge, and he had a strong focus on both terroir and organic farming on Vietti's more than 25 individual parcels - he believes that a great wine is 80% terroir, while the remaining 20% is divided between passion, dedication, and luck.

Luca Currado was the fifth generation at the prestigious Barolo estate, but in 2016 he sold Vietti to American Kyle Krause, but for several years Luca and his wife Elena Penna remained at the helm. This year, the couple decided to retire, which came as a surprise to the wine world. Luca is a star in Barolo, and only time will tell what his Vietti exit will mean.

However, Luca himself has stated that the quality will remain intact. The winemaking team and administrative staff will stay with Vietti. And Beppe Caviola will continue as external oenological consultant.

Vietti is the only estate in Piedmont to own vineyards in all eleven Barolo-producing municipalities - with parcels located in some of the region's most historic sites. Renowned for its work with the Nebbiolo grape, Vietti was one of the first wineries in the 1960s to produce single vineyard versions to celebrate the different nuances of Nebbiolo - their versions of Ravera, Brunate, Rocche di Castiglione and Lazzarito are beautiful examples of this - but they require patience as they become more beautiful the longer they age. Vietti is one of the finest wineries in the Langhe wine region.

Vietti Barolo Ravera

The grapes for Vietti's Barolo Ravera come from the renowned Ravera vineyard. From 2.1 hectares planted with 34-year-old vines, Vietti produces only around 7,500 bottles of their coveted Ravera annually.

The harvest is manual, and the vineyards are tended according to biodynamic regulations. Even the lunar calendar comes into play when producing Ravera. In 2010, Vietti chose to produce Ravera in its own separate bottle, and since then the world has seen 10 releases - and Vietti Ravera has impressed the critics.

Triple-Digit Dominance. Again.

The scores in the chart below cement Luca Currado's star status. As many as four times, a Vietti Ravera Barolo has been praised with the ultimate 100 points from Italian expert Vinous - most recently for the 2019 vintage, which in addition to perfect triple-digit points also sees itself 1:1 comparable to both the 2016 and 2013 vintages, all three of which land on an AVG score of 98.3 points. The highest averages a Vietti Ravera has ever achieved.

The Golden Hour: 2019 Barolo

"Some of the best and most sought-after wines today are produced in Barolo and Barbaresco. The golden hour is now"

 – Rasmus Nielsen, Founder of RareWine Group

There is no doubt that the climate in Langhe is unique. Rasmus Nielsen has long had his eye on Barbaresco and Barolo, with Vietti being the leading producer in the latter. In recent times, Rasmus Nielsen particularly emphasises the 2016 vintage as a unique vintage, while the 2019 vintage stands out as a fresh example of how high quality Barolo can deliver.

And this is in line with the point distribution you were presented with in the previous section, where both 2019 and 2016 act as high jumpers. Rasmus Nielsen also points out that the wines from Langhe are extremely age-worthy and only get better with time - the storage potential is enormous. And because the quality of today's Barolo wines is even higher than it was in the 1970s, it is extremely interesting to see how strong the wines will be in 20, 30 and 40 years.

Rasmus also mentions climate change, which has resulted in perfect conditions in Barolo right now. But if it gets warmer, no one knows what Barolo and Barbaresco will look like in 10 years. The golden hour is right now.

We have also looked at the Barolo investment in this article: Barolo investment: About the 2019 vintage and the future.

Below is an extract from the article:

According to the British wine exchange Liv-ex, wines from Piedmont have historically been the best-performing in terms of price development, with wines like Monfortino Barolo and Rinaldi Barolo, for example. However, the proportion of Piedmont wines traded on Liv-ex compared to Tuscan wines has been quite moderate, partly due to much smaller quantities being produced. With a combination of high quality, significant volume, and a strong brand, the Super Tuscans have been considered the driving force behind the Italian category in the secondary market.

But this pattern is changing. According to Liv-ex, Piedmont's share (Barolo and Barbaresco) of total Italian wine sales by value increased from 11.4% in 2015 to 43.4% in spring 2021^*, while the number of unique Piedmontese wines traded has increased by 653% to over 700 (in 2020) in just five years. Barolo is the biggest driver here, accounting for the vast majority of the trade - still measured by value."

*more recent figures not available

Vietti At The Top Of "The 2023 Liv-Ex Classification"

In August 2023, Liv-ex presented its 2023 Liv-ex Classification, which seeks to determine a hierarchy of the leading brands in the secondary market. To classify for the list, a wine must have been traded between, for example, 2022 June and June 2023 in either 75 cl or 150 cl. Five or more vintages of the wine must have been traded during the period and the wines must have been traded more than 12 times.

The 2023 classification includes 65 Italian brands, 23 of which are Barolo wines. And only three wineries have been able to bring four labels into this year's classification: Frescobaldi, Giacomo Conterno and Vietti with Barolo Villero Riserva, Barolo Rocche di Castiglione, Barolo Lazzarito and Barolo Ravera.

Such a ranking cements the fact that there has been a lot of demand and trade for Vietti.

Because Vietti looks like one of the big winners of the future, there is not much reliable historical data to be found on Ravera, which after all can only present 10 vintages, the most recent of which have not been on the market long enough to comment on performance. However, according to Liv-ex, the comparable 2013 Vietti Ravera has returned 63.9% in five years on the market.

Add to this that, according to wine-searcher.com, the asking prices of 2016 Ravera have increased an average of 54% since release, which equates to an average of 13% per year. For 2013, the figure is 108% since release, which equates to an average of 12% per year since release. Finally, the asking price of 2010 Ravera has increased 139% - 10% per year. These three vintages, like the 2019 vintage, have been awarded 100 points by Vinous.

RareWine Invest's Opinion

100 points never goes out of fashion, and with only 7,500 bottles produced, it does not take much consumption before quantities are significantly reduced. Add to this the fact that Vinous estimates the drinking window at 2029-2049, which requires a long time in the cellar, where the 2019 Vietti Ravera can have time to unfold and become even better for the wine lovers of the future, as Barolo is known to do.

2019 belongs to a golden era in Barolo. Of course, we do not know what the future holds. But we do know that the demand for Vietti is here, as the 2023 classification solidifies. And we know that the demand for Barolo is on the rise.

Only 10 investors have the opportunity to secure a minimum investment here, so as always, it is first come, first served.