Bricco San Biagio
La Morra
Even though it is an essential part of the Santa Maria area and one of the best known of its MGAs, the wine of Bricco San Biagio stands out most conspicuously from the rest in terms of taste and style. The Barolo wines of this hill are essential, but not as subtle or immediate as those of Roere di Santa Maria, and somewhat less rugged than those of Roncaglie.
This peculiarity is evident at a geological level as reflected in the steep slope facing south and southwest (in the foreground in the first image, and to the left in the second) where the sandy soil structure intensifies erosion and renders the wines even lighter than previously believed (as evident in the only Barolo made entirely from the cru by Marco Oberto in 2010). These sands are the last sporadic outcrops of the Arenarie di Diano formation, whose protrusions are accentuated by the tufts of trees present in the upper and middle part of the slopes.
The rest of the MGA is dominated by Marne di Sant’Agata Fossili formations of the sandy type in the western part and at the top of the ridge, and of the typical type on the slope that extends from the peak toward Serra dei Turchi, on whose initial part is the vineyard for Barolo Bricco San Biagio of San Biagio. The only other Barolo produced in this MGA (Luigino Grimaldi) comes from a plot at the center of the first image between the two patches of vegetation.
Recommended tastings
Barolo Bricco San Biagio – Luigino Grimaldi; Barolo Bricco San Biagio – San Biagio / Roggero
Recent tastings
Barolo Roere di Santa Maria – Fratelli Monchiero; Barolo Roggeri – Marco Oberto / Ciabot Berton