Olivero Mario, Barolo (Piedmont, Italy) 2015

 This is easily the wine of the vintage in Roddi, or at least the best one I tasted (one wonders what Paolo Scavino achieved from this same Bricco Ambrogio cru; I didn’t taste that wine, but it would be much more expensive than this one, so let’s just not think too much about it).  Superb purity of fruit is the key to its success, especially in a year when restraint and purity were in short supply.  Thankfully, tasteful work in the cellar kept the oak to a minimum, lending a whiff of toast and spice but nothing so overt as to obscure the gorgeous fruit, and likewise the maceration didn’t extract more tannin than the wine can support even in its youth.  The combination of gorgeous fruit, excellent proportionality and superb balance will make this a delight to drink over an unusually long period…starting right now.