Alessandria Gianfranco, Barolo DOCG (Piedmont, Italy) 2015

 This isn’t the most aromatic Barolo crafted from Monforte in this vintage, but man, it is marvelously flavorful and undeniably delicious.  It shows excellent balance thanks to subtle wood treatment, with no alcoholic heat but a lot of lovely nuances in aroma and flavor.  Immediate in its charms, this doesn’t need time to soften or integrate, as is usually the case for top-class Barolo, though it will become significantly more interesting if afforded time to develop tertiary notes from bottle age.  With that noted, realism dictates the observation that most buyers who taste this early on will tear through their stash before bottle aging has a chance to work its magic.