'exceptionally good wines of truely noteworthy delicacy', IAN D'AGATA

I really like the wines from this estate and find Guido Porro to be another producer who flies under the radar. However, his fortunes will probably see an uptick now that he too has inherited part of the Canale vineyards in Vignarionda (from where Bruno Giacosa made some of his, and Italy’s greatest wines ever). Porro makes exceptionally good wines of truly noteworthy delicacy and lightness of being…IAN D’AGATA , Barolo Terroir
 
Guido Porro is one of my favorite under the radar producers...They also happen to be among the most fairly priced Baroli readers will come across in today’s market. Porro’s vineyards are in Serralunga, where Baroli tend to be quite powerful, but here the wines are delicate, perfumed and refined, all in a classic, traditional style built on transparency and weightlessness. Guido Porro remains one of the most underrated growers in Serralunga. ANTONIO GALLONI, vinous.co

I really enjoy the freshness of these wines, which offer ripe acidity balanced with elegant concentration of fruit. AUDREY FRICKE

Much has changed in the Langhe, for better or for worse, since they lit up the brightest headlights on this denomination. Not much has changed with winemaker Guido Porro. Humble and down to earth, together with his wife Giovanna Ruffinengo this small agricultural farm is in full furrow with an excellent artisan production. Nothing extravagant is done in the vineyard, only good and healthy farming with lots of elbow grease…Guido can count on first-class vineyards in the municipality of Serralunga, with the historic crus Lazzairasco and Santa Caterina (part of Lazzarito) under the cellar and a parcel in the majestic Vigna Rionda, inherited a few years ago…SLOW WINE 2020

What about 2020 vintage? Well I love them. They’re not the classically built long-haul 2019s. That’s a good thing. The extra degree of textural cuddle sits alongside lovely terroir definition. You get the great Nebbiolo florals and fragrance and then sweetness of fruit and flowing tannins. It’s a great year which sits somewhere in between 2018 and 2019. The producers love them as well. MICHAEL MCNAMARA

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The wines of Guido Porro are a beautiful anomaly. Their delicacy and purity are beyond peers in Serralunga, a commune renowned for producing austere and powerful Baroli. In the face of firmness, these exude fineness and florals with a tensile architecture. Even better, they’re priced amongst the humblest wines from this superhero commune. A fact, that was again reinforced via the recent Festa del Barolo trade and public tastings across Australia - a huge positive reaction from both camps.

Both Galloni and D’agata call Porro an ‘under the radar’ producer. And truth be told I think the Porro’s prefer it that way. There’s no great fanfare when you visit, in fact, you get the feeling that they’d rather be working on their wines than spruiking them. They’re salt-of-the-earth producers. More often than not, three generations will be at work amongst the vines or in the winery. Guido is an intuitive farmer, deeply aware of the importance of his holdings on the superior slopes of Serralunga. His winemaking style has changed little from what his father before him practiced. Expressing their prime sites is first and foremost their focus – and with sites such as Santa Caterina, Lazzairasco and the iconic Vigna Rionda it’s no wonder. 

The 2020s are potent and luminous. Heady florals of roses and rosehip, red berries such as raspberries and spiced cherries, sanguine and earthy anchors, fine yet firm ferrous tannins. Guido is the fourth generation at an estate that has always been passed from father to son, and now fifth-generation Fabio has just joined too, fresh from university.

‘Porro can be viewed as a Lazzarito-expert,’ exclaims D’agata. This is because all of Porro’s vineyards lie within the greater Lazzarito complex. Santa Caterina is higher up - just under the cantina - and benefits from cooling breezes and a slightly less exposed (to Lazzairasco) aspect. It’s a small sub-cru (just one hectare) west-facing, it is often the most seductive of the trio offering aromas of roses, mulch and minerals. Its tannins are fine yet pliant, almost welcoming in their youth, enveloping your cheeks and tongue.

Lazzairasco is a subplot of Lazzarito and is the jewel within this famed site. Ian D’agata reports ‘there are three stand-out estates making wine here; Ettore Germano, Vietti and Guido Porro.’ Lower down the valley from Santa Caterina and facing south, southwest the small amphitheatre is warm and produces firmer-boned wines with fantastic inner energy. It’s the Arabian mare of Lazzarito, unquestionable in its ability to go the distance. Its darker fruit expression of roses, balsamic and sanguine-like flavours has made it a frequent winner of tre bicchierie from the Gambero Rosso. (An interesting comparison, Vietti’s Lazzarito sells for over $500).

The final Barolo, Vigna Riondo comes from one of the most illustrious crus within Barolo – the cru which according to D’Agata is ‘from where Bruno Giacosa made some of his, and Italy’s greatest wines ever.’ In 2010, following the death of Tommaso Canale - a relative of the Porro family - Guido and two other relatives were given a section of Vigna Rionda within the historical nucleus of the famed cru. In 2011 they replanted, this is just the fourth allocation we’ve received. With vine age of 15 years, this is starting to show its pedigree. Yet it’s a wine that beats to its own drum, Masnaghetti refers to the cru as making Barolo of Vignarionda (vs Barolo of Serralunga d’Alba). Tasting across vintages from barrel it was a wine of conundrums – a fleshy core yet an austere outlook, powdery cold tea tannins that attacked en masse alongside an array of amari, floral and earthy flavours. It has a beguiling nature.

The vinifications are traditional, with long macerations (30 days post ferment) and aging in Slavonian oak. Guido never gets in the way of the grapes' natural expression.

2020 was an early and effortless vintage, the wines are open with supportive backbones that will benefit from mid-term aging. As Galloni says, ‘the best 2020 Barolos offer exquisite balance, tons of class and plenty of up-front appeal… mid-weight wines endowed with gorgeous translucence and plenty of classicism.’ This is a vintage that has played into the hands of ernest producers who know their sites. They’ve got lovely flesh draped on their bones and will drink earlier than the more austere 2019 vintage. Their immediacy is breathtaking and hedonists will approve.

These are amongst the best value Cru Baroli you’ll find. The Santa Caterina and Lazzairasco are regal in their offerings for $105 each in a straight 6-pack buy. While the Vigna Rionda is a rare beast, considered in the top five vineyards of the Barolo region. 

Cheers

Gabrielle Poy