WINE NEWS /
Barolo Legend Bartolo Mascarello Passes
Enophiles worldwide are mourning the loss of Bartolo
Mascarello, the great elder statesman of Barolo who
passed away Saturday at the age of 78. This intriguing and charming
gentleman was for many years a fervent advocate of traditional
production, shunning modernity and ‘international’ taste
and staunchly preserving the ideals and techniques that he inherited
from his father, Giulio, a true icon of Barolo. At Giulio's side
he developed a profound kinship with the land they worked, and
it was not long until he introduced a small line of bottled Barolo
to the usual line of demijohns. Bit by bit, he increased his holdings
by acquiring small parcels in some of the zone's top vineyards
- Cannubi, San Lorenzo, and Rué - and later also in Rocche
di La Morra; his wines were always blends of these vineyards, as
was the tradition, rather than single vineyard crus. With each
vintage the Mascarello estate progressively built up a reputation
for impeccable
Barolos,
earning an undeniable
prestige and enchanting a diverse audience that included cellist and
conductor Rostropovich as well as the Queen of the Netherlands.
As a teenager, Bartolo already showed great charisma,
diving wholeheartedly into WWII as a partisan fighting for his ideals;
back in Italy after the war, he chided German Barolo fans, saying
"first you chased me, now you chase my wine!" Later in life,
he welcomed countless visitors who flocked to his side to sample his
elixirs and hear him speak. The door at via Roma 15 in Barolo was
always open for a friendly audience with this distinguished man, the
conscience of Barolo and the "Last of the Mohicans," as
he liked to be called. Always lucid and very emphatic in his beliefs,
he demonstrated unusual compassion married with excellent wit and
a keen sense of irony; his zealous opinions never left him in daily
interactions and often found their way to the labels of his wine,
which he himself drew by hand. Some of these bold statements became
famous, and the labels collector's items, as when he proclaimed "No
Barrique, No Berlusconi" in a two-fold attack on modern vinification
methods and the Italian Prime Minister's politics.
Though still a vibrant character, Bartolo had already
passed control of the winery to his daughter, Maria Teresa, who has
crafted Mascarello’s Barolos for fifteen years now and will
continue her work unaltered. Maria Teresa shares her father’s
ideology, philosophy, and understanding of wine and is without a
doubt the perfect heir to Bartolo’s legend.
An IWM favorite, Bartolo received Sergio as a guest
many times, and Sergio always endorses the wines of the great traditionalist.
"These are perhaps the greatest Barolos ever produced."
Sergio continues to offer both old vintage rarities like the 1964
and his recent release efforts with Maria where the great tradition
will live on....
Click for more on Mascarello and his wines
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