Meinklang - Pinot Noir - Neusiedlersee, Burgenland, AT - 2018

This is one of the best Barolo wines from the Langhe in Piedmont Italy as well as a great value from one of the storied families of Barolo wineries. This Barolo red wine is the maximum expression of the nebbiolo grape from Aldo Clerico. With vineyards right next to those of Domenico Clerico Barolo vineyards, this Barolo is a good substitute for Burgundy wine. This is Aldo's first wine made from 5 different Barolo designated vineyards surrounding his home in Monforte d'Alba, all within the Bricco San Pietro MGA. He vinifies each vineyard and then does an assemblage, creating each vintage a unique expression of his nebbiolo vineyards. It is also made with native yeast fermentation, so can be called a natural wine. This garnet colored artisan Barolo has red fruit, rose and spicy leather and tea leaf aromas with elegant structure, long finish leaving a silky mouthfeel. On the nose it is very intense while floral notes mix with typical vineyard scents of violets and red berries. On the palate, the violets blend with licorice flavors and noticeable tannins. A creamy texture from the oak barrels creates a pleasant mix of fresh yet complex flavors.

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Aldo is an old friend of mine; one of the first winemakers I ever spent time with in Italy. I even attended his wedding! His wines hold a special place in my heart and in the heart of our wine list! They are pure, polished only by time and slow but deliberate small actions in the winery. There is no rushing these beauties and their purity is the reward of our patience! -Drew

Farm
The farm “Aldo Clerico” was born in 2004, when Aldo decided to work by himself.
He wanted to use the experience he had obtained working for several years in some of the most famous wine farms of Monforte d’Alba. He became manager of the family farm, renovated the old cellar and built a new part of it to start his making of wine and the following aging.
The vineyards, six hectares belonging to the farm, were always been cultivated by his grandfather and grandparents with care and love and nowadays are cultivated by Aldo, who represents the third generation with a new passion and a strict respect of the territory. The biggest part of the vineyards is located in the municipality of Monforte d’Alba, the Barolo area, and a little part of them is in the municipality of Monchiero, production area of the Dogliani wine.
The result is a new creativity.
Prestigious and long-lived wines, with big structures. Full-bodied, fruit and velvety wines with unquestioned quality.
A great wine is the result of a right composition of the ground, the exposition to the south of its vineyards and an ideal microclimate; the Aldo Clerico’s vineyards have certainly all this qualities.
The same importance has the care dedicated to the maintenance of the vineyards and moreover the sacrificial thinning of the bunches before the grape harvest. This a necessary operation to warranty to the grapes a right and correct aging.
Cellar
The cellar has several rooms for any working step and is provided with different stainless steel tanks with monitored temperature used for the wine production and alcoholic fermentation after the crushing of the grapes.
There is a right room for aging where wines stay in oak barriques and barrels of 30 hectoliters for the time necessary to rich the right maturation balance.
After bottling, wines stay in a completely dark room where temperature is constant and humidity is periodically checked. In this way the wine goes on with its natural evolution.