2008 Vietti, "Rocche" - Barolo - 1 Bottiglia (0,75 litri)

Vietti is a wine producer in Piedmont in northwest Italy. It is particularly known for its range of single-vineyard Barolo wines, its Barberas, and also its association with the Arneis variety. The range-topping Barolo Riserva Villero has gained numerous awards and high ratings, with the 2007 vintage receiving a perfect 100-point score from Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate.

The estate produced its first wines under the family name in 1919, and was one of the first to export Barolo wines to the USA. In the 1950s, Alfredo Currado (who married into the Vietti family) took over production and became one of the first in Barolo to release single-vineyard wines.

He is also regarded as the 'Father of Arneis', having reinvigorated interest in this near-lost variety in the late 1960s. The Vietti example is an elegant, unoaked wine with floral and citrus hints.

Vietti makes a range of wines from the area: the Arneis, a Moscato d'Asti, Dolcetto, five Barbera wines (three Barbera d'Alba and two Barbera d'Asti), a Nebbiolo, a single Barbaresco and six Barolos.

Most of the grapes for these wines come from sandy-chalky-clay vineyards in Castiglione Falletto. Three of the single-vineyard wines, including the Villero Riserva, are traditionally styled and aged in large Slavonian oak vats, while the slightly more modernist Brunate and Lazzarito wines are partially aged in French oak as well.