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Barolo: the king of wines, and the wine of kings.
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This famous quote has a double meaning, pointing to the historical relevance of Barolo to the European royalties, as well as the overwhelming power of the wine.
What is power? In scientific terms, electrical or physical power equals work done divided by time, or P = W/t. Can you apply this definition to the science of wine appreciation?
Traditionally, Barolo was considered a wine so tannic that it was deemed unapproachable in its early years. To polymerize the polyphenols biomolecules, time is not of the essence. One simply needs to be patient to wait for years for Barolo to become palatable while still expressing its unforgiving structure. In the same token, if you analyze the scientific formula, the longer the time, the less power you get.
So is anyone out there ready to defy the norm and challenge the absolute power of the king? Of course there is.
In the 1980s, a group of up-and-coming producers in Barolo shared a similar idea: The king of wines can become friendlier, while remaining a king. To do so, you add other components to the pre-existing formula. Green harvesting, employment of new oak barrels, and shorter maceration, just to name a few. The gang, including producers such as Elio Altare, Luciano Sandrone, and Chiara Boschis, eventually became the famous Barolo Boys, even though Chiara is a female. Their movement stirred up some of the most significant discords in the history of Italian wines.
And did the Barolo Boys reproduce the same phenomenon that the Super Tuscans did? Close enough. More importantly, it called for a reconsideration of what used to be an ultraconventional, untouchable subject of one of the most important Italian wines.
(To be continued)
Alice Wong is a certified wine educator based in Hong Kong
