Marrone
Barolo Bussia – 2017
Region: italy - piedmont
Marrone
The origins of Agricola Marrone date back over a century and through four generations where the family has focused on cultivating local grape varietals with a passionate commitment and dedication to the land.
In 1978 ‘Gianpi’ took over full management of Marrone and began a phase of expansion in the vineyards and the cellar space. His wife Giovanna, affectionately known as “Mamma Gio,” orchestrates private hospitality and is the kitchen director. For Giovanna, food is “tradition and Italian values that go hand with our wines.”
When Pietro Marrone was born in 1887, his father Edoardo was already producing wines. In 1910, at 23 years old, he asked his father to plant some vineyards. In the early 1920s/30s the winery began cultivating vineyards using techniques that were revolutionary at the time: reducing production yields to prioritize higher quality and avoiding sowing wheat between vine rows, a standard practice at the time. This decision was an early adoption of what eventually became known as modern cultivation practices widely used in the region today.
Since 2011 the winery has been run by “Tre Fie,” the three daughters of Gian Piero and Giovanna Marrone. Valentina is the winemaker, Serena runs marketing and business operations, and Denise is the hospitality heart and manager of the visitor programs and restaurant. The farm is run with minimal intervention in the vineyard, a philosophy that carries through from harvest to winemaking. The Marrone family pays careful attention to produce wines that are elegantly structured with the potential to evolve for decades.
The Wine
Vineyard Profile
Vineyards in the “Bussia” subzone, Monforte d’Alba at the border with Castiglione Falletto.
- Altitude: 350 meters
- Exposure: Southwest
- Soils: Clayey marls with high sand content; particularly homogenous soil with low permeability
- Vines Planted: 1960
- Vine Training System: Traditional Guyot
Harvest Notes
- Hand harvested the 1st week of October
- Berry selection in vineyard to remove those not perfectly ripe and healthy
- 2nd berry sorting at cellar before light crushing
- Fermented with skins and maceration at 30º C for 25 days in stainless steel tanks
- Malolactic fermentation in large 25 hl oak barrels
- Aged 30 months in wood
- Batonnage on fine lees the first 10 months of aging
- Bottled under nitrogen coverage
- Bottle aging for minimum 6 months in temperature controlled environment before release
Winemaker's Notes
Ruby red with slight garnet reflections. Intense and complex nose of violets, berries, cherries, menthol notes, licorice and leather. In the mouth it is full-bodied but of great finesse. The persistence is very long.
Wine Summary
100% Nebbiolo, “Lancia” & Michet” biotypes; alcohol: 14.3%; Bussia cru vineyard, Monforte d’Alba near border of Castiglione Falletto; clayey marl soils with high sand content, low permeability; vines planted 1960; hand harvested 1st week of October with 2 passes of berry selections; fermented 25 days at 30º C on skins in stainless steel tanks; malolactic fermentation in 25 Hl barrels; aged 30 months in oak, initial 10 months on fine lees with battonage; bottled under nitrogen cover and bottle aged at least 6 months before release.
Technical Information
- 100% Nebbiolo, “Lampia” & “Michet” biotypes
- Alcohol: 14.34%
- Total Acidity: 5.11 g/l
- Extract: 27.1 g/l
Reviews
17.5 Points
Cherries, so ripe they even have a caramelised sweetness to the smell. A touch of liquorice. Luminous, translucent elegance to the fruit on the palate and so much fragrance to the spice that my mouth tingled. Focused and fine, fine, fine. A touch of dried orange peel and dried cherry tucked into sweet, beautifully integrated oak. Superb. 2022 – 2034
JancisRobinson.com, May, 2021
92 Points
Deep nose of succulent, ripe plum and black cherry. Full, round and quite juicy with lightly firm tannins and good acidity, driving a balanced finish. Quite a racy feel here. Give it a year or two to broaden out. Drink from 2022.
jamessuckling.com, July, 2021
91 Points
Aromas of black-skinned berry, underbrush and baking spice lead the nose. The savory palate offers blackberry jam, star anise and orange zest alongside fine-grained tannins. 2023 – 2029
Wine Enthusiast, December, 2021
93+ Points
The Barolo “Bussia” from Marrone is their oldest vine cuvée, as their vines in this excellent vineyard in Monforte d’Alba were planted in 1960! Like the sisters’ Pichemej bottling, this wine is aged for thirty months in botti. The 2017 Bussia comes in at 14.34 percent octane in this vintage and offers up an excellent nose of black cherries, grilled pigeon, a bit of road tar, woodsmoke, fresh oregano, orange peel, an excellent base of soil and a topnote of roses. On the palate the wine is deep, pure, full-bodied and rock solid at the core, with fine soil undertow, ripe, buried tannins, fine focus and grip and a long, complex and beautifully balanced finish. Given the challenges posed by the drought in 2017, the exceptional quality of the Marrone Sisters’ Bussia is most impressive! 2035-2100
View From The Cellar, November, 2022
General Info
| Country | Italy |
| Region | Piedmont |
| Appellation(s) | Barolo DOCG; Langhe DOC |
| Proprietors | Gian Piero Marrone |
| Founded | 1887 |
| Winemaker | Valentina Marrone |
| Annual Production | 4600 9L cases |
| Farming (Sustainable, organic, biodynamic) | Organic |
