Marrone

Barolo Bussia – 2015

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.

Grapes / Soils

Wine Blend Vine Age Soil Type Vineyard Area acres
Barolo Bussia Nebbiolo Planted 1960 Clayey marls with a high percentage of sand with a particularly homogeneous soil with low permeability. Elvetian soil, from the formation period of grey yellow sands. 1.26

The Wine

Vineyard Profile
  • Bussia subzone, Monforte d’Alba at border with Castiglione Falletto
  • Vine Age: average 59 years
  • Training system: Guyot
  • Altitude: 300 meters
  • Aspect: Southwest
  • Soil composition: clayey marls with a high percentage of sand, a particularly homogenous soil with low permeability
Harvest Notes

Hand harvested in second week of October. Selection in the vineyard and during light crushing to remove berries that are not perfectly healthy and ripe. Fermentation with maceration in contact with skins at 30°C for 35 days. Malolactic fermentation in large 25 Hl barrels and 30 months aging in wood. Batonnage on fine less for the first 10 months. Bottling under nitrogen coverage and bottle aging for a minimum of 6 months in a controlled temperature environment.

Winemaker's Notes

Pure raspberry nose with hints of mint and oregano, silky, elegant palate of fresh blueberry, aniseed, leather and tobacco notes carried by gorgeous sweet acidity.

Wine Summary

100% Nebbiolo; Bussia subzone of La Morra; average vine age: 59 years; altitude: 300 meters; Southwest aspect; clayey marl soils with high percentage of sand; alcohol: 14.5%; hand harvested second week October; fermented at 30°C on skins 30 days; aged on lees for 10 months; in wood for 30 months. Bottle aged at least 6 months.

Technical Information
  • 100% Nebbiolo grapes, “Lampia” and “Michet” strains
  • Alcohol: 14.5%
  • TA: 5.5 g/L
  • Extract: 30.5 g/L

Reviews

91 Points

The Bussia cru is one of the largest in the appellation, and it overlaps between the comuni of Barolo and Monforte d’Alba. Gian Piero Marrone’s 2015 Barolo Bussia shows pronounced, savory aromas of spice, leather and tar. There is dark fruit in there as well, with ample layers of plum, prune and blackberry. The wine offers a thin, mid-weight approach, but its bits and pieces are all in the right place. This is a near-term Barolo to drink within the next 10 years alongside delicate crackers and a liver pâté. 2022 – 2035

© Wine Advocate, July, 2020

93+ Points

The Marrone Sisters’ 2015 Bussia is a splendid bottle of wine, as these fifty-five year-old vines have turned in a command performance in this vintage. The wine comes in at 14.5 percent alcohol and shows off beautiful purity in its aromatic constellation of cherries, orange peel, gamebird, a complex base of soil tones, camphor, a touch of fresh oregano, brown spices, roses and a gently smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, focused, complex and impressively transparent in personality, with a fine core of red fruit, ripe, buried tannins, bouncy acids and impeccable balance on the long, classy finish. This is a lovely example of Bussia! 2032 – 2085

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