2020 Massolino Barolo Parussi, Piedmont

Vivid red fruit with subtle floral and citrusy notes and hints of crushed stones. Medium-bodied with firm tannins. Structured and focused with a lingering, expanding aftertaste. Impressive density. Try after two to three years.

95 points jamesuckling.com

The 2020 Barolo Parussi is a classy, nuanced wine. It shows lovely textural depth and resonance, but in the mid-weight style of the year. Dark red cherry, lavender, rose petal, mint and spice all build nicely, filling out the layers effortlessly. The 2020 is weightless and elegant, with the understated textural depth that is such a signature of this vintage.

94 points vinous.com

Poached strawberries, mint and menthol, dried roses, chamomile, exotic spice. It’s medium-bodied, juicy red fruit, fine grainy graphite tannin, some orange peel aromatics, quiet grip and so much perfume, gentle peel bitterness with a finish of excellent length. Very nice. Better later.

94+ points Gary Walsh thewinefront.com.au

Natural cork. This is the only Barolo vineyard Massolino owns beyond Serralunga—‘the egg outside the nest’ as an old Piemonte saying goes. On the crest of the ridge, Parussi sits right next to the Serralunga border on the Castiglione Falletto side. The blue, iron-rich Sant'Agata marls here are a little lighter and more oxygenated, with more silt and less clay than in Serralunga. This makes for more vigour in the vines and a completely different style of wine. The Massolino family were attracted to the excellent southeast-to-southwest exposure, combined with the age of the vines (45 years) and the vineyard’s situation at 290 metres above sea level. To this day, Massolino is the only Barolo producer to bottle a single-vineyard wine from this Cru.

As always, this is an outstanding example of Castiglione Falletto—with the depth of the place and the class of Massolino. Again, fermented and aged in large oak, with around three weeks on skins, this is one of the best examples and certainly the most approachable Parussi to date.

Massolino Barolo Parussi is an elegant and expressive single-cru Barolo from the Parussi vineyard in Castiglione Falletto, a commune known for producing wines that sit stylistically between the power of Serralunga and the perfume of La Morra. This site, with its mixed clay and limestone soils and ideal exposure, gives Massolino the opportunity to show a more sensual and accessible side of Barolo while maintaining structure and depth.

The fruit is hand harvested and vinified traditionally, with fermentation in large oak vats using wild yeasts and extended maceration to extract colour and tannin gently. The wine is then aged in large Slavonian oak casks for approximately 30 months, followed by extended time in bottle before release.

The nose is fragrant and lifted, offering notes of ripe cherry, raspberry, rose petal, sweet spices, tobacco and a touch of balsamic. On the palate, Parussi is full bodied yet silky, with refined tannins, juicy red fruit, subtle earthiness and a mineral line that carries through to a persistent finish. It’s the most graceful of Massolino’s crus, offering early charm without sacrificing longevity.

Food pairing: pairs beautifully with roast duck, veal with mushrooms, truffle pasta, game bird, or aged cheeses like Castelmagno or Pecorino. Also excellent with mushroom risotto or lamb with rosemary and garlic.

Cellar potential: approachable after 5 to 7 years, but will continue to evolve over 15 to 20+ years, gaining savoury depth, polish and complexity.