The Azelia 2016 Barolo San Rocco presents broad and sweeping aromatic brush strokes, and the tannins are pronounced in this wine from Serralunga d'Alba. This is probably the bottle you put at the back of your cellar while the others might occupy a more accessible spot for medium to long-term drinking. There is a shallow midpoint between the intensity of the bouquet and the wine's structured finale, but that mid-palate zone will certainly flesh out with more time in the bottle. This wine earns an extra point for longevity. San Rocco was the first vineyard purchased by Luigi Scavino's father in the early 1990s, and the vines are 65 years old on average today.
Azelia's 2016 Barolo San Rocco shows terrific density and richness, but it is less aromatically expressive than most of the other 2016s in the range. Readers will have to give this at least a few years in bottle for the tannins to soften. Even in the early going, though, the 2016 is deep, powerful and loaded with pedigree. Now that most of Azelia's wines are aged in cask, the influence of small French oak is especially evident.
94 points Antonio Galloni vinous.com Feb 2020 Drink 2023 – 2041
Attractive aromas of dried flowers, red berries and tar follow through to a full body of gorgeous fruit and layers of ripe, fine tannins. Extremely long and chewy with a powdery sense to the tannins. Thought-provoking wine. Try after 2022.