2015 Ellena Giuseppe Ellena Barolo del Comune di La Morra 750 ml

Exclusive: Fusing Tradition with Modernity

Every time we visit Barolo, we’re reminded of why we’re so passionate about the wines from this special place: The aroma of truffles and other local delicacies wafting out of every other door, café tables adorned with dwindling bottles of Nebbiolo, the labels drip-stained garnet, the conversation jumping. It’s the embodiment of la dolce vita.

We got that same feeling the first time we sipped the 2015 Ellena Giuseppe Barolo del Commune di La Morra, a gorgeous, energetic, and unbelievably affordable taste of the Piedmontese good life. Showing lifted floral notes, sandalwood, and cedar wrapped around a core of stewed strawberry and wild cherry, this is the magic of this storied region, bottled.

Ellena Giuseppe has emerged in recent years as one of the most exciting producers in Barolo. Not that they’re new to the game: Between 1966 and 2009, the Ellena family grew some of the finest Nebbiolo in Piedmont, which was purchased by the local co-ops. That all changed when Mateo Ellena took over, and trained his experience—which he earned working with Giacomo Bologna and Elio Altare, two of the most respected vintners in the region—on turning the fruits of his family’s property into wines that fuse the traditional and the modern.

The Ellenas’ harvest their organic vineyards—5 hectares in the legendary commune of La Morra—with extreme care. Then they ferment the grapes with native yeast, and soak them on the skins for more than 60 days. All of this is done to ensure that every sip of Barolo harkens back to the family’s estate, and to the incredible land they farm there.

In a vintage like 2015—a year that Jancis Robinson called “exceptional”—the Ellena Barolo shows everything that makes the property so special: James Suckling, in his 93-point review, praised its “aromas of orange zest, rose hips and wild cherries” and “succulent, firmish tannins.” This is a perfect cellar wine, as it’s primed to age, and affordable enough to stack by the case. We went all in, no regrets, and are thrilled that we did. You will be too, when you do the same.