Brezza Barolo 2009 (12 x 750mL), Piedmont, Italy.

The Brezza private estate, with vineyards in Barolo dating back to 1885, takes its name from Giacomo Brezza, who with his father Antonio bottled the first wine of the estate in 1910. The estate lies very close to the centre of Barolo, immersed in the vineyards, as is the nearby Hotel and Restaurant, also property of the Brezza family.The fourth generation of the Brezza family now manages the estate, which extends over twenty-two hectares, sixteen and a half of which are vineyards–twelve and a half in Barolo, one in the commune of Monforte, one in the commune of Novello, and two in Alba.

The original part of the cellar, built in the traditional vaulted style, with exposed brick, was once the area where all cellar operations took place; it is now reserved for the maturation of wine in oak.

The cellar

The largest part of the cellar, which is of more recent construction, is divided into two cellars, the first used for the primary fermentation in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. The second cellar is utilised for malolactic fermentation and other operations within the cellar. The cellar for the bottle-aging is located underground where a constant temperature and suitable humidity level are naturally maintained.

The total production is approximately 80.000 bottles per year, produced from grapes sourced only from estate vineyards.

The wines, 95% red, are all certified as 'Denominazione Origine Controllata' (DOC) or 'Denominazione Origine Controllata Garantita' (DOCG). Barolo is sourced from four historic vineyards, Bricco Sarmassa. Cannubi, Sarmassa, and Castellero; Nebbiolo d’Alba from the Santa Rosalia vineyard; Barbera d’Alba from the Cannubi, Cannubi Muscatel, and Santa Rosalia vineyards; Dolcetto d’Alba from the San Lorenzo and Fossati vineyards; Langhe Freisa from the Santa Rosalia vineyard; and Langhe Rosso. The only white wine produced is a Langhe Chardonnay.