Bartolo Mascarello
Despite the fact that Monfortino stands on its own in terms of collectability, it is far from the only interesting wine produced in the region, which are made in a variety of styles. To over-simplify a bit, collectors speak of Barolo as either ‘traditional’ or ‘modern’. These distinctions are less pronounced today than they were twenty years ago, but traditionally Barolo was a blended wine that received a very long maceration (four to six weeks or longer), followed by long aging in large casks called ‘botti’ for anywhere from five to ten years.
The unquestioned champion of this traditional style was the legendary Bartolo Mascarello, whose eponymous estate today is run by his daughter Maria Theresa. For Mascarello, Barolo was always blended, and never aged in small oak casks. He became iconic for his resistance to change and his mantra: ‘No barrique, no Berlusconi’.
The ‘other’ (but unrelated) Mascarello is Giuseppe Mascarello, run today by Mauro Mascarelo. Here the style is also traditional, but they do not shy away from a single vineyard bottling, and their ‘Monprivato’ is increasingly sought after, as is the Riserva from the same vineyard, known as Cà d'Morissio.