The 2005 Barolo Bricco delle Viole is insanely beautiful. A sweet, inviting bouquet leads to roses, cherries, raspberries, flowers and spices. The wine possesses gorgeous inner perfume and wonderful depth as it hovers on the palate with a Burgundian sense of weightlessness. This is an emotionally moving, delicate wine of the highest level. The 2005 Bricco delle Viole is quite approachable today, but it is likely to close down a bit in bottle, so readers will want to taste it upon release and then forget about any remaining bottles for a while. There is purity to the fruit that recalls Giacomo Conterno’s Barolo Cascina Francia without that wine’s heft. In 2005 the growing season was a bit warmer than in 2004, and this high-altitude vineyard is one of a handful of sites that did better in 2005 than in 2004. Simply put, this is a marvelous bottle of Barolo! Anticipated maturity: 2015-2030. Vajra is one of Piedmont’s best kept secrets. Here readers will enter a world of sublime hand-crafted, artisan wines of the very highest level. Aldo and Milena Vajra’s passion comes through in spades in these terrific new releases, which I can’t recommend highly enough. Importer: Martin Scott Wines, Little Neck, NY; tel. (516) 327-0808

Dried berries and sweet plum on the nose, with hints of clove. Full-bodied, with chewy tannins and berry and Indian spice notes, followed by a medium finish. Closed now. Needs time to develop. Best after 2010. 900 cases made, 250 cases imported.??–JS??Region: Italy / Piedmont / Barolo Select to Add