Updated posts 2026
After a successful inaugural auction, which raised 660,000 euros for 17 charities, the second edition will take place in Piedmont, Italy, streaming live to New York City by Fondazione CRC on October 28, 2022 at a gala in Midtown Manhattan. This exciting auction allows international bidders access to rare and highly coveted Barolos that were previously only available for purchase in Italy. The Barolo En Primeur event represents an initiative of highly scientific, educational and human value, capable of combining various aspects: the promotion of the wine-growing area, of which the vineyard is the mainstay, research with in-the-field teaching, and the important social aims pursued by the CRC Foundation,” explained Lanati.
The en primeur format, borrowed from Bordeaux where it has operated for decades, asks buyers to purchase wine still resting in barrel, years before a bottle exists. It works because the finest wines of a given region are made in limited quantity and allocated long before release, so committing early is often the only route to securing them at all. The arrangement also gives producers working capital during the ageing period, though it requires buyers to accept the judgment of critics tasting an unfinished wine rather than their own palate.
In addition to the 15 barriques, this second edition will include participation from wine producers of the Barolo Barbaresco Alba Langhe and Dogliani Consortium, who will auction a selection of the most prized bottles of Barolo and Barbaresco coming from prestigious villages of both appellations, which include 10 lotti comunali (seven lots of Barolo 2021 from different Comuni (municipalities) and three 2021 Barbaresco lots).
“The Barolo en Primeur charity event is not only of great historical and social importance but is also highly significant for the Barolo wine sector, which is projected at an international level,” added Matteo Ascheri, President of the Consortium for the Protection of Barolo Barbaresco Alba Langhe and Dogliani.
The 300 bottles from each barrique and the bottles from the wineries will be ready in 2025, following the mandatory aging process for Barolo, and will be numbered and marked with a label specially created by an internationally renowned artist. This is a unique opportunity for wine connoisseurs, collectors, investors, and philanthropists, who are invited to take part in an international charity initiative that showcases one of the most world-renowned Italian wine appellations, its values of quality and sustainability, its territory, and the good causes that will benefit from it.
Ahead of Barolo en Primeur 2022, Antonio Galloni, who tasted the wine of each barrique, will publish his tasting notes in Vinous Media, so that potential bidders can read his opinion about how these rare wines capture the essence of Barolo and of the Gustava Vineyard, and their long ageability.
“The event offers collectors an unprecedented opportunity to participate in a philanthropic initiative of great importance and to benefit from a barrique of Barolo of the 2021 vintage, obtained from a specific parcel within a historic vineyard,” noted Antonio Galloni, Founder & CEO, Vinous. “Bidders should be encouraged by the rarity of the wines, the specially commissioned works of art and charitable causes, and all this contributes to making this initiative truly special.”
Information on how to take part in the auction can be found at www.fondazionecrcdonare.it
