A thrilling but affordable Barolo

2012 Barolo, Bricco delle Viole, GD Vajra, Piemonte, Italy (about £65, Philglas & Swiggot, 020-7924 4494; Fortnum & Mason, 020-7734 8040; DBMWines.co.uk, WineAndWhisky.co.uk).

I have just published a massive review of three years of my tasting notes covering the two greatest red wine styles in Italy, Barolo and Barbaresco. The Piemonte Report 2017 (£24, MatthewJukes.com) is 68,000 words and features 147 wineries and more than 850 wines. I believe that this is the last great region in the world to be discovered. We, in the UK, love the nebbiolo grape, but we don't, even in the highest echelons of the wine trade, truly understand this complicated and fascinating region. I admit that I am learning as I go, but I have been in love with Piemonte for three decades and the discipline of compiling this body of work has further deepened my passion for the wines.

My featured Barolo is one of the most stunning in the region and it is also one of the most affordable of the elite crus. A thrilling wine with exquisite balance, the fruit is shapely and toned and there is a tempo and liveliness here, not often found in youthful Barolo, which makes it glide across the palate in a wave of red fruit. The tannins are incredible firm and youthful but also juicy and powdery. This is a very flattering wine and one which will have a long life ahead of it. I have found a top flight Barbaresco for you for next week.

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Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year (MatthewJukes.com).

Matthew Jukes has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006.

He has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website.

Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy. His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.