Good Barolo and Barbaresco (67 Pall Mall): A wonderful smell of 'posh wine', as you'd hope and expect from this address: polished and aromatic with compellingly deep purple fruit and a tasteful hint of oak. So much to enjoy on the palate, which was savoury, had notes of powdery Turkish Delight and bitter dark chocolate, and a long seamless finish. My #2 tonight, and the group's WOTN.
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Nick A's "Good Barolo and Barbaresco" at 67 PM (67 Pall Mall, London): Bright cherry fruit, some smoky fig too. Palate finely tannined but, for me, these are not fully resolved quite yet. Real savouriness to the palate. With an hour in the glass suggestions of Madeira cake on the nose.
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Nick’s Barolo and Barbaresco (67 Pall Mall, London): Aromatic with ripe, flamboyant red cherry fruit, touch of nail polish. Florals. Medium bodied, lovely pure red fruits, transparent, soft, gentle tannins, fresh acids, quite long finish, medicinal notes. Lovely.
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Drank last nite at Augustine (in Mam) w/the Milets. No decant: I was afraid to do so thinking the wine might be fragile & not survive. I was very mistaken. Beautiful, complex nose of black fruit, tar and tobacco. Light to medium bodied, delicate, soft and elegant wine. In fact, seemed lighter than I recall from my last tasting. There remains an excellent level of black fruit, along with some chocolate & coffee notes. More earthy than I recall though, along with leather, forest floor and some mushroom. The wine continues to have a solid acidity level, excellent concentration and wonderful length. This is a lovely, sexy wine of serious complexity, that continues to sing some 26 years on--one of those bottles you hate to see emptied....
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Drank at M. Forgione's last nite. Decanted for an hour or so. Fairly generous, complex nose of black fruit, smoke, tar and tobacco. Slight bricking at edges but hardly notable for a 23 year old bottle. Medium body. Plenty of tertiary notes--leather, forest floor, earth and a bit of mushroom at the back end, but still a copious amount of fruit--black berries & plums, with notes of chocolate and coffee. Good acidic core, very concentrated and sexy. Toward the end of the bottle, I noticed a bit of a savory, earthiness particularly on the long finish. Lovely wine--one of those you hate to see emptied....
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Académie des Cinquante 63rd Annual Dinner (Restaurant Olivijn, Haarlem, NL): Older wood, cedar, slightly balsamic, vestiges of black fruit, black olive, very mature but good depth; very evolved palate, tannic and fresh but with chocolaty flavours. Tired. An imperfect bottle, or already a bit over the hill?
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Weekly tasting group RWP #287: A random set of wines (@ DJ): Beautiful and complex bouquet with smoke, toast and chocolate. Same on the palate, coffee and tobacco as well, good acidity and slightly drying tannin. Overall a very beautiful wine and at its peak now.
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Long birthday lunch at Noble Rot (Noble Rot, Wellington, NZ): Inky, dark colour. Served blind but there's no mistaking this Gaja. Tar, black cherries, peaty soil, dark spices, tobacco and a hint of minty menthol on the bouquet. On palate, very dark fruited, deep and powerful. Lots of blackberries and dark cherries, tar, black soil, umami hoisin sauce and liquorice. Flecks of high cacao chocolate. The oak well integrated, the tannins fine grained. Lively acidity, not over-prominent. A bit of grip on the long, dry finish. Very good. Now in it's drinking window but no hurry necessary.
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The wine looks purple colored. The legs are fast. There is light sediment in the bottle. It smells like red currant, blackberry, forest floor and cool/menthol. It tastes like cranberry, red currant and light toast. The body is medium/full. The wine has round texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has high acidity.
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Great but not superb. Aromatic, silky tannin, good texture and fine acidity. A balanced Pidemonte. Close to, if not at, its' peak now. Drink very well with several hours of breathing or keep it for 3-5 more years.
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Been nearly 2 years since my last bottle, so decided to see how it has developed. It is doing nicely! Not at peak or even close, but aging nicely, and even at the right pace. Good complexity (after 3-4 hours of decanter time), with integrated tannins, and a nice level of concentration. This has never been a great Barolo, nor will it ever end up being great, but it is a good one, and an enjoyable easy wine. I have always loved this vintage, and hopefully this is indication for the other 98s I have, which I plan to hold for now. Cool!
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Darker fruits than I remember - tarry, earthy notes with a dusty quality. Abundant but fine, characteristic Gaja tannins. Medium body. Classy, patrician wine. A bit of a hole in the middle makes me wonder how gracefully this will age, but certainly in no danger of cracking up in the near-term.
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Ripped the cork on this paired with thyme-infused grass fed beef burgers w/ Lynette and gang, "we refuse to say farewell to Summer" BBQ. Wow, gorgeous wine. So sleek and expressive. At a great drinkability window, but still so so youthful and sleek. Loaded with dark chocolate, espresso, molten tarry notes, asphalt, floral crushed mineral, violets. Seamless on the palate with good grip and tannins. Interestingly a great match with the mesquite grilled burgers and country style herbed potato salad!
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New world version? Very well constructed, balanced and complete, but dominated by relatively sweet oak right through the palate. There’s no way I would pick this wine as a neb, save (perhaps) for the grippy tannic finish. A shame really. Looking great as a 10yr old but need to re-assess in 10 years.
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Lynette brought to BBQ--monster wine, but great finesse too. Tons of blueberry-ish tar notes on the nose, rich and grippy on the palate. Definitely in need of time, but great potential... Lovely!
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Black cherry, rose, some mushroom notes on the nose. Subdued and more red on the palate. Terribly stern tannins mask the fruit on the finish. Not nearly as accessible or showing the potential that I thought the last bottle of this I had did. ***/5
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3/24/2024 - MattGeneve wrote: 92 Points
Nick's "Good Barolo and Barbaresco" Dinner - Friday 22 March, 67 Pall Mall; 3/24/2024-3/25/2024 (67 Pall Mall): Lovely aromatic nose. Dark fruits, licorice, forest floor, very pretty and elegant in style. Lovely length, very fine. More dried fruits with time in the glass. Complex and in a nice place but will relatively youthful for a 98.
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3/22/2024 - NickA Likes this wine: 94 Points
Good Barolo and Barbaresco (67 Pall Mall): A wonderful smell of 'posh wine', as you'd hope and expect from this address: polished and aromatic with compellingly deep purple fruit and a tasteful hint of oak. So much to enjoy on the palate, which was savoury, had notes of powdery Turkish Delight and bitter dark chocolate, and a long seamless finish. My #2 tonight, and the group's WOTN.
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3/22/2024 - Vinumming & Ahhing Likes this wine: 93 Points
Nick A's "Good Barolo and Barbaresco" at 67 PM (67 Pall Mall, London): Bright cherry fruit, some smoky fig too. Palate finely tannined but, for me, these are not fully resolved quite yet. Real savouriness to the palate. With an hour in the glass suggestions of Madeira cake on the nose.
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3/22/2024 - Paul D wrote: 95 Points
Nick’s Barolo and Barbaresco (67 Pall Mall, London): Aromatic with ripe, flamboyant red cherry fruit, touch of nail polish. Florals. Medium bodied, lovely pure red fruits, transparent, soft, gentle tannins, fresh acids, quite long finish, medicinal notes. Lovely.
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1/25/2024 - cephomer Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drank last nite at Augustine (in Mam) w/the Milets. No decant: I was afraid to do so thinking the wine might be fragile & not survive. I was very mistaken. Beautiful, complex nose of black fruit, tar and tobacco. Light to medium bodied, delicate, soft and elegant wine. In fact, seemed lighter than I recall from my last tasting. There remains an excellent level of black fruit, along with some chocolate & coffee notes. More earthy than I recall though, along with leather, forest floor and some mushroom. The wine continues to have a solid acidity level, excellent concentration and wonderful length. This is a lovely, sexy wine of serious complexity, that continues to sing some 26 years on--one of those bottles you hate to see emptied....
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9/4/2023 - Dpark8 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drinks nicely now. Perhaps bit over the hill
Soft yet strong with lots of tertiary flavors
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12/22/2021 - Gian wrote: 92 Points
nice bottle , perfect conservation , dark fruits , menthol , spicies , grippy tannins and long finish
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5/21/2021 - cephomer Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drank at M. Forgione's last nite. Decanted for an hour or so. Fairly generous, complex nose of black fruit, smoke, tar and tobacco. Slight bricking at edges but hardly notable for a 23 year old bottle. Medium body. Plenty of tertiary notes--leather, forest floor, earth and a bit of mushroom at the back end, but still a copious amount of fruit--black berries & plums, with notes of chocolate and coffee. Good acidic core, very concentrated and sexy. Toward the end of the bottle, I noticed a bit of a savory, earthiness particularly on the long finish. Lovely wine--one of those you hate to see emptied....
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9/12/2020 - Benageber Council Likes this wine: 100 Points
EXCEPCIONAL
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10/27/2018 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 91 Points
Académie des Cinquante 63rd Annual Dinner (Restaurant Olivijn, Haarlem, NL): Older wood, cedar, slightly balsamic, vestiges of black fruit, black olive, very mature but good depth; very evolved palate, tannic and fresh but with chocolaty flavours. Tired. An imperfect bottle, or already a bit over the hill?
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10/19/2018 - Two Winos Likes this wine: 92 Points
Great nose, very good wine, but it falls off pretty quickly. I would not decant it.
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9/19/2018 - Jozefs wrote: 94 Points
Proeverij: Euryanthe - Bourgogne wit Grand Cru 2008 19/09/2018 (notitie MC)
Zicht: intens, vrij doorzichtig, kers. Intens aroma. Neus: complex, intens.
Aroma's: spicy, stalgeur, donkerrood, eik, gestoofd, mineraal, tabak, teer, terroir, geroosterd, koffie.
Smaak: krachtige attaque, vrij rond, mooie spanning, mooie expansie, prachtige balans, grote lengte. Mooie nebbiolo.
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5/21/2018 - Zweder wrote: 93 Points
Weekly tasting group RWP #287: A random set of wines (@ DJ): Beautiful and complex bouquet with smoke, toast and chocolate. Same on the palate, coffee and tobacco as well, good acidity and slightly drying tannin. Overall a very beautiful wine and at its peak now.
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12/22/2017 - Jozefs Likes this wine: 92 Points
Better on the 2nd day, so still some room for improvement.
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11/20/2017 - LWI wrote: 89 Points
Forest floor, maturing; a bit short, dark fruit, some tannin from wood, not well delineated.
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11/20/2017 - HowardNZ wrote:
Long birthday lunch at Noble Rot (Noble Rot, Wellington, NZ): Inky, dark colour. Served blind but there's no mistaking this Gaja. Tar, black cherries, peaty soil, dark spices, tobacco and a hint of minty menthol on the bouquet. On palate, very dark fruited, deep and powerful. Lots of blackberries and dark cherries, tar, black soil, umami hoisin sauce and liquorice. Flecks of high cacao chocolate. The oak well integrated, the tannins fine grained. Lively acidity, not over-prominent. A bit of grip on the long, dry finish. Very good. Now in it's drinking window but no hurry necessary.
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11/8/2017 - Modern Tage wrote: 93 Points
Begining to ready
Very long
nice one.
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1/14/2017 - Ben Stewart Likes this wine: 94 Points
Very approachable, succulent and intriguing sweet fruit aromas. Soft approachable mouthfeel, fresh fruit notes, tingly rich tannins, long lasting
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11/28/2016 - GM75 wrote: 91 Points
The wine looks purple colored. The legs are fast. There is light sediment in the bottle.
It smells like red currant, blackberry, forest floor and cool/menthol. It tastes like cranberry, red currant and light toast. The body is medium/full. The wine has round texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has high acidity.
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7/17/2014 - cabber wrote: 93 Points
Rioja v. Barolo (Manhattan Beach, CA): Nice, silky. great balance and finish. drinking well now.
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8/16/2013 - burgburgburg wrote: 92 Points
Great but not superb. Aromatic, silky tannin, good texture and fine acidity. A balanced Pidemonte. Close to, if not at, its' peak now. Drink very well with several hours of breathing or keep it for 3-5 more years.
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11/24/2012 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 92 Points
Académie des Cinquante Claret / Piedmont Tasting (Restaurant De Hoefslag *, Bosch en Duin, Netherlands): Noble oak, slightly toasty, precise and elegant, playful, velvety.
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12/25/2011 - Lorien wrote: 89 Points
Been nearly 2 years since my last bottle, so decided to see how it has developed. It is doing nicely! Not at peak or even close, but aging nicely, and even at the right pace. Good complexity (after 3-4 hours of decanter time), with integrated tannins, and a nice level of concentration. This has never been a great Barolo, nor will it ever end up being great, but it is a good one, and an enjoyable easy wine. I have always loved this vintage, and hopefully this is indication for the other 98s I have, which I plan to hold for now. Cool!
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3/20/2009 - psmith wrote:
Darker fruits than I remember - tarry, earthy notes with a dusty quality. Abundant but fine, characteristic Gaja tannins. Medium body. Classy, patrician wine. A bit of a hole in the middle makes me wonder how gracefully this will age, but certainly in no danger of cracking up in the near-term.
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11/2/2008 - danstrings wrote: 95 Points
Ripped the cork on this paired with thyme-infused grass fed beef burgers w/ Lynette and gang, "we refuse to say farewell to Summer" BBQ. Wow, gorgeous wine. So sleek and expressive. At a great drinkability window, but still so so youthful and sleek. Loaded with dark chocolate, espresso, molten tarry notes, asphalt, floral crushed mineral, violets. Seamless on the palate with good grip and tannins. Interestingly a great match with the mesquite grilled burgers and country style herbed potato salad!
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10/25/2008 - peterp wrote: 93 Points
Opened 2 hours and decanted one hour before serving. Not overly tannic, Drinking very well right now. will try again in a couple of years
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7/19/2008 - StewartWent wrote: 89 Points
New world version? Very well constructed, balanced and complete, but dominated by relatively sweet oak right through the palate. There’s no way I would pick this wine as a neb, save (perhaps) for the grippy tannic finish. A shame really. Looking great as a 10yr old but need to re-assess in 10 years.
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6/16/2007 - psmith wrote:
Pretty rose and cherry notes. Really streamlined profile with fine tannins. Unmistakable Gaja. Youthful, but very enjoyable.
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6/27/2006 - danstrings wrote: 94 Points
Lynette brought to BBQ--monster wine, but great finesse too. Tons of blueberry-ish tar notes on the nose, rich and grippy on the palate. Definitely in need of time, but great potential... Lovely!
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11/19/2005 - psmith wrote:
Black cherry, rose, some mushroom notes on the nose. Subdued and more red on the palate. Terribly stern tannins mask the fruit on the finish. Not nearly as accessible or showing the potential that I thought the last bottle of this I had did. ***/5
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