100% Freisa from the Ravera cru situated between the comunes of Barolo and Novello. Fermented spontaneously, macerated with the skins for 2-3 weeks, aged for 8-9 months in old oak botti casks, bottled with minimal SO2. 13% alcohol.
Somewhat evolved and moderately translucent pomegranate color. Sweet, rich and somewhat mature nose with nuanced, slightly restrained aromas of wizened red cherries, some strawberries, a little bit of dark raisiny fruit, light volatile notes of medicinal ether, a medicinal hint of sappy herbal spice and a sweet touch of ripe black cherry. The wine is ripe, silky and rather wild on the palate with a medium-to-moderately full-bodied on the palate with somewhat funky flavors of juicy cherries and bitter sour cherries, some bretty notes of new leather, a little bit of ethery volatile lift, light sweet notes of ripe strawberries, a hint of dark forest fruits and a touch of balsamic VA. The medium-plus acidity is a bit on the soft side, so the structure relies mostly on the ample and quite grippy medium-plus tannins. The finish is juicy, ripe and somewhat wild with quite pronounced tannic grip and rich flavors of sweet strawberries and juicy black cherries, some wizened dark berries, a little bit of bretty leather and Band-Aid, light volatile nuances of medicinal ether and a hint of sour cherry bitterness. There's a touch of acetic roughness in the throat towards the end of the aftertaste.
I've had this vintage once before - 5½ years ago - and back then this wine seemed more harmonious and less volatile. Although the wine is both pleasantly characterful and quite muscular due to its still quite assertive tannins, the fruit department seems to have given way a bit to the elevated levels of VA, which lend an ethery lift to the aromatics and a faint acetic touch to the taste. Although it was obvious that there was some VA when I tasted the wine earlier, now it had emerged more to the fore, making the wine feel a bit out of balance than before. This is still a good and enjoyable wine, but I don't get the feeling that this wine had improved in the past five years. It's hard to say whether there was just bottle variation and we didn't win this time, or if this wine is evolving in a direction I really don't like.
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A remarkable freisa with 8 years on it. Still fresh and bright on the nose and palate. I don't think I would be likely to tell this from a lower level Rinaldi nebbiolo, although the brightness does seem to place it somewhat outside the norm of their nebbioli. On the palate lively fruit and firm acidit that keeps it lively. Delicious.
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I bought a 4 pack of different Rinaldi freisa vintages and this was the 3rd of 4 (09,11 previously consumed). All 3 bottles thus far have been highly enjoyable. The nose is fragrant with spring flowers, mint and herbs, red cherries, forest floor, tar, and tobacco. Very reminiscent of nebbiolo for me. The palate is still young and a little tight with tannic structure that needs food to allow pleasure. There is still upside from here for sure, but with food it is plenty enjoyable now. I would buy these again for sure if I can find for sub-$40.
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Bright color, medium body. Crisp cherry fruit. High acid. Still held back by its tannins so I would give it more time in cellar. Wish I had more. Great food wine.
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Du beau fruit rouge sombre un peu mentholé, c'est profond, intense et supporté par des tanins maintenant plus assouplis mais toujours fermes. Avoir eu la patience, j'aurais du attendre quelques années encore tellement le vin semble avoir du potentiel. Malheureusement ma dernière bouteille. 90-91+
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100% Freisa from the Ravera cru situated between the comunes of Barolo and Novello. Fermented spontaneously, macerated with the skins for 2-3 weeks, aged for 8-9 months in old oak botti casks, bottled with minimal SO2. 13% alcohol.
Very youthful and quite translucent black cherry color. The overall appearance is slightly lighter compared to the darker vintage 2013 that was tasted alongside. The nose feels pretty similar to the vintage 2013 but with slightly lighter and less intense overall character, exhibiting delicate aromas of ripe black cherries, some licorice, a little bit of sappy herbal spice, a floral hint of heather and a lifted touch of VA. The wine is ripe, medium-bodied and fresh on the palate with bright flavors of sour cherries, red damsons, crunchy dark berries, some astringent chokeberries, a little bit of sappy greenness and a hint of bitterness. With its moderately high acidity and rather grippy medium-plus tannins the wine feels slightly more tannic than the vintage 2013 but slightly lower in acidity. The finish is long, dry and quite grippy with crunchy flavors of tart dark berries, sour cherry bitterness, some tangy lingonberry tones, a little bit of astringent chokeberry character and a lifted hint of balsamic VA.
A lovely, fresh and bright Piedmontese red that feels like a missing link between Dolcetto and Nebbiolo: flavor-wise the wine is darker-toned than Nebbiolo, but more red-fruited than Dolcetto and from the structural point of view (acidity and tannins) the wine could be either one. All in all a lovely and wonderfully lively effort that might be slightly less impressive and more delicate in style than the following vintage, but only by a small margin. A lovely wine by all accounts and good value at 20€.
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Bouquet parfumé qui fait encore une fois très chic. Bouche toute en hauteur, précise, énergique et minérale mais à la fine structure tannique imposante. À attendre encore un bon moment, mais je suis plutôt optimiste pour ma dernière bouteille. 89-91+
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Medium-deep dark ruby, clear. Dark berries, earthy and mineral on the nose. Just a bit of volatile, enhancing aromas. On the palate it is fresh, intense, with flavorful dark berries, but also earthy and mineral, especially on a slightly salty finish. The structure is beautiful: nice concentration, lightness and freshness, and on the finish a light grip of fine-grained tannins. A joy to drink.
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Clean and fruity aromas that reminded about Beaujolais. The palate is, however, darker and tighter than a Beaujolais. A clean, fresh and food friendly wine.
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Arômes fort séduisants de fleurs, de framboises et de fraises qui laissent une impression de pureté des plus agréable. Bon volume, léger, le fruit évoque le nebbiolo et la trame tannique se manifeste à la toute fin un peu à la manière du thé en laissant une fine astringence (un poil rustique toutefois) bien présente. Un vin qui appelle la nourriture et qui aura très bien accompagné la pizza napolitaine. 90+?
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2/28/2022 - forceberry wrote: 88 Points
100% Freisa from the Ravera cru situated between the comunes of Barolo and Novello. Fermented spontaneously, macerated with the skins for 2-3 weeks, aged for 8-9 months in old oak botti casks, bottled with minimal SO2. 13% alcohol.
Somewhat evolved and moderately translucent pomegranate color. Sweet, rich and somewhat mature nose with nuanced, slightly restrained aromas of wizened red cherries, some strawberries, a little bit of dark raisiny fruit, light volatile notes of medicinal ether, a medicinal hint of sappy herbal spice and a sweet touch of ripe black cherry. The wine is ripe, silky and rather wild on the palate with a medium-to-moderately full-bodied on the palate with somewhat funky flavors of juicy cherries and bitter sour cherries, some bretty notes of new leather, a little bit of ethery volatile lift, light sweet notes of ripe strawberries, a hint of dark forest fruits and a touch of balsamic VA. The medium-plus acidity is a bit on the soft side, so the structure relies mostly on the ample and quite grippy medium-plus tannins. The finish is juicy, ripe and somewhat wild with quite pronounced tannic grip and rich flavors of sweet strawberries and juicy black cherries, some wizened dark berries, a little bit of bretty leather and Band-Aid, light volatile nuances of medicinal ether and a hint of sour cherry bitterness. There's a touch of acetic roughness in the throat towards the end of the aftertaste.
I've had this vintage once before - 5½ years ago - and back then this wine seemed more harmonious and less volatile. Although the wine is both pleasantly characterful and quite muscular due to its still quite assertive tannins, the fruit department seems to have given way a bit to the elevated levels of VA, which lend an ethery lift to the aromatics and a faint acetic touch to the taste. Although it was obvious that there was some VA when I tasted the wine earlier, now it had emerged more to the fore, making the wine feel a bit out of balance than before. This is still a good and enjoyable wine, but I don't get the feeling that this wine had improved in the past five years. It's hard to say whether there was just bottle variation and we didn't win this time, or if this wine is evolving in a direction I really don't like.
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12/11/2020 - JWG wrote: 91 Points
A remarkable freisa with 8 years on it. Still fresh and bright on the nose and palate. I don't think I would be likely to tell this from a lower level Rinaldi nebbiolo, although the brightness does seem to place it somewhat outside the norm of their nebbioli. On the palate lively fruit and firm acidit that keeps it lively. Delicious.
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8/13/2020 - jnewman77 Likes this wine:
I bought a 4 pack of different Rinaldi freisa vintages and this was the 3rd of 4 (09,11 previously consumed). All 3 bottles thus far have been highly enjoyable. The nose is fragrant with spring flowers, mint and herbs, red cherries, forest floor, tar, and tobacco. Very reminiscent of nebbiolo for me. The palate is still young and a little tight with tannic structure that needs food to allow pleasure. There is still upside from here for sure, but with food it is plenty enjoyable now. I would buy these again for sure if I can find for sub-$40.
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12/24/2019 - acidqueen wrote: 90 Points
Bright color, medium body. Crisp cherry fruit. High acid. Still held back by its tannins so I would give it more time in cellar. Wish I had more. Great food wine.
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2/24/2018 - nadecesse wrote: 90 Points
Du beau fruit rouge sombre un peu mentholé, c'est profond, intense et supporté par des tanins maintenant plus assouplis mais toujours fermes. Avoir eu la patience, j'aurais du attendre quelques années encore tellement le vin semble avoir du potentiel. Malheureusement ma dernière bouteille. 90-91+
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8/11/2016 - forceberry wrote: 91 Points
100% Freisa from the Ravera cru situated between the comunes of Barolo and Novello. Fermented spontaneously, macerated with the skins for 2-3 weeks, aged for 8-9 months in old oak botti casks, bottled with minimal SO2. 13% alcohol.
Very youthful and quite translucent black cherry color. The overall appearance is slightly lighter compared to the darker vintage 2013 that was tasted alongside. The nose feels pretty similar to the vintage 2013 but with slightly lighter and less intense overall character, exhibiting delicate aromas of ripe black cherries, some licorice, a little bit of sappy herbal spice, a floral hint of heather and a lifted touch of VA. The wine is ripe, medium-bodied and fresh on the palate with bright flavors of sour cherries, red damsons, crunchy dark berries, some astringent chokeberries, a little bit of sappy greenness and a hint of bitterness. With its moderately high acidity and rather grippy medium-plus tannins the wine feels slightly more tannic than the vintage 2013 but slightly lower in acidity. The finish is long, dry and quite grippy with crunchy flavors of tart dark berries, sour cherry bitterness, some tangy lingonberry tones, a little bit of astringent chokeberry character and a lifted hint of balsamic VA.
A lovely, fresh and bright Piedmontese red that feels like a missing link between Dolcetto and Nebbiolo: flavor-wise the wine is darker-toned than Nebbiolo, but more red-fruited than Dolcetto and from the structural point of view (acidity and tannins) the wine could be either one. All in all a lovely and wonderfully lively effort that might be slightly less impressive and more delicate in style than the following vintage, but only by a small margin. A lovely wine by all accounts and good value at 20€.
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7/17/2016 - nadecesse wrote: 90 Points
Bouquet parfumé qui fait encore une fois très chic. Bouche toute en hauteur, précise, énergique et minérale mais à la fine structure tannique imposante. À attendre encore un bon moment, mais je suis plutôt optimiste pour ma dernière bouteille. 89-91+
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3/15/2015 - gilrbo Likes this wine:
Medium-deep dark ruby, clear.
Dark berries, earthy and mineral on the nose. Just a bit of volatile, enhancing aromas.
On the palate it is fresh, intense, with flavorful dark berries, but also earthy and mineral, especially on a slightly salty finish. The structure is beautiful: nice concentration, lightness and freshness, and on the finish a light grip of fine-grained tannins. A joy to drink.
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11/26/2014 - AudunG wrote: 89 Points
Clean and fruity aromas that reminded about Beaujolais. The palate is, however, darker and tighter than a Beaujolais. A clean, fresh and food friendly wine.
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10/30/2014 - nadecesse wrote: 90 Points
Impressions identiques. Même que la finale me parait peut-être un brin moins rustique qu'à ma première rencontre. Délicieux. 90
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9/11/2014 - nadecesse wrote: 90 Points
Arômes fort séduisants de fleurs, de framboises et de fraises qui laissent une impression de pureté des plus agréable. Bon volume, léger, le fruit évoque le nebbiolo et la trame tannique se manifeste à la toute fin un peu à la manière du thé en laissant une fine astringence (un poil rustique toutefois) bien présente. Un vin qui appelle la nourriture et qui aura très bien accompagné la pizza napolitaine. 90+?
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