Nebbiolo wines with CAV
Brussels
Tasted Thursday, October 21, 2010 by Vintomas with 523 views
Introduction
Tasting by Cercle des Amateurs de Vin (CAV) under the theme "not only Barolo, fine Italian Nebbiolo", and with one white bonus wine served blind at the end.
Flight 1 - Nebbiolo flight (9 Notes)
The tasting was very interesting, and the wines were definitely good. I was a little surprised that I scored them in such a narrow range as I did; I had expected more variation in score and that some of them would merit 90+ points. They differed rather much in concentration/weight, but some other plus and minus factors (maturity, other pleasant aromas, bitterness, alcoholic bite, tannic structure) came down a little different for different wines in a way that actually kept the range of score together.
Flight 2 - Bonus wine (1 Note)
Served blind. Coming after several tannic reds, we had some problems in nailing this one down (Riesling or Sauvignon Blanc or something else?), and it was chosen on purpose to give us problems.
2006 Prunotto Nebbiolo d'Alba Occhetti 85 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Nebbiolo d'Alba
Medium red colour, lighter edge. In the nose red berries, some spice and oak, rather fruity, slightly aromatic with hints of roses, balsamic notes, some leather. Rather fruity on the palate, medium bodied, quiet acidic, red berries, overtly bitter, quite tannic, relatively dry aftertaste. 85-86 p.
Young, the bitterness somewhat disturbing, but otherwise impressive and complex for a Nebbiolo d’Alba.
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2004 Nino Negri Valtellina Superiore - Inferno Mazér 86 Points
Italy, Lombardia, Valtellina, Valtellina Superiore - Inferno
Light red colour, brick-coloured edge. In the nose decaying leaves, red berries, clearly aromatic with notes of rose hip and roses, some tar, sweetish smell. Slightly less than medium bodied, obvious tannin, some dryness and slight bitterness. 86-87 p.
Young in its tannins, but developed in the nose.
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2001 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco 88 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
Light red colour with obvious amber notes in the core, brownish brick-coloured edge. In the nose decaying leaves, dried red berries, quite sweetish smell, obvious flowery-perfumed notes, and some mint. Quite pleasant aromas. Medium bodied on the palate, red berries, some impressions of sweetness, minty notes, some bitterness, quite present tannins which are slightly dry but more “embedded” than in the previous wine (Mazèr 2004). 88-89 p.
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1998 Gigi Bianco Barbaresco 89 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
Light red colour with amber notes, light/amber coloured edge. In the nose red berries with some decaying leaves, leather, aromatic, dried berries, some tar and liquorice. Pleasant nose, slightly sweeter and more tame than the Barbarescon from Produttori. Medium bodied taste, red berries, slightly sweetih with a spicy note, menthol, a hint of alcohol, good acidity, obvious but well balanced tannin, tannic aftertaste. 89-90 p.
Pleasant wine, good development, but the tannins are still quite obvious.
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2001 Nervi Gattinara Podere dei Ginepri 87 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Northern Piedmont, Gattinara
Light red colour with light brick coloured edge (lighter than the two previous wines of the same flight, but with less brown/amber notes). In the nose cherries, dried red berries, menthol notes, clearly aromatic (in this case “oak barrel aromatic”), fruity impression. On the palate slightly less than medium boded, sweetish, fruity impression with red berries, acidic, obvious tannin, but reasonably tame compared to several of the other wines of this tasting, some bitterness. 87-88 p.
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1998 Fontanafredda Barolo Vigna La Rosa 88 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Medium red, rather dense colour with brick coloured edge. In the nose leather, red berries with some dark berries impression, sweetish, some oak notes, slightly aromatic. Slightly more than medium bodied on the palate, red berries with some dark berries, sweetish with menthol, slight bitterness. 88-89 p.
Probably the wine of this tasting with least development for its age, but it did come from a magnum.
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1997 Fontanafredda Barolo Vigna La Rosa 89 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
In colour very similar to the 1998. In the nose leather, developed notes, rose hip, roses, red berries, sweetish. Quite pleasant aromas. Medium bodied on the palate, felt a little lighter than the 1998, slightly spicy notes of mild dried spices, slight bitterness, some tannin, but rather smooth in character (at least in present company). 89-90 p.
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2004 Francesco Rinaldi e Figli Barolo Cannubbio 89 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Bright red colour, fading edge. In the nose red berries, light-coloured cherries, clearly aromatic, roses and other flowers. On the palate medium bodied, red berries, menthol notes, obvious tannin (but without too hard edges), good acidity. 88-90 p.
Quite young, possibly potential for a higher score with maturity, although a bit difficult to know at the moment.
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1997 Francesco Rinaldi e Figli Barolo Cannubbio 88 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Rather bright red colour with some amber notes, brick coloured edge. In the nose red berries, some dried berries with sweetish notes. On the palate a little more than medium bodied, red and some dark berries, slight sweetness and some bitterness. 88-89 p?
The wine was a little “mute” in profile, and behind this “blanket” there may have been hiding a very good wine deserving a higher score, which would then have received the highest score of the evening. We were warned that the wine was quite reductive and needed a good swirl. It also turned out to be a significant variation between the two bottles, where both were a little weird, but with different profile. The one I was served from was described as “metallic” by the guy with the corkscrew, while the other was more “reduced”. Although it showed less well than expected, I couldn’t say that it was bad in any way.
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