Chicago Italian Lovers: 1999 Barolo

Bascule Wine Bar
Tasted Thursday, January 22, 2015 by Nanda with 498 views

Introduction

Great and informative tasting of the 1999 vintage from a variety of styles. The best examples were still quite young with a long life and plenty of evolution ahead. The Traditionalist flight was a major bummer with bad bottles and clamped down wines preventing us from truly tasting or appreciating what those wines have to offer. None the less, some great wines with quality food -- you can't go wrong.

Flight 1 - Sparkling Starter (1 Note)

Poached Alaskan Black Cod

  • 1996 Zamuner Spumante Brut 90 Points

    Italy, Veneto, Veneto IGT

    Salmon in color. Moderate aromas of aged strawberry and raspberry fruit with a touch of yeast notes. Palate has good up front acid showing plenty of freshness. Lighter bodied fruit yet still fleshy. Some floral notes. Clean, fresh finish. Served blind - surprised to see this is nearly 20 years old. Impressive given its age and pedigree.

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Flight 2 - Brunate+ (3 Notes)

Lamb Tartar

  • 1999 Roberto Voerzio Barolo Brunate 94 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Wow, soaring aromatics of concentrated dark cherries and earth. The aromatics are driven and powerful. Medium bodied palate delivers pure, polished and lifted fruit. So smooth and refined. There is excellent underlying grip from smooth, ripe tannins. Polished from start to finish. A treat. Quite young with a ways to go. My WOTN.

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  • 1999 Mauro Sebaste Barolo Brunate 90 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Medium nose has pleasant, rustic aromas of red fruit, earth and roasted herbs. Palate brings more rusticity in a light body and low intensity style. Good tannic grip and plenty of acid. But the fruit is thin to my tastes and leaves me wanting more. This should hold but I don't see it getting better. I'd drink up.

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  • 1999 Pio Cesare Barolo Flawed

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Corked.

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Flight 3 - Traditionalists (3 Notes)

Wild Mushroom Risotto w/ Black Truffle

  • 1999 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo Brunate Le Coste Flawed

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Disappointingly appears to be a heat damaged bottle. Stewed and soy nose.

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  • 1999 Giuseppe E Figlio Mascarello Barolo Monprivato Flawed

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Decanted ~7 hours prior to dinner and apparently was never right from the get go. But at dinner this was closed off and totally muted. Perhaps it's just shut down but most at the table agreed this was an off bottle.

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  • 1999 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Decanted ~8 hours prior to dinner and shut down hard by the time this flight came around. Real bummer as we all had high expectations. Apparently it was singing when initially opened and decanted. By the time we got to it you really had to coax any aromas out of the glass and the palate was wall-to-wall structure. One instance in support of the don't decant "young" Barolo strategy.

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Flight 4 - Modernists Part One (2 Notes)

Roast Wild Boar with Polenta

  • 1999 Domenico Clerico Barolo Pajana 91 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Clearly and emphatically a modern Barolo. Huge concentrated dark cherry, espresso and vanilla bean nose. Palate is full bodied with concentrated sweet cherry fruit. Mocha accents. Lush style with lower acidity and sweeter, chewy tannin. Oak is not bashful. I can certainly see why traditionalists would abhor this wine but there is room in my cellar for the modern and the traditional. Well made and delicious in the style.

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  • 1999 Fratelli Revello Barolo Vigna Giachini 92 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Full nose of dark cherry and roses with some oak framing in the background. Compared to the Clerico Pajana this is showing more transparency to the core of fruit. Medium-to-full bodied palate has sweet but not extracted fruit. Oak influence - some spice and round tannin - is subdued and integrated. Good balance and persistence. In a good drinking plateau.

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Flight 5 - Modernists Part Two (Single Blind) (3 Notes)

Braised Short Rib, Gnocchi and Mushrooms

  • 1999 Conterno Fantino Barolo Sorì Ginestra 93 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    From magnum. Blind flight. Full bright nose with concentrated red cherry, floral notes, herbs and spice. Medium body palate. Good intensity of medium-rich fruit matched with crunchy tannin and good acidic edge to create balance. Smooth and polished. Tastes young. Impressive.

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  • 1999 Luigi Pira Barolo Margheria 90 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Blind flight. Tight aromatics require coaxing to reveal red fruit and toasted herb. Full bodied palate with concentrated and round red fruit. Lower acid leads to a dense palate presence. Herbs, spice and floral notes.

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  • 1999 Conterno Fantino Barolo Sorì Ginestra 93 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    From 750. Blind flight. Tasted nearly identical to the same wine served out of magnum in a blind flight. Full, delicious aromatics of red fruit, spice and herb. Palate has medium to full body with bright acidity, crunchy tannin and concentrated red fruit. Bright and intense. Still a young wine.

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