barolo tasting
the bottle shop, wilmette IL
Tasted February 29, 2008 by KeithAkers with 504 views
Introduction
I've stopped in the bottle shop a few times, but haven't really had a chance to truly check it out. This was a good opportunity to really check it out with this tasting
Flight 1 - mascarello wines (2 notes)
this was to start us off on the traditional style of barolo making. Along with the tasting there was a bit of background given on Mascarello too
taste: luscious cherry hits you with roses, juiper, and mint
overall: a very elegant wine with a nice long silky finish. Very classy
taste: very firm tannins with cherry, rose petals, mint notes, and tar
overall: very nice aromatics on such a young barolo. Still a bit tight, but very elegant and brings a very nice lasting finish of mint and juniper
Flight 2 - Natale wines (2 notes)
This was my favorite flight. The quality was so high here and the wines were great and it was interesting as Natale's are made in the traditional style and are very production(I think they said 1200 cases a year) barolos.
taste: nice and smooth with firm tannins of cherry and mint with hints of spice and tar
overall: very nice silky and full feel on the palate with a wonderful elegance
taste: sublime feel on the palate with menthol, floral notes, and a backbone of tar and mint
overall: a beautfiul and supple wine that just glides across your palate. Very nice long finish of mint and dark cherry
Flight 3 - Rocche Manzoni wines (2 notes)
I was torn on this. After having the traditional stylists, these just stuck out like sore thumbs and while good, just didn't compare to the other two flights. A bit overdone, but the Big'd Big was fairly restrained in it's style whereas the Roul was a bit too over the top
taste: nice full feeling on the palate with lots of cherry, hi-floral notes, and tar
overall: very interesting trying out one of the modern style barolos. The nose was deep and there was still that elegance to it, but it had a much heavier feel on the palate then the traditional style ones that I'm used to
taste: very tannic with oak, vanilla, dark cherry, and tar. very new world style
overall: interesting. a bit too new worldy for me and has some extracted fruit which bothers me, but it still is an excellent wine with a nice long and spicy finish
Flight 4 - The big finish (1 note)
well, they obviously saved the best for last. This was special and it was great to see the modern style blend in with some of the traditional style while still being a more modern style Barolo
taste: wonderful and haunting flavors of dark cherry, rose petals, black licorice, and tar
overall: a beautiful wine. very full and supple with amazing balance and an insanely long finish
Closing
It was a really great tasting and this was a great chance to taste some Barolo's that aren't as easy to find. A very high quality tasting and the bottle shop was a really nice place. I'll be sure to give them some more of my money in the future