6/23/2019 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Very nice. Initially good, opened up a fair amount over a few hours. Not quite at the level of the 1996. Maybe will continue to get better with time. Great nose.

4/7/2019 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Drink now! Perhaps a bit past its prime and a bit oxidated on opening, but it got better over a few hours. Still a great wine and one of the most "pure" Barolo experiences I've had.

2/6/2019 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Best bottle yet! Opened very quickly (unlike years ago when it took many hours). Massive fruit and extraction. Great concentration, somewhat tart fruit, but not in a bad way. Very smooth and not very strong tannins at this point. The only weakness of this bottle was that it didn't shift a lot in the experience. Great flavors, but not as evolving as perhaps it was a bit ago. Otherwise likely the best Barbaresco I've ever had except maybe the 96 Giacosa.

12/26/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Nice, getting a bit long in the tooth. But drinking nicely and well balanced. Opened quickly

12/26/2018 - Happybob wrote:

Very nice, but not truly stellar. Perhaps it's gone too long? No one thing wrong, just not exceptional as I remember some earlier Abeja cabs..

12/19/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Probably the best Barbaresco experience I've ever had! Opened nice, got better over 2 hours. Great in every respect. Optimal timing I sense...

10/28/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Very nice, but maybe past it's prime a wee bit. Slightly odd nose on opening, but that went away and it was quite good in every respect other than not super high complexity

10/16/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Very nice Barbarsco. Only reason it didn't score higher is it's a bit lacking in fruit, otherwise it's a great Barbaresco

10/7/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

I really liked this wine and it's a great value. Perhaps drinking really well now many years after release. A bit acidic, but otherwise quite nice. Lovely tannins too!

9/30/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Drinking very nicely now. When I first opened the bottle it had that "port like" quality that implied it had aged too long, but then that went away in ~1/2 hour and this turned into a wonderful wine that drank very nicely over the next 3 hours... Probably the best Conterno experience I've ever had.

9/24/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Awesome wine, drinking very well now. Opened fairly quickly and had great fruit, structure, tannins, nose, finish.

8/23/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Still drinking very nicely (unlike some other Produttoris that we have from 96 and 99). Opens quickly, complex, good fruit, nice finish, very good structure

7/24/2018 - Happybob wrote:

Past it's prime but still drinkable. Fairly oxidized...

6/1/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

A bit past it's prime, but still drinking pretty well. A bit plummy, but this faded after short open and it was very nice, but full fruit. Drink now if you have it

4/20/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

A bit past its prime, but still nice. A hint of port character now, but much of that went away after open for an hour. Great fruit, but not super complex at this point.

4/10/2018 - Happybob wrote:

Nice but lacking in fruit, did open up a fair amount though... Great value

4/8/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

very nice, not too jammy - took several years to settle down and align the fruit with the structure

3/12/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Drinking very well - better than my last bottle a few years ago. Starting to detect a wee bit of oxidation, but just barely. Opened quickly and smoothed out over a few hours. Complex, but fruit, great structure and finish. Amazing wine!

3/4/2018 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Opened immediately (but got a bit better over 2 hours), this is probably the best Brunello experience I've ever had. Amazing in every respect, complexity, structure, fruit, finish, chewiness, etc. Just great. Drinking at it's peak likely, but with no signs of being too old. My experience of Caprili Brunellos is that they have long lifetimes, especially the riserva variants

1/29/2018 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very nicely now, although feels like it's near the end of the drinking well phase. Opened very quickly and had some minor fig character. Big, bold, complex, good finish. Not quite at the level of the very best Barolos I've had, but close...

12/27/2017 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Holding up nicely - nice botrytis, big, full complex.

12/16/2017 - Happybob Likes this wine:

Great pure concentrated bold syrah. Great dark floral nose, lots of dark fruit, very good finish and structure. Opened quickly and is drinking very well now.

11/20/2017 - Happybob wrote:

Very nice although this particular bottle had a bit of carmelization - so had perhaps gone a bit too long. It opened nicely, was full, big, tannic, complex, great nose. Focus was on size over complexity, but still a great wine

10/8/2017 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very nicely now. Big, full, fairly complex, good structure and finish

9/21/2017 - Happybob wrote:

Drank our last bottle and it's drinking nicely but now has a hint of fig showing it's a bit over the top. Drink your bottles now! Opened quickly and improved over one hour. Still a great wine!

9/9/2017 - Happybob wrote:

Very very nice after 2 hours open. At first it had a hint of oxidation and I thought it had aged too long. But this went away and turned into one of the better Barbaresco experiences I've had. Big, complex, good balance, good tannins, good finish. No one thing stood out.

7/4/2017 - Happybob wrote:

Past it's prime. Not corked, but opened and had a definite fig and vinegar character to some extent. Still drinkable and got better after a few hours open, but never reached a level I'd really want to drink it. Bummer!

7/1/2017 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very well now - opened quickly - full, dark, big nose and big dark fruit. Complex, good finish. A bit acidic/tart, but not over the edge yet... Wonderful experience.

4/23/2017 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very nicely now. Opened quickly but got better over 2 hours. Most notable feature that I don't normally see as much of in a Ch d P is strong lavender, but it works well. Very nicely balanced and wonderful wine. Very good concentration, structure, finish, lovely nose and finish

4/2/2017 - Happybob wrote:

Still drinking nicely - and opens fairly quickly now. Big, not so tannic at this point, good fruit, body, structure. One of the better values in Barbaresco from my perspective. Not quite at the level of Giacosa, etc. but way more affordable and almost as good.

2/19/2017 - Happybob wrote:

My last bottle. Darn... Opened quickly and was big, full, still very vibrant and full forward fruit, but not jammy. Great structure, finish. One of the best C-d-P's I've had...

1/1/2017 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very well now. Opens more quickly than in years past. Very big, complex, a bit acidic (may be a bit past peak), great nose, complex and good finish.

12/28/2016 - Happybob wrote:

Original review 5-16-09: Very good wine that's just starting to be ready to drink. Tight at first, but fruit comes up reasonably well after 2 hours open in decanter. I've heard from others that the fruit continues to come up for at least 3 hrs. Powerful tannins, very complex, very long finish that are almost well integrated. Explosive at times. ***** 7-10-09 update: this amazing wine evolves after I opened a bottle and split into 2 half bottles (each recorked with virtually no air space) AND stored for 2 months in refrigerator! Upon opening, this wine had turned into a monster (in a good sense); the fruit, structure, intensity, complexity and explosiveness were all enhanced as compared to the original opening although just a tiny bit of oxidation had started to creep in. I've been doing the "refrigerator" trick for several years now and I find each few days in the fridge to be equivalent to a year or so of aging, so based on that rough estimate this Crichet Paje will be at it's best at least 10 years from now - and/or that the wine needs > 5 hours to truly open. Amazing wine!!
12-16 update: Opened/decanted for 5 hours and this wine finally presented what I sense it could be - which is an absolutely wonderful wine! Probably the best Barbaresco I've ever had and I've had a lot. Big, complex, nuanced, great finish, etc. Would probably keep opening but we finished it.

12/11/2016 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very nicely now - and opens quickly. Very good balance of fruit, tannin, nice finish, structure. This was one of my better Produttori experiences ever. Some of my 96 Produttoris aren't lasting this long, others are drinking great. Perhaps cork issues?

12/4/2016 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very nicely now! Open almost instantly and stayed good for the evening. This may be the best 97 Turriga experience I've yet had!

10/25/2016 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very nicely now. Opened over 1 hour and then roughly the same even a day later for remainder of bottle. Dark, Full, brooding, fairly complex, great fruit nose, full, good finish. Still some life left in this!

7/11/2016 - Happybob wrote:

highly oxidized. Dang! But actually became somewhat drinkable after a few hours. Basically good cooking wine...

4/11/2016 - Happybob wrote:

Very nice. Has progressed to the point where it opened almost right away and was ready to drink but got better over the hour+ we consumed. Not at all jammy, but nice concentration, complexity and finish and nose.

4/2/2016 - Happybob wrote:

drinking very well now, opens quickly...

2/22/2016 - Happybob wrote:

Best bottle I've ever had of the '96 Normale from Produttori! On the open it was fantastic and then got even a bit better over an hour or two. Bruno Giacosa has said about his (Giacosa) wines that 1996 was the vintage of a lifetime, and I'm finding this to finally come true with various 1996 Piemonte wines from a variety of producers, in this case, Produttori.

2/7/2016 - Happybob wrote:

Strangest bottle of Rancia I've ever had... It opened up ready to drink (unusual) and then after 1/2 hour open in a decanter it seemed a bit oxidized, but then after another hour oxidation was gone and it was great.

10/25/2015 - Happybob wrote:

Great structure and finish and heft, but not enough fruit yet even after open in decanter for a 4 hours. Perhaps it just needs more cellar time and/or more time to open. Still very nice, but if the fruit can come up this will be a world class Barolo.

10/5/2015 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very nicely now. Some petrol, but not a lot, but still very vibrant and well balanced.

9/27/2015 - Happybob wrote:

On open it was nice but a bit tight, after 2 hours it was one of the better Caprili experiences I've ever had. Maybe not quite as big as some, but very very nice, explosive, tannic, full fruit but dry and nice finish. Drinking very well now.

6/8/2015 - Happybob wrote:

Drinking very well now. Big, full, developed, complex. Good on a warm day even

4/12/2015 - Happybob wrote:

big, jammy (a bit too jammy for me but less jammy than it was at release and most folks would like it), good complex, structure, finish. Didn't evolve a whole lot when open.

2/16/2015 - Happybob wrote:

I'm a bit disappointed with this bottle - it didn't have the fruit or vibrancy I'm used to with this wine. Maybe it's in a dumb phase or was a marginal (but not bad) bottle.

2/14/2015 - Happybob wrote:

Had again and this time very chilled and it was much better than last time. Improved over time. Very nice petrol nose - all came together nicely. Great at open and got a bit better as it opened

2/8/2015 - Happybob wrote:

Big, full, good complexity, not jammy, drinking well now. Opens quickly but benefits from 1 hr+ of being open.

1/19/2015 - Happybob wrote:

Very refined, but never quite opened up to what I suspect is its full potential, even after several hours. Medium bodied, complex, but not quite at the level of Giacosa or Rinaldi (esp fruit).