May 16, 2022 - A testament to unpredictability: Our previous bottle of this wine, two years ago, seemed on the verge of old age, with flavors of dried fruits and plum pudding. This bottle seemed just shy of maturity, with elevated acidity and robust tannins. It's still a compelling wine, with great depth and real Nebbiolo character, but the contrast with the previous bottle makes it hard to say what the appropriate drinking window is.
November 3, 2021 - Pleine maturité. Peu d'acidité. Délicieusement gourmand, sans férocité, sans doute au pic, au bord de la pente descendante. Il est temps de le déguster... la saison s'y prête (venaison, lièvre à la Royale). Dominante prune et mûre. Bel équilibre. Le Nebbiolo tout en noblesse.
October 2, 2020 - Lots of sediment, so best to stand it for a while before decanting. Drink now. Decadent aromas of plum pudding on a chewy, tannic base, with moderate acidity, fine balance. Alarmingly easy to drink.
April 28, 2019 - Lovely bouquet, long, nice acidity over fruit, a bit oaky. Nice balance
September 8, 2018 - Sottimano with Elena Sottimano (Neive, Cuneo, Italy): Elena had no 2014 Currá to show us as it has been held back longer in bottle, she therefore opened a 2008 Currá. Elena mentioned that the 2008 was 20-25% new oak (as compared with 10% for more recent Cru). A lovely Barolo bouquet of red berries and cherries, soil and soy, a little minty. Pure and mineral on palate but with real power and weight. Red fruited with cocoa powder, warm earth and tartufo nero. Complex, deep and concentrated. A top wine of the day.
July 2, 2017 - Deep ruby. A bouquet of red cherries and strawberries, balsamico and creosote, dark earth, tobacco and dried herbs. A serious Nebbiolo nose with a little toasty oak. In the mouth, fully ripe, rich and powerful, but savoury and umami. I understand that by 2008 Sottimano had moved to a more traditional approach - longer macerations and less new oak (only 15% new barriques) - and this seems to show in this Barbaresco. It's no shrinking violet - it's quite Barolo-like - but there's plenty of fruit to match the serious tannic structure and 14.5% alcohol. The tannins are typical for this site and this vintage, but seem to have softened nicely in the nine years since vintage. I didn't notice the alcohol and certainly detected no alcohol burn on the finish. Red fruited with road tar, cocoa powder, red liquorice and espresso. The tannins have presumably receded in the last few years but still grip on the back palate on the moderately long, very dry finish. Vines 55+ years old from one of the better vineyards in all of Barbaresco, in my view. Correction in 2018: I now understand from a visit to the winery that the new oak here was 20-25%, with the 10% new oak for the Cru starting with 2010s.
January 14, 2017 - -- popped and poured --
-- tasted a couple glasses blind over approx. one hour --
Bruichladdich PC10 single malt whisky-type peat on the Nose (aged parm. cheese). Medium-light bodied. Still has some tannin; red-fruited; smooth, but not thick. I liked this. Although I didn't make note of it, I seem to recall thinking this was a touch older than it actually is (by a couple years, iirc). Gut impression score: 89 - 90.
December 12, 2015 - Commende a souvrir mais a encore besoin de temps
November 15, 2015 - The final red of our Birthday Month Happy Hour Sunday Sips. Whew, hard work ;-). The Noble Nebbiolo shining brightly with this barely legal luvly. Aromas of freshly cut roses in the morning while walking in the market. What a most excellent way to end the day and slip into much-needed slumber. Hard-body-powerhouse (think Ronda Rousey) with pleasant tannins. A bit of spice and toasty-smokey. She needed a lot of time in the decanter, but opened up after an hour or so and really made the evening. Cheeky little lady, who likes to hide in the corner, assess the playing field and then blast away the contenders. WOTN...well, except for the Kistler Pinot Noir, but we really think it is time to start awarding others!
July 31, 2013 - trop jeune