December 30, 2022 - Very savory, dusty and sour-fruited on the nose with red cherry, wild strawberry, leather, rose petals and hints of mushroom and tar. Despite its developed profile the nose is markedly vivid, detailed and attractive. On the palate this is wonderfully harmonious and together. Somewhere between medium and full bodied with a firm mouthfeel and appropriate ripe tannins. I can imagine this having been painfully structured in its younger years and as such probably not much fun at all. By now it has arrived in a place where it still is admirably structured but it is well enjoyable with food (beef carpaccio in this case), providing the sort of high quality teenage Nebbiolo experience that one nowadays usually doesn’t get this cheaply. This is clearly a very traditional and a very serious wine. It is by no means peaking yet and it is probably not a good idea to open it for casual sipping as without food the tannic grip on the finish is considerable. However for the table - which is obviously where Nebbiolo thrives - I can happily recommend it already.
October 4, 2022 - Consistent with my previous notes, this is a solid wine with no overt flaws but also not the kind of wine that will make you sit up and take notice. It’s a Tuesday night kind of wine - I’m enjoying it for what it is, but if it was Friday night and we’re going out to an Italian BYOB, I’m not going to be reaching for this.
December 27, 2021 - Not bad by any means, but also not noteworthy either. The nose is vaguely pleasant, but a little too fleeting on the palate to really register. It doesn't feel like it's long in the tooth, but for whatever reason, it's not bringing much to the dance today.
May 6, 2020 - Funk is gone, but age doesn't seem to be improving this. Decanted, but tannin still dominates. Drink now before all of the fruit is gone. 13%
September 28, 2018 - This was a gem heavily discussed throughout the evening and was the runner up to 5 Stelle. Ghemme is a region that is dismally underappreciated, but that closely brushes shoulders with its neighbours Barolo and Barbaresco. Graceful wines made from Nebbiolo (locally known as Spanna) for a superb price. The acidic soils here are morainic - a mixture of materials picked up by a glacier, very poor - and the resulting wines have highlighted rusticity, but are still very cleanly made. The nose on the Cantalupo is profoundly gamey, with dried fruit and savoury notes opening up generously on the palate. Some were reminded of winter rain, of that wet earth scent combined with thick smog in the middle of January, while others called it an “old man wine”, as in “I’ve seen some shit, sit down and let me tell you a few stories”. Full-body blast with amazing initial balance that unfortunately starts to wobble into the weak aftertaste, telling you that it could’ve been big, but gave out along the way.
April 15, 2018 - Light translucent ruby; nose is reticent, with sweet red fruit notes (vaguely reminds me of raspberries).
Light-bodied, decent acidity - not a lot of secondary development yet, but overall pleasant.
December 14, 2016 - There's a faint element of funk on the nose, along with tertiary notes of mushroom and damp forest floor. The palate is lighter than expected, showing cranberry cocktail, red currant jelly, and cassia bark. Nothing wrong with the flavor elements, but this seems to be lacking the depth and complexity to merit a higher score. The finish feels lean and dry. Traditionalists may like this a bit more than I do.
October 23, 2016 - Disappointing. A bit of "bleh" to it.
July 21, 2016 - PnP. Heavy funk that was hard to overcome. Maybe in a few more years. Mildly better on day two. 13%
July 17, 2016 - Farge: Kraftig til å være nebbiolo.
Duft: Gamle vinfat og noe mørk frukt
Smak : Kraftige tanniner. Lukket i starten, men etter hvert en kompleks smak med noe morken ved og mørk frukt, men med mange flere nyanser.
Tåler fortsatt å lagres mer 1-2 år.
Dag 2: Noe 'anilin ' lukt.
Smak : Virker flatet ut, har ikke lenger noe særlig dybde og finesse. Det man ante av storhet i går er borte.