Community Tasting Notes 9

• The Drunken Cyclist wrote: 90 points

  January 28, 2009 - Best bottle yet. Nose of dark red fruit and a hint of mocha. On the palate, the mocha really came through. Very well-rounded at this point. Can't imagine it will get any better, which is good, since this was my last bottle.

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• moscafj wrote:

  August 20, 2008 - Red brick color clearly shows the age of this wine. Interesting nose of pencil shaving, maybe a little prune, but also a brighter aspect as well. I also do pick on on something that makes me think of red meat. I find no "onion" or "brett" that previous tasters encountered. It has a nicely round mouth-feel and acidity with flavors of cherry. This is really enjoyable.

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• vanpe003 wrote: 79 points

  May 6, 2008 - Wow. This is the 7th bottle I opened, and the first that was remotely drinkable this time around. Even with that, it too went down the drain. One bottle left. All-in-all, a failed auction experiment. The earlier "drinkable" bottles, in hindsight, were a bit of an oddity as well with the overt onion thing going on. One more bottle of this left, and on to another chapter.

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• The Drunken Cyclist wrote: 89 points

  April 5, 2008 - Popped and poured at our favorite BYOB. Definite "Brett" nose--the owner of the restaurant said it smelled like "his grandfather's basement". We eventually decanted and gradually sipped over the course of an hour. By the end, the "Brett" nose had worn off somewhat (but still there), but en bouche, this was fantastic. Lots of dark fruit and nice balance. Last glass really good.

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• vanpe003 wrote: 88 points

  March 30, 2008 - A distinctly better bottle than the last two. The heavier notes of game and onion are more in the background. This has a freshness that the other two bottles did not, perhaps a bit more remaining acidity. I also notice more oak from this bottle. I think this wine benefits from being served several degrees cooler than normal to keep it from becoming too muddled. That being said, with 25 minutes open, the "onion monster" returns, relegating this wine once again to a special purpose food pairing choice.

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Wine Definition

• Vintage 1997
• Type Red
• Producer La Spinona (Pietro Berutti)
• Varietal Barbera
• Designation n/a
• Vineyard Vigna Qualin
• Country Italy
• Region Piedmont
• SubRegion Alba
• Appellation Barbera d'Alba
• UPC Code 089744422378

Community Holdings

• Pending Delivery 0 (0%)
• In Cellars 2 (7%)
• Consumed 25 (93%)

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