April 24, 2023 - ok
I really liked this at the old nebbiolo tasting
but it was in the first flight and was dwarfed by the gems in the 2nd flight including an old giacosa
this had persistent elegance with soft integrated tannins and cherry with some cassis
some thought it started to fade but I did not
we were all lucky boys on this night
February 18, 2023 - Stood up for months and decanted ~2oz of fine sediment. Pale ruby-garnet, remarkably light color; aromatic, tamari, strawberry, a bit of mulch; palate is light bodied, high acidity, medium alcohol (13.5%), fully mature with plenty of tertiary soy and tamari, fully mature fruit; finish is medium-long, excellent persistence of flavors. Similar to my last bottle, this is a Barbaresco at full maturity, showing excellent balance and length though perhaps not as much complexity as my first bottle. Drink now. 95-96
November 15, 2022 - 13,5% alcohol.
Luminous, evolved and moderately deep pomegranate color. Fragrant, quite ripe and rather evolved nose with attractive, layered aromas of smoke and tar-flavored candies, some wizened black cherries, a little bit of sweet strawberry-driven red fruit, light leathery notes, a hint of meat stew and a touch of beef jerky. The wine feels developed and quite intense on the palate with a rather full body and intense flavors of cranberries, meaty notes of savory umami, some gravelly mineral tones, a little bit of tar and smoke, light balsamic nuances of VA, sweet hints of strawberry and ripe dark fruits and a touch of dried flowers. The structure relies both on the high acidity and the ample, firm yet silky and quite friendly tannins. The finish is silky, complex and gently grippy with a long, quite acid-driven aftertaste of strawberries, tar, some wizened cranberry tones, a little bit of crunchy sour cherry, light tertiary notes of beef jerky and meat consommé, a hint of dried-fruit sweetness and a touch of dried roses.
An excellent, vibrant and wonderfully balanced Barbaresco where all the pieces seem to be in the right places and even if the wine feels quite evolved and tertiary in nature, the wine is yet to go downhill. It feels as though the wine has entered its plateau of maturity many years - perhaps even decades - ago, yet it just sits there, unmoved and unchanging. Although this vintage wasn't at the same level of quality as the extraordinary 1970 and 1964 vintages, this was still easily among the best vintages we tasted in the Borgogno 1988-1947 vertical. A fantastic example of fully mature Nebbiolo by any standards. It feels the wine won't benefit from any additional aging, but I don't see it falling apart anytime soon, either. However, I was really surprised how Borgogno's Barolo Riserva 1971 was way past its peak when this Barbaresco Riserva was just singin'.
October 2, 2021 - Woodsmoke, flowers (rose), cranberry, charred meat, cured meat, truffle. What a complex nose. Raspberry and cranberry on the attack. Flowers on the mid palate. Maybe I’m an idiot, but I get some crisp Braeburn apple on the finish. Also like chewing on a Christmas tree twig with the pine needles, sap oozing out. Also balsamic. This is so complex, I’m not experienced enough for it. Tingly acidity. Massively long. Still a little tannin. Absolutely magnificent.
October 1, 2021 - Stood up for seven days. One hour slow oxidation followed by a three hour decant. 4cm ullage with a perfect cork extracted in one piece. A medium garnet core fading to a pale garnet outer edge. Kaleidoscopically complex and layered aromas of black truffle, hung game, charcuterie, charred red meat, damp hedgerow, aged balsamic, light caramel, tar, white campfire smoke, dried red flowers, cranberry, boysenberry, and black cherries explode from the glass. The palate delivers the same stunning levels of complexity as the nose and exhibits an intensely deep, savoury character of grilled red meat - not at all unlike great northern Rhône - that’s superbly carpeted by sweet red fruits and wild red berries, floral notes of dried roses, and a deep, elemental, granitic tar minerality. Texturally silken and velveteen with incredible persistence on the finish. It’s no exaggeration at all to say that this is a wine not only of profound layers and remarkable complexity but of true dimensions.
May 20, 2021 - Tasted blind. Cloudy ruby orange, aromas of nail polish, dried rose petals, candied cherry. Very nice acidity, fully resolved tannins - lots of red fruit, very fresh and didn’t budge much on the glass. Great old fashioned Barbaresco.
November 11, 2020 - Stood up for 6 months before opening with sediment still in the last ~2 oz in the bottle. Light ruby with age-appropriate significant bricking; high intensity aromatics with strawberry, mulch, roses, aged tamari, cinnamon; palate is light bodied, tannins still present but elegant and integrated, low alcohol (13.5% on bottle), high acidity in balance, tertiary fruit that never dries out through the palate, plenty of soy and umami flavors; finish is medium-plus, clean, and balanced. It lacks the magic of my 1st bottle (there are no great wines, only great bottles...), but it's still showing quite well and with incredible balance and lovely complexity. I have one more bottle with no rush to drink it, though I'll drink it soon. For ~$170, this is quite good "value". 96
October 11, 2020 - This was my second bottle and although I didn’t take notes last time I’ve had it about 1.5 years ago, this bottle was quite a notch better. Slow oxed for about 6 hours, followed by a 2 hour decant. It needed all the air it was given. Very interesting nose of rose petals, iron, cedar wood, cherries, and blood orange. Refined palate with fully resolved tannins and medium acidity. Flavors of iron, blood, red berries, red cherries, and a hint of italian herbs. Long finish. What a treat, finding a bottle in perfect shape.
December 9, 2016 - Annual Tasting Group Holiday Party (I Nonni, St. Paul, MN): Medium crimson red color, moderately cloudy, with a 3-4mm bricked margin. PNP, drank 1 + glass over 2.5 hours. Another really nice bottle following one Siggy brought about a year and a half ago. Not quite as absolutely ethereal, but simply wonderful. I love the complexity and perfume here, just a ton of potpourri and dried floral notes, earthy, red fruits, plenty in minerality - a suggestion of iodine, but a bit different I would say, a touch of roast meat, orange peel, and leather. The palate is medium bodied and quite fine, crushed red cherry, cranberry, orange peel, leather, dried earth, porcini mushroom, and some graphite on the deep finish. This was getting better all night long. There was a bit of a lull an hour in where I thought it might fade, and then it took off again. If I had the chance, I would have decanted this off the sediment and used cheese cloth as well. As Chablis28 noted. It is important to try to pour these the same way to avoid stirring up the sediment. With the amount of fine sediment here, I think it was still going to be comewhat murky anyway.
December 9, 2016 - Really fun aged Barbaresco drinking pretty well. Translucent (cloudy) crimson & amber edges color. Really intriguing! I'd like to taste one of these with the sediment fully resting on the bottom of the btl. Sediment not only effects color but also flavors to some degree. Our local group is pretty bad about pouring btls like this too with pours coming from every label direction, further disturbing the sediment. A guy at Chambers told me that its very important to deal with sediment in old Barolo & Barbaresco for best results. That said, a real treat! This evolved through out the night and actually got better after sitting in glass for around an hour.