Last bottle of a case purchased on release. Slow oxed all day and brought to a restaurant. They decanted. Right away the nose was showing strawberries and cherries with a bit of wood smoke. Zero bricking and the cork was not even stained one bit. Wine was very tight and has an acidic taste that masked most of the flavor pro. Let it sit for 45 minutes whic only slightly helped the acidic taste. The wine never fully resolved. It got better but never fleshed out like my other bottles. Sad that the last was the worst. Just not a good bottle. Disappointed.
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Similar experience to the Pira Margheria of the same vintage, except the Marenca is slightly bigger, deeper, and darker. Real funky at first, woody, and a prominent scent of turpentine. At least 2-3 hours of air is necessary for this to blow-off, at which point the nose turns to an earthy array of leather (it smelled like a used catcher's mitt), tar, rose pedal, mint, and with time, gravel and spice. Dark fruit flavors linger in the background of a full-bodied, resolved, and super expressive palate of the same assorted flavors, followed by a distinct gamey note on the long finish. Patience is key though to let this open up!
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2hr decant. There’s a sweetness and size to the fruit that may be why reviews are calling it more modern. Also I suppose the structure is as much tannic as acidic. At the same time the bouquet and palate both feature classic Nebiolo components and there’s nothing remotely heavy, extracted, or overblown here. This drank great on its own and with salty chips. Mild tertiary development but not a ton. Certainly has the tannic structure to last and plenty of fruit to ride along with it. Seems to be drinking at extended plateau. now-2026, easy.
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Limited notes, bigger, more modern style, with darker fruits, and hints of licorice, but very smooth. No decant. In it’s drinking window, but will go another 5 to 10.
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Quite dark and earthy nose. Lovely really just earthy, forest floor and blackberry. Not sure I would have guessed a Barolo from the nose. Entry is exceedingly tasty fruit. Not a heavy weight but quite strong flavor profile. Finishes quite long and complex with pepper, rosemary and very nice tannins to last for many years yet. Exceptional bottle really. Now that I read other notes I see that this would be considered a more modern style which perhaps explains why I would not guess Barolo blind. I can certainly see that. It is a casual drinker crowd pleaser.
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Beautiful Marenca from Pira. Bouquet of spring flowers and roses with darker fruits and oriental spices. Still just in the beginning of its drinking window with fine but massive tannins. Not as „warm“ as I would have expected from this 2007 and true to this famous Serralunga terroir. Should easily hold for another 1-2 decades.
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Lovely. In a good place right now. Well integrated. Excellent balance. excellent nose of herbs, a bit of earth, some dark fruit notes. Palate of dark cherry and some tar. Long and clean on the finish. I prefer more traditional producers, but this was an honest and genuine wine from the more modern side.
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Decanted and drank over 2 hours. Modern in style, kirsch, black cherry, tobacco, a touch of heat. Paired well w prosciutto ravioli. Drink w decant or over next 5 plus years.
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Nice, ripe, modern delicious Barolo. Dang. This one has me leaning from the traditional. This wine is ready from cork pop, but was much better after 2 hrs of bottle decanting and probably has another 7 years left. Nose of herbs, soil, mushroom, cola, funeral flowers. Entry of flowers, raspberry cola, nice acidity and just a hair departed from full bodied. Complex. Beautiful wine. Finishes with some astringency and youthful oak tannin so this one has a while left. Tobacco, herb, soil. Dang. If you have these, now is the time.
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Decanted 2 hours. Medium garnet, some bricking. Faint kirsch bouquet. Palate is high toned with dusty tannins setting off a kirsch mid-palate and a perceptible alcohol note. Medium length.
This was my first of 12 and it feels not entirely knitted together yet, but promising. Next in about 3 years.
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Drinking very well after a double decant. Classic nose with some roses, herbs and a touch of tar. And Well balanced and savory on the palate with some dark cherry working with leather notes. Works great with a full flavored meal, is nice by itself. Young and should improve. Glad I have more.
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Very slightly corked. the palate was so big that it was drinkable without sniffing too much. Under the circumstances my take is this is a huge modern concentrated ripe Barolo. My guess is 92-94, decant now and drink over 10 years.
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Slo O for 8 hours, decanted two. In a nice place. Dark fruits, some leather and herbs on the nose. Really interesting palate in good balance with a lot of savory fruit. Great with food, great by itself. Clearly has years left.
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Modern style. Very dark and concentrated with black fruit and tobacco in the fore. A bit one dimensional and lacking in classic secondary barolo notes at this stage. Needs more time.
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I haven't had this bottle in a while and it is still very beautiful, a little more tamed now than 2-3 years ago. Medium-darker garnet color. It's pretty expressive in the nose with notes of licorice, dark cherries, tobacco, cigar, tar, but also some cinnamon stick, and lots of dark fruit. On the palate similar flavors of dark and dark red fruit, menthol, licorice, cinnamon, tar and graphite as well as cigar tobacco. It's very full-bodied, dense and powerful with medium-high acidity and high tannin. Long and persistent finish. A very impressive Marenca! (94+)
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Followed over three nights. Very nice on PnP, but the nose, in particular, opened up on night 2. Night 3, nose was still showing well, but on the palate, the wine became more disjointed, displaying more alcohol, in particular.
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This is firm and tightly wound, offering pretty aromas of fresh strawberries, cherry, tar, scorched earth and floral. Excellent structure and focus. The finish is clean, ultra-long and chewy. Needs time. (Best 2015-2028) - December, 2012 (JD)
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Rich fruity nose especially rich for a Barolo. A touch of sawdust. Opened over time to a lovely balanced nose of fruit leather and spice. Nice entry with an extremely rich and exceedingly long finish of exracted fruit, spice and pepper and cedar. Huge tannins. This is a very big Barolo in a rich style. The balanced elegance after breathing a bit speaks well for its future. Needs some time.
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Very difficult wine to judge young. Decanted 2 hours on night one, good underlying depth but the chalky tannins overwhelmed the fruit and balancing acidity appeared lacking. Left half the bottle o/n in the cellar, on day two the fruit started to emerge, the tannins faded a bit, and in an event my former chemistry major self is baffled by there was acid and balance. Berries and tar on the nose, berry/tart cherry palate. Issue is whether the fruit is sufficient to balance the structure with time, if yes this will be excellent to outstanding, and given that I have a lot more I am hoping for yes.
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4/20/2024 - repoper wrote: 89 Points
Last bottle of a case purchased on release. Slow oxed all day and brought to a restaurant. They decanted. Right away the nose was showing strawberries and cherries with a bit of wood smoke. Zero bricking and the cork was not even stained one bit. Wine was very tight and has an acidic taste that masked most of the flavor pro. Let it sit for 45 minutes whic only slightly helped the acidic taste. The wine never fully resolved. It got better but never fleshed out like my other bottles. Sad that the last was the worst. Just not a good bottle. Disappointed.
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1/20/2024 - Eric wrote:
ESTG does Piemonte (West Seattle, WA, USA): Mmm, a firm kick in the teeth, chewy and tarry, showing more alcohol than I would want.
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3/19/2023 - Apollo5710 wrote: 94 Points
Similar experience to the Pira Margheria of the same vintage, except the Marenca is slightly bigger, deeper, and darker. Real funky at first, woody, and a prominent scent of turpentine. At least 2-3 hours of air is necessary for this to blow-off, at which point the nose turns to an earthy array of leather (it smelled like a used catcher's mitt), tar, rose pedal, mint, and with time, gravel and spice. Dark fruit flavors linger in the background of a full-bodied, resolved, and super expressive palate of the same assorted flavors, followed by a distinct gamey note on the long finish. Patience is key though to let this open up!
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3/1/2023 - Rollerball wrote:
2hr decant. There’s a sweetness and size to the fruit that may be why reviews are calling it more modern. Also I suppose the structure is as much tannic as acidic. At the same time the bouquet and palate both feature classic Nebiolo components and there’s nothing remotely heavy, extracted, or overblown here. This drank great on its own and with salty chips. Mild tertiary development but not a ton. Certainly has the tannic structure to last and plenty of fruit to ride along with it. Seems to be drinking at extended plateau. now-2026, easy.
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11/6/2022 - bonedoc wrote:
Limited notes, bigger, more modern style, with darker fruits, and hints of licorice, but very smooth. No decant. In it’s drinking window, but will go another 5 to 10.
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12/8/2021 - riskun Likes this wine: 94 Points
Quite dark and earthy nose. Lovely really just earthy, forest floor and blackberry. Not sure I would have guessed a Barolo from the nose. Entry is exceedingly tasty fruit. Not a heavy weight but quite strong flavor profile. Finishes quite long and complex with pepper, rosemary and very nice tannins to last for many years yet. Exceptional bottle really.
Now that I read other notes I see that this would be considered a more modern style which perhaps explains why I would not guess Barolo blind. I can certainly see that. It is a casual drinker crowd pleaser.
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2/19/2021 - Klugi Wine Likes this wine: 93 Points
Beautiful Marenca from Pira. Bouquet of spring flowers and roses with darker fruits and oriental spices. Still just in the beginning of its drinking window with fine but massive tannins. Not as „warm“ as I would have expected from this 2007 and true to this famous Serralunga terroir. Should easily hold for another 1-2 decades.
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9/4/2020 - Rechrom wrote: 94 Points
Lovely. In a good place right now. Well integrated. Excellent balance. excellent nose of herbs, a bit of earth, some dark fruit notes. Palate of dark cherry and some tar. Long and clean on the finish. I prefer more traditional producers, but this was an honest and genuine wine from the more modern side.
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4/9/2020 - bonedoc wrote: 93 Points
Decanted and drank over 2 hours. Modern in style, kirsch, black cherry, tobacco, a touch of heat. Paired well w prosciutto ravioli. Drink w decant or over next 5 plus years.
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1/10/2020 - mflesh wrote: 94 Points
Nice, ripe, modern delicious Barolo. Dang. This one has me leaning from the traditional. This wine is ready from cork pop, but was much better after 2 hrs of bottle decanting and probably has another 7 years left. Nose of herbs, soil, mushroom, cola, funeral flowers. Entry of flowers, raspberry cola, nice acidity and just a hair departed from full bodied. Complex. Beautiful wine. Finishes with some astringency and youthful oak tannin so this one has a while left. Tobacco, herb, soil. Dang. If you have these, now is the time.
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10/18/2019 - David Meddings wrote: 89 Points
Decanted 2 hours. Medium garnet, some bricking. Faint kirsch bouquet. Palate is high toned with dusty tannins setting off a kirsch mid-palate and a perceptible alcohol note. Medium length.
This was my first of 12 and it feels not entirely knitted together yet, but promising. Next in about 3 years.
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11/16/2018 - Rechrom wrote: 94 Points
Drinking very well after a double decant. Classic nose with some roses, herbs and a touch of tar. And Well balanced and savory on the palate with some dark cherry working with leather notes. Works great with a full flavored meal, is nice by itself. Young and should improve. Glad I have more.
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8/25/2018 - NostraBacchus wrote: flawed
Corked
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1/1/2018 - carstenf wrote: 94 Points
NewYearsEve - wine of the night. A wonderfull Nebb. with rose , licorice
and the mature thing....Top dollar
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8/9/2017 - bonedoc wrote: flawed
Very slightly corked. the palate was so big that it was drinkable without sniffing too much. Under the circumstances my take is this is a huge modern concentrated ripe Barolo. My guess is 92-94, decant now and drink over 10 years.
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6/11/2017 - RussK wrote: 92 Points
Russk. WSW at Cafe Vico. Brunello vs Barbaresco. One of my top 6 out of 18.
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1/27/2017 - Rechrom wrote: 93 Points
Slo O for 8 hours, decanted two. In a nice place. Dark fruits, some leather and herbs on the nose. Really interesting palate in good balance with a lot of savory fruit. Great with food, great by itself. Clearly has years left.
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12/27/2016 - Gnowmij wrote:
Excellent! Liked better than the 2006 Brunello Banfi.
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3/25/2016 - adipovino wrote: 91 Points
Modern style. Very dark and concentrated with black fruit and tobacco in the fore. A bit one dimensional and lacking in classic secondary barolo notes at this stage. Needs more time.
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3/11/2016 - NostraBacchus Likes this wine: 94 Points
I haven't had this bottle in a while and it is still very beautiful, a little more tamed now than 2-3 years ago. Medium-darker garnet color. It's pretty expressive in the nose with notes of licorice, dark cherries, tobacco, cigar, tar, but also some cinnamon stick, and lots of dark fruit. On the palate similar flavors of dark and dark red fruit, menthol, licorice, cinnamon, tar and graphite as well as cigar tobacco. It's very full-bodied, dense and powerful with medium-high acidity and high tannin. Long and persistent finish. A very impressive Marenca! (94+)
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2/12/2016 - Jozefs wrote: flawed
Corked
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1/30/2016 - strijbosmh wrote: 92 Points
Delicious wine. Drank over an entire evening. Opened up after 2h. Classic Barolo nose... Loved it.
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9/7/2015 - rgawlowski Likes this wine: 92 Points
Pretty complex, spicy, berries, yet deep. May use more time, 2-3 years. Excellent value.
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11/19/2014 - Fugu Me Likes this wine:
Followed over three nights. Very nice on PnP, but the nose, in particular, opened up on night 2. Night 3, nose was still showing well, but on the palate, the wine became more disjointed, displaying more alcohol, in particular.
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12/17/2012 - InternationalWineReport wrote: 93 Points
This is firm and tightly wound, offering pretty aromas of fresh strawberries, cherry, tar, scorched earth and floral. Excellent structure and focus. The finish is clean, ultra-long and chewy. Needs time. (Best 2015-2028) - December, 2012 (JD)
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4/30/2012 - riskun wrote: 94 Points
Rich fruity nose especially rich for a Barolo. A touch of sawdust. Opened over time to a lovely balanced nose of fruit leather and spice. Nice entry with an extremely rich and exceedingly long finish of exracted fruit, spice and pepper and cedar. Huge tannins. This is a very big Barolo in a rich style. The balanced elegance after breathing a bit speaks well for its future. Needs some time.
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3/29/2012 - MrD wrote: 91 Points
Young. Nice fruit, strong but not gritty tannins (chalky?). Fruit started kind of bright(cherry?) with a backdrop that was a bit raiseny.
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12/8/2011 - Rechrom wrote:
Very difficult wine to judge young. Decanted 2 hours on night one, good underlying depth but the chalky tannins overwhelmed the fruit and balancing acidity appeared lacking. Left half the bottle o/n in the cellar, on day two the fruit started to emerge, the tannins faded a bit, and in an event my former chemistry major self is baffled by there was acid and balance. Berries and tar on the nose, berry/tart cherry palate. Issue is whether the fruit is sufficient to balance the structure with time, if yes this will be excellent to outstanding, and given that I have a lot more I am hoping for yes.
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11/5/2011 - kosinski wrote:
Soft rose petal aroma. Blueberry jam and spice box flavors with good tannic grip and acidity. Needs a few years.
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11/1/2011 - il_diavolo wrote: 90 Points
Trip to Alba: Tasting Barolo 2007s (Alba, Piemonte (and surrounding towns)): Nice barolo, but I'm usually bowled over by the marenca and this was a little bit restrained.
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