Popped and poured. This is a pale red tilting to orange wine with a meaningful amount of sediment at the end of the bottle (enough that I should have decanted). The nose is highly expressive and fragrant, displaying rosehips, crushed leaves, beef bouillon cubes, and black cherry. In the mouth, the wine is crisp and focused, highlighting assorted red fruits and the overall structure of the wine. The finish is moderately long and juicy, with fully absorbed tannins and an echo of the earlier autumnal aspects. Overall, I found this to be a beautiful, pure wine – it is showing great right now and was an excellent choice for Thanksgiving. 94 points.
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Acquired from the K&L offer in 2012. Decanted and consumed over two hours with dinner. Absolutely gorgeous classic Barolo notes of tar, roses, sweet red fruit, with new leather, and a hint of menthol. Still youthful in color with minimal bricking. Plenty of richness and mellow acidity. Tannins are sweet and mostly resolved. Paired well with a variety of foods. Truly great from nose to finish. Was great right away and didn't need the decant. Don't hesitate to open one soon!
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At prime, no need for a decant. Enticing aromatics of dark chocolate, cherries and a touch of menthol. Loads of cherry and licorice on the palate with a touch of black olive and balsam. Good concentration. The oak works pretty well here, if not a style a prefer.
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Aromas of caramel, tar and flower, with the Nebbiolo fruit shining through the dominating oak aromas. Concentrated and impressive, but too woody for me.
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This wine is completely mature and absolutely gorgeous. Did not decant because when I opened it wasn’t needed. As to the wine, it is spectacular. aromatics are bright red cherry, a bit of tar and pine. Gorgeous . In the mouth, still lively but across the years the acidity has mellowed. The wine is supple and sensuous. Ripe cherry, a hint of tar, spice and a finish topped off by fine, caressing tannins. I have had the pleasure of dozens and dozens of Baroli and this one is easily in the top five. Last bottle. Sadly nostalgic.
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Beautiful fruit and flowers on the nose. Smooth tannins, medium acidity, and long finish with fruit, leather, and smoke. Decanted for about 45 minutes and drank over 2 hours.
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Tasted blind, guessed 2000-2003 Barolo Risv. Slowox 18hours. Showy multifaced aromatics, from dried flowers, concentrated red fruits, smoky, leather to wild herbs, deep earthy tone savory tarry characters. Round and velvet already, it is so coherent from start to finish with the flavours echoing on the mid palate & the lifting finale. Beautiful and ready now.
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A wonderful granbussia cut from same cloth as the 01 granbussia tonight. Started out lacking in focus compared to the 01 but caught up at the end of the evening. Overall, missing a bit of the intensity and concentration of the 01.
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Sorry folks we didn’t take notes - a crime! This was true though: it was fantastic, smooth tannins, fresh bright red thru dark fruits with lots of mushroom, floral and spicy notes. Balance was spot on and it was one of the favorites of a night of many special wines. Get it if you can
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Barolo at RPM Steak (RPM Steak - Chicago, IL): Explosive layered nose of cherries, balsamico, dark chocolate, mint and new leather. Palate has sweet red cherry with balsamico for days. Broad, rich and intense. Wow.
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2007 Sarmassa vs 2000 Granbussia: - Beide Weine noch konzentriert in der Farbe. Ganz leichte Brauntönung beim Granbussia. - Schon in der Nase mit viel Komplexität. Kirsche. Granbussia noch mit etwas mehr süßlicher Frucht. Erdbeere. Und auch etwas Alterungsnoten. Pflaume. Sarmassa dagegen mit klarer Kirsche. - Granbussia erdig und richtig Monteforte. Dabei aber schwebend fein und unglaublich lang. Super! - Sarmassa total gradlinig und klar. Noch interessanter, weil noch richtige Frucht. Schwebt auch über dem Boden. Wahnsinn! - Zwei grandioses Weine. Wirklich unterschiedlich. Wenn es bei solchen Weinen einen Gewinner gibt, dann heute ganz knapp Sarmassa für mich.
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Decanted 3 hours. Sweet, full, round, smoky - figs, menthol and hints of licorice and plums. Barely showing its 20 years. Only the dried fruits notes hint at age. Medium, full bodied and very long on the palate. Definitely no rush to drink this one. Easily good for another 10-15 years.
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Came alive after 3 hrs decant Had a plummy over ripe nose and initial taste that I’m not a big fan of but opened up really deep and complex fruit Can think of better tho
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Wow! Opened 5 hours in advance of tasting, no decant. Classic aged Barolo. Garnet/rust in color. Nose full of dried cherries and plums, potpourri, tar, tea leaves, earth, leather. Lots of acid, high, but refined tannins, full-bodied and a longgggg finish of leather, dried fruit, earth, savory that goes on and on....I wish I had more. Maybe one of the best Barolos I've ever had.
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Drank twice this month. Loads of rich plummy fruit, roses and hint of tar. Takes 1 hour to get going but is wonderful also on the second night. Fully open, youthful with great balance and plush finish.
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Ruby red with slight bricking around the rim. Whiff of VA that gives way to a deep spicy, floral and balsamic infused nose of dark red fruits, smoky herbs. A full bodied palate shows sweet and savory mix of smoky dark red fruits, hint of brown sauce, good acidity, fine grained tannins and a long floral tinged finish. Nice!
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In April 2015, I wrote a note that said this wine was five years from its peak. I under-estimated. I had had late meetings and dinners all week, so my wife decided to open this after I had been having business dinners with wine for about 4 days in a row without her. I didn't really want any, but I'm glad I decided to take a glass. Still not at its peak but at the point where it is just starting to show the complexity of age, dark brooding red fruit with just a bit of sweet cherry poking its nose out. Classic nebbiolo nose of violets and herbs/ A touch of earth and road tar with forest floor and mushrooms.
This is really really good and will get much better. I accidentally placed two orders for this wine at K&L years ago when I lost track of the orders I had already placed and their inventory dump lasted for a while. I'm certain glad that I did. I have 3 more and I think I should target 2023, 2026 and as long as my palate still lives for the next three bottles.
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Tasting of 2000 Barolos at Wine Watch. Underwhelmed considering the reputation of this wine although it did improve in the glass but generally somewhat disappointing. Could be that it was still too young and needed more time but feel it should have delivered more at 19 years.
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Corked and muddled. Might have had a couple flaws. Much lighter color than the 2000 Giacomo Conterno Francia. That seemed surprising and might be premature aging. Bottle looked in excellent shape though, and cork too, until I smelled the inside side and got a huge whiff of TCA. Still had underlying roses, tar, and dried red fruits. Nobody was a fan though. Last Aldo was a 1999 Cicala also corked. Not feeling good about my other bottles.
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NR as it was ten days ago, but I remember this being really good, definitely not modern (at least not this btl), loads of structure and took a day or two to allow some fruit out of the cage -- I actually think this will be better in ten years
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Powerful nose. Dark color. Dark and stout on the palate. Dry cherry, cinnamon. Lingering finish without distinction. Gave it 3 hours in the decanter but it doesn't want to give it up. Lacks expression in favor of a feral presence.
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Drank two hours after opening, and again the next day. Bacon, mushrooms and brick. Very little fruit, but notes of dried cherry and currants. Opened up more on day 2, so I’d decant for 3-4 hours.
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Honestly took three hours in the decanter to open up. After an hour and again after two I feared a huge mistake, that it was actually deteriorating, that we should have pnp’d. But then a depth and sweetness emerged from a heaven within. On arrival finally it’s open, soft, and alert, forming a flavor and textural echo to the chickpea and lentil curried dal. Ridiculously darling. Like irresistible. One of those wines that clicks and then ... you’re captivated. Don’t know why but there’s something about this that leaves you as satisfied as a chocolate chip cookie.
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From a 5 liter bottle this past Friday, this was absolutely singing - and this from a guy who is not high on either Aldo Conterno or the 2000 vintage. None of that raisined fruit you get sometimes from producers that didn't "master" the heat of this vintage. Tasted over several hours with consistently outstanding results. I haven't tried this from a 750, so not sure how much of a role the large format played, but quite possibly the best Barolo from this vintage I have ever had the pleasure of drinking.
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Beautifully mature Barolo. Ripe cherry, a bit of menthol on the nose. Floral and a bit of alcohol. Mouthfeel is exquisitely soft but immediately spicy - the acidity is still lively and focuses the center of the wine. Flavors are black cherry, stewed fruit (red fruit) with prominent acidity carrying into a lengthy finish that reveals tar at about the 15 - 30 second mark. This is a gorgeous wine. Plenty of life left but definitely in the drinking window.
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At zucca with Phillip and mike Decanted for an hr. Cork was dry Very smooth, creamy delicious wine Drinking very nicely and will last at this level 5-7 years easily
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Very similar profile to the past few bottles over past years. Masculine notes of tar, leather and charcoal combined with mature strawberries and a touch of black currant. Acid definitely present and shows best with food. Still many, many good years ahead.
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I stand(sitting now) in awe of this wine. The most memorable part is the big, rich finish on the palate that just never ends. It leaves the mouth alive with just the right tang of the fruit. The nose had wonderful cherry, cinnamon spice followed by anise, and a rich cocoa that I do not usually associate with Barolo. At 15 years, this wine has really come together from beginning to end. The son was even impressed, but was only willing to give it a 94.
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Totally disappointing tonight. At first this seemed over done with too much oak and ripe plummy fruit. Overtime this dissolved into a port-like creature. Not consistent with my past experiences.
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Dinner with Finnish company (Ekenhov): I have been looking forward to this bottle for several years, and now's the time. Mushroom risotto with ducksbreast should give the wine ample opportunity to shine. 60 minute decant. Transparent red, bricking at the edges. The nose is initally a bit subdued, but gradually we get roses, cherry, strawberry, cedar and a hint of tar. Not very intense, but beautifully detailed. On the palate also rather elegant, with obvious signs of maturity: mushrooms, dried roses, etc. Fairly elegant structure, but still quite powerfull tannins, which are perhaps not fully integrated. Medium+ acidity. Good length with lemon, and fading red fruits. Still quite youthfull, probably has a decade or two of life left.
Really good, even excellent under normal circs, but perhaps still a disappointment, if a small one. I was sort of hoping for that extra magic.
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Opened two hours, recorked, brought to dinner at Grey Plume in Omaha where it was decanted for an hour and consumed over 2 hours. Nose: Medium-plus expressiveness, sweet tobacco, fresh tar, saddle leather, and choke cherry. Palate: Medium bodied, cherry and tobacco attack with just the right amount of acid appearing through the mid-palate to balance out perfectly resulting in a stimulating mid-palate lift, earthiness and spice join in the back-end contributing to a lengthy finish. The balance and flavor integration during this showing tell me this wine is ready now. It paired perfectly with the Ox Tail ravioli and even performed well with the chicken roulade dishes the Mrs and I enjoyed.
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Annual Christmas Wine Dinner and Cellar Raid (Naperville, IL): Didn't take detailed notes. Part of Christmas wine dinner and cellar raid. Didn't blow me away like the first time I tried it (11/26/2009). Perhaps a dormant stage? One left to try in a few years
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50 ANNI AIS PIEMONTE (TORINO MUSEO DELL' AUTOMOBILE): Da 5litri Magnum. Naso invitante, traspare l' annata generosa in un profilo di frutta matura, zuccherata e macerata. Legno perfettamente integrato e aromi molto suadenti. La bocca non conferma le attese, è simile al profilo legnoso e imballato di Voerzio. Scomposto e banale.
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An evening of Barolo and screening of The Barolo Boys (Old World Deli, Bellingham, WA): Thanks WST for this nice bottle, open and expressive tonight. The palate was the most immediately complex of the lineup, with lots of elements of earth and mushroom overlying the balanced red fruit. This bottle seemed youthful and adolescent, and I believe this has years to go at this level. Delicious.
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One of my three favorites in a tasting of some giants. Double decanted 8 hours before the event. A little softer and drinkable than a few of the young classicists.
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Great wine! Lots of earthy notes, leather, tobacco, dried fruits. Tannins have mellowed but still prevalent. Great tasting now but will last at least another ten years.
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This wine is a beauty, aging gracefully and well into its drinking window. It tastes older than it looks as there is only a moderate amount of bricking. But the flavors are deep and nuanced and actually tasting more like a 25 year old Barolo than 15. Great stuff but no reason to,wait though I was aggressive about aeration and decanting.
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Mike G and Berto visit Cleveland (Italian wines)+ (Willoughby, Ohio): A wine I have had a few times before. It is outstanding, but I always hope for more. In some vintages, this wine hits the higher plateau but in this one, it seems to settle for merely outstanding. Guess I am greedy. On pouring it has this quality that there is something hiding in its depth. So, I left some in a glass for an hour and returned. Pretty much the same, no growth and no deterioration. In any event, this was outstanding. It seems to be at peak. No hurry, I am sure it has a decade or two left, but its not getting any better IMO. Ruby in color. The nose has cherries, dried cherries and just a touch of tar. On the palate, there is a nice complexity here. Cherries layered with slight forest floor notes. Some anise. Worked great with some truffle pasta. This was my last bottle, but I would be very curious to revisit in ten years.
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I like the nose. Its got what i can only describe as very mature violets. The palate is lighter than I would have hoped. Still some nice red berries and some tannins still there
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Ett helt fantastiskt vin i min värld, BArolo som inte än nått det stora mognadsfönstret utan all primärfrukt finns där men det börjar slipas ner not något stort som inte riktigt är förlöst ännu, väldigt kompakt mörkt vin med härlig sirklig frukt, körsbär, mandel the apelsinskal och ett djup som kan få vem som helst att drunkna i detta vin. Fantastiskt!
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The 2000 Aldo Conterno Granbussia pulls you in with a bouquet of dried roses, ripe strawberry, dusty spice, undergrowth, and cedar. On the palate, it is powerful with a push and pull of tannin and acidity, yet still open and giving. Intense, tart red fruits and spice saturate the senses, leaving hints of savory herbs and wild berry through the finish. Enjoyable quite now, yet still youthful, with many years of development ahead, even with the ripeness of the vintage.
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Brought to dinner at Osteria Mozza. No formal notes, but this paired well with a range of dishes and had a great nose. It's in a good place now, particularly with food. If scoring, this likely would have been in the 94-95 point range.
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Took to a very nice restaurant with a menu that promised to match well. We opted for the veal T-bone and gnocchi. We could have bought the 2001 Cicala at the restaurant for over $300, so the corkage for this slightly older and slightly more prestigious wine, from a slightly less vaunted vintage, was a no-brainer. (Note, if it had been the SAME wine I would not bring to the restaurant. That's bad etiquette.) I have heard the 2000s will not be as long lived, so 15 seemed like a good age to crack this. And while it might last, I cannot see how it can get a whole lot better. Opened clean, fresh, great nose of the usual tar and roses, not too lean but taut with acid, and absolutely polished tannins. (Part of the reason I wouldn't wait forever if you still have some.) Over night it rounded out a bit, gained gentle spice of cinnamon and vanilla, which Robert Conterno assured me is not oak aging but part of nebbiolo. (Glad that his cousin's estate provided the proof this time, but I've had strongly cinnamon-like G. Conterno, too.) Finish was gorgeous, ethereal and light but persistent, like a dream that lingers out of reach. Waxing poetic? Guilty, but this wine earned it.
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Poured into decanted at 1 pm. POured back into bottle at 5 pm to go to restaurant. Opened and drunk at Keens Chophouse from 5:45 to 7:15. Nebbiolo flavors but still a baby. Violets and red fruit on the nose. Earth, road tar, violet and sweet red fruit on the palate. Color is a bit light, but not Burg light. Very smooth and soft mouth presentation. Luscious and sexy wine. No real signs of age. I suspect there's another 5-10 years before it approaches its peak. A wonderful wine.
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Got served a small taste of this blind. Very meaty and spicy on the nose, with some animale and meat juices on the palate and soft and light tannins palate led me to think this was a good Southern Rhone. In the words of Lana Kane, "nooooooooope!" Needless to say, I was pretty surprised when I learned the identity.
Couldn't be more different compared to the Giacosa next to it. Much cooler toned, plum, menthol, cranberry, cocoa, some oak still apparent. Saturating and penetrating, immensely pleasurable.
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Seriously good. Opened Monday morning at 11am for a tasting the next night, circa 7pm. Aerated to decanter for 3 hours on Monday, returned to bottle and re-corked until serving on Tuesday (vastly improved from the starting point when the cork was first pulled). Medium garnet, clear, bright, and just a hint of brown at the watery rim. Maraschinos, red floral, big hit of roses, baked choco donut, brown sugar. Incredibly complex on the nose, and no less fascinating on the palate. Mostly red fruited, this gains intensity all the way through night #2, less so on night #3, but still a knockout. Brilliant structure. A joy to behold, share and enjoy.
Night #3: less brown sugar than last night. Instead, soil, scorched earth, rosewood, pretty cherry and a touch of plum. Added weight this night, too, but also pumped up the acids and tannins. Another 7-10 years of flawless drinking ahead, at least.
Served non-blind.
https://italianwine.blog/
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Spectacular Barolo. Decanted for 2.5 hours. Hit all the right notes on the nose with a particularly beautiful anise and spice about 4 hours into the bottle. Long, smooth finish with extremely good balance and integration. Tannins were soft and fruit was bright.
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Juicy red fruit on the nose, boldly fragrant. At times, the tar element of Barolo can be overstated, but this is a distinct characteristic of the back palate. Well balanced earthy and mushroom tones. This seemed to be only at the initial phase of its drinking window, and I would expect this to continue to improve. No rush on this particular bottle.
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Friday Night Double Blind Semi-Mondo $80+ (Bin 75): Dark crimson core with orange rim, good clarity; roses, tar, cherry, pure, cinnamon, menthol, licorice, powerful, classic; powerful on the palate, some age, tannic but not hard, classic, really long finish; I was on Cannubi with the amazing aromatics and great balance, this was a wow wine.
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Lovely nose of raspberry, plum, cherry, vanilla and some blue fruit. This all carried through to the elegantly structured palate. Smooth, round, with just the right amount of grip thanks to the fine tannin. This is delicious today, but will no doubt improve.
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Dette var strålende! Fortsatt ung, men svært tilgjengelig. Dekantert ca to timer.
Klassiske nebbioloaromaer med kirsebær, roseblader, lakris, tjære, friske urter og litt jord. Svært fyldig vin, men samtidig svært elegant. Strålende syre og finkornede, tilgjengelige, men samtidig oppstrammende tanniner. Utrolig presis balanse. Følger opp med en klokkeklar sur/søt kirsebærfruktighet, strålende lengde og en hint av sødme i avslutningen.
Matchen med indrefilet av hjort var perfekt. Vinen ble som en forlengelse av viltkjøttet, eller var det omvendt?
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Had about an hour of air before we really started drinking this in earnest. Expressive red fruit and floral aromatics with some vanilla. Full bodied on the palate with very concentrated fruit. Mouth coating tannins leading into a long finish. Starting to get approachable but better in 5 years.
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Drinking nicely after decanting for an hour. Cherries, flowers and tobacco on the nose. Tannins have started to soften while still supported by refreshing acidity. Still youthful, will probably age well for years to come.
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There is a good underlying structure to this Barolo, and it is well polished, which makes it drinkable today. Decanting is certainly beneficial as it is tight and showed better on the second day. (I kept pouring from the bottle over 5 hours, then just put the cork back on the half full bottle without any vacuum pump or argon gas, and placed it in the cellar. I drank over another 4 hours on the second day.) It's rich with dark fruits, some rustic earth, and a hint of high quality balsamic vinegar. While this was good, I just wasn't blown away. In fact, I was a little disappointed given its price point. Objectively, I thought it was about 92 points, but I want to be screaming at least 94 points when I pay this much.
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Beautiful Barolo...absolutely delicious...everything in balance and poised to get even better over the next few years. Glad that I drank two of my four bottles now and have the others to taste in 2017.
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Slow ox for for a few hours and then decanted for 1-2 hours. A sip on open revealed bright black fruit and loads of relatively fine, approachable tannin. With air, revealed more savory notes, though this is still quite primary and fruity, with earth and savory notes clearly playing second fiddle for now. Yes, it is relatively modernist, interventionist, fruit-forward, or whatever one wants to call Aldo Conterno, but it is very nice juice. Approachable now with sufficient air but with plenty of reason to give them another five-ten years.
A little tight and restrained at first but this really opens out beautifully with time in the decanter with a lovely savoury aroma developing. There's a core of rich red fruit here framed by surprisingly mature earthy, smoky, truffle and tarry elements, and while there's still some grainy tannin lingering on the palate, it's surprisingly accessible to drink now with great purity and length to the flavours.
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Some pruny, medicinal notes. Some hints of Barolo but only a bit, much more sensation of Aldo Conterno's hand as opposed to the terrior. This smooths out with some time but will never be special. (Commerce)
This was still youthful with bright red cherry, vanilla notes and creamy texture. The floral and herbal components were in the background with rich fruit, medium tannins and fine acidity taking the lead. This will surely get better in the next 5-10 years.
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Stood upright in cellar for a week. Pulled the cork at 10AM and left bottle in cellar. Poured in the decanter at 3PM and served with osso bucco at 7:30. Wonderful wine that is ready to drink now given sufficient air. Deep barolo nose of roses, tar and dark fruit. Medium+ body, red fruit, dark fruit and licorice with resolved tannin, nice acidity and a long, long finish. Just singing.
Popped and poured- what a mistake. It was good but alot of over ripe strawberries and not as deep as those drank previously...90.. Saved half the bottle, drank day 2- significantly better. The Granbussia I know and love. Complexity, depth, earth tones, leather and balanced fruit. 94. I averaged the 2 above...
This wine immediately followed a 2000 Château Léoville Las Cases, a 2007 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau and two other white wines were sampled before that, which made for a fascinating wine experience. This Barolo was my WOTN!
Over the long haul, the Bordeaux should be equally charming, but this Barolo is just stunning! It features an intoxicating bouquet of fruit and berry blossoms, ripe dark berries, high quality pipe tobacco, what might be described as the smell of 'sweet crude oil' or more simply, tar, cooking spices (savory and sweet), and licorice. The bouquet was so captivating it took an effort to actually drink a swallow. I wasn't sure what to expect on the palate given the bouquet's charm, but was really impressed with this wine's structure, balance, and austerity. The attack shows all the elements of the bouquet to be sure, which lend the wine a flamboyant quality, however, the underlying structure is something to marvel at, particularly considering that I did not sense a drop off in structure or balance from the stellar Bordeaux.
This is approachable now, and an absolute pleasure to drink, but I think it will drink well for at least another ten years. An amazing wine!
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thankfully this bottle is in its prime...beautiful translucent ruby color...strawberry, sandalwood and spice nose...luscious fresh red fruits explode on palate and heighten nose...long persistent velvety finish...rivals a great french burgundy
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An intoxicating Nebbiolo nose with a palate of strawberries, mocha, and a nice lingering sweetness. There was some mature tones in the color. It's hard to believe this is so open and approachable for a 13 year old Barolo, but that's why I went with the 2000 instead of another 1999 or 2001. Plenty of structure here and this isn't going downhill anytime soon.
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Had over two hours with dinner at Fiola. Paired with foie gras appetizer, tagliatelle with boar ragu, and a veal chop. Paired relatively well with all dishes, especially the pasta. Expressive, beautiful nose with hints of rose, truffles, violets, and a hint of cherry. Medium bodied with red fruits still present with the beginnings of the more tertiary flavors barolo is known for on the midpalate and a hint of oxidation on the long (30-40 second) finish. It's drinking beautifully now with a short decant, but don't think it's going anywhere downhill soon, so feel free to hold on longer if you value tertiary flavors more than fruit.
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Decanted 2 hrs, consumed the following 3. Very Slight browning at the rim. I'm going to disagree with some of the tasters and say this needs another 3-5yrs. It seems to be in a transition phase where it's just starting to get some secondary but is still mostly closed. There's still plenty of fruity extract, and good acidity. Although the alcohol was more noticeable than than I prefer, it wasn't really distracting. I'll wait 3-5 yrs to try another. 91+?
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From K&L. No formal notes. The cork was saturated up 25 percent. 2 hr decant. Amazing aromatics, lengthy finish. Met all my expectations for my first granbussia. I see no reason to rush on opening these. Will wait another 3-5 years before opening another. Make sure to stand this up for a week before decanting if you don't like fine grained sediment.
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This second bottle was not as good as the previous one but stile a nice glass of vine! The nose was a bit to evolved and this interrupted the showing of the wine because it was shoving some madeira-character that totally killed the fruit on the nose. The Palet was light and balanced but without the fruit once again the wine seemed a bit week and the finish was gone quickly so I guess this was on the downside of its life!
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This wine was a delight but it clearly shoved tones of age especially on the nose where there was some mud and a hint of wet paper but the violet tones and the light-red fruit still showed with a lovely balance making the nose extremely elegant and classy! The Palet was full body and had a hint of heat but is was still tight and balanced from the acidity. The finish was not the biggest but it was still smooth and round and elegant but this is not a wine that will last for much longer so drink up.
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Tasted blind side by side with its 1997 sibling. Decanted 90 minutes. Shoe polish, coffee and raspberry. Very smooth and silky. Really too young and primary now, with black/red fruit dominating the palate.
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Aldo Conterno Tasting @ IWM - Served after the 2006 Romirasco, 2007 Cicala and Colonnello, another very good wine in its own right, but I thought it slightly trailed the others, not quite as complex or interesting, showed the characteristics of the ripe vintage
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A nice Barolo, not quite worth the price though. The bouquet was out of this world. A perfect nose. Amazing purity of Nebbiolo fruit with balsamic notes, earthy loam, black tea, dried fruits and crushed flowers. Very aromatic and potent.
It seemed to be fading on the palate – seemed to be drinking on par with all other 2000 Barolo, which seems to be less age worthy than originally guessed. The nose did not match the palate in freshness or flavors. Tasted like a tired old Barolo with little life left in it.
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Nose shows a viscous syrup of sweet, dark red fruit. Not heavy on the palate but the wine lacks freshness and the oak has not fully integrated. Tannic & a bit out of balance. I think this wine just needs more time to get its act together. No denying the dense fruit.
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Barolo Dinner (Paese Restaurant, Toronto): Decanted 2 hours. Medium-garnet colour. Nose of cherries, roses, tar, earth, leather. Medium-full bodied, with black cherries, orange peel, and red plums. Moderate-length finish, ~30s, with more red fruit and earth notes. Very interesting to try this wine again, as I tasted it from a barrel sample back in 2006. This wine is clearly still very, very young, and needs additional cellaring. 94+ points. Drink 2015-2022+.
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No notes taken. Decanted about three hours before serving on New Years Eve. Nothing like the previous bottle of this I had but still tasty. I'll hide the other bottle deep in the cellar in hopes that it will be better in the future.
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Dujac, Conterno, Casa Piena, Realm, SQN, Saxum (WSWOTY), Clos Mimi (Dante's): Decanted, but only for about 30 minutes. This is still quite young and needs plenty of time. It did not "mix" well with the other wines on the table and some found it weak in relation. I though it was gorgeous. Great nose of tar, roses, sour cherries and bit of funk. If also had a dusty quality that was difficult for some. Great silky texture. As the eveningprogressed it unwound. I wouldn't open up another bottle for 5 years and 15 would be just fine.
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Taste at Elysian. Left in the decanter from the night before. Still showing really well. Rustic red fruit with some tarry, rusty nail qualities. Palate is delicate and supple. Lighter bodied with striking acidity, soft tannins and well balanced alcohol. Really nice. Maybe the overnight decant helped merit an extra point from the last review of this bottling.
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A Providence, Rhode Island Offline (Blue Grotto, Cigar Master's): The 2000 Aldo Conterno, Barolo Granbussia, showed candied red fruit with cedar, leather, crushed fall leaves and a seductive Christmas spice on the nose. On the palate, it was full-bodied and juicy with ripe strawberry, tobacco, licorice and spice. The finish was long, with red fruit, yet clean, showing silky tannin. This is an approachable bottle now, but it still shows a balance that promises many years of good drinking and, with all this ripe fruit, might one day be a truly classic Barolo.
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Outstanding. Firm yet well-integrated tannins provide a strong grip on a very long and wonderful finish. Beautiful color. The structure and spine promise great things for those with patience.
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Had it with Kobe Beef. Unbelievable. Perfect Ruby color. Nose was a vanilla taffy wrapper. Taste was amazing. Perfect ripe cherries that went on forever. Every taste got better and better
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Wow, a real treat. This wine is produced from the best vineyards in the best vintages and is no joke. The nose is amazingly floral and elegant with truffle, plum, and dark berry. On the palate the wine is complex and alive with tobacco, licorice, spice, red fruits with impeccable balance and finesse and a long, thought provoking finish. Did I mention, wow?
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Light ruby/brick color. Bright cherries and a little mint on the nose. More fruit driven wine than the 1999, mostly cherries... Medium+ body, medium+ tannin, medium+ acid. Long finish, but simple wine. Winemaker said it was a more "charming" vintage, not my style.
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Tasting Group Dinner - Piedmont (Our House): Very ripe, intense dark berry fruit on the nose. The palate is equally intense yet impeccably balanced, bursting with ripe raspberry/blackberry fruit and flowers. The primal fruit masks a lot of tannin and structure. With air, this began to show quite a bit of new oak and an almost pruny, Amarone-like character. An infant. Declicious.
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Piedmont at Siggy's: One whiff tells you that this wine features extremely ripe fruit. The smell is dominated by piercing and pure black fruit aromas that are just on the right side of the threshold for VA/nail polish. Secondary aromas of earth, tar, nuts and mineral fill in to make this complex and interesting. The taste is equally pure and delights with a fruit driven melange of liquor of black fruit, licorice, tar and earth. No oak discernable at all. The flavor intensity is really spectacular from the attack through mid-palate and finish. Just awesome intensity. Surprisingly well structured -- given the purity of the fruit. Great finish. I kept thinking '97 Harlan while I tasted this (but with the VA in check). This is a special wine.
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Medium-dark garnet colour with orange and ruby flecks. Aromas of cinnamon, cherry, almonds, currant, roses, and tar. Full-bodied, amazing texture. Screams "Barolo," and has notes of almonds, cherry, earth, and hints of truffle on the palate. Long, long finish, 60+s, with replays through from the palate. Seamless. 97+ points.
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1/20/2024 - bjlcrucrazy Likes this wine: 96 Points
unreal with food at Churchills
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11/23/2023 - whitmanlholt Likes this wine: 94 Points
Popped and poured. This is a pale red tilting to orange wine with a meaningful amount of sediment at the end of the bottle (enough that I should have decanted). The nose is highly expressive and fragrant, displaying rosehips, crushed leaves, beef bouillon cubes, and black cherry. In the mouth, the wine is crisp and focused, highlighting assorted red fruits and the overall structure of the wine. The finish is moderately long and juicy, with fully absorbed tannins and an echo of the earlier autumnal aspects. Overall, I found this to be a beautiful, pure wine – it is showing great right now and was an excellent choice for Thanksgiving. 94 points.
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11/14/2023 - DarinC Likes this wine: 97 Points
Acquired from the K&L offer in 2012. Decanted and consumed over two hours with dinner. Absolutely gorgeous classic Barolo notes of tar, roses, sweet red fruit, with new leather, and a hint of menthol. Still youthful in color with minimal bricking. Plenty of richness and mellow acidity. Tannins are sweet and mostly resolved. Paired well with a variety of foods. Truly great from nose to finish. Was great right away and didn't need the decant. Don't hesitate to open one soon!
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11/9/2023 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 92 Points
At prime, no need for a decant. Enticing aromatics of dark chocolate, cherries and a touch of menthol. Loads of cherry and licorice on the palate with a touch of black olive and balsam. Good concentration. The oak works pretty well here, if not a style a prefer.
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9/30/2023 - AudunG wrote: 90 Points
Aromas of caramel, tar and flower, with the Nebbiolo fruit shining through the dominating oak aromas. Concentrated and impressive, but too woody for me.
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8/22/2023 - randyjc wrote: 97 Points
This wine is completely mature and absolutely gorgeous. Did not decant because when I opened it wasn’t needed. As to the wine, it is spectacular. aromatics are bright red cherry, a bit of tar and pine. Gorgeous . In the mouth, still lively but across the years the acidity has mellowed. The wine is supple and sensuous. Ripe cherry, a hint of tar, spice and a finish topped off by fine, caressing tannins. I have had the pleasure of dozens and dozens of Baroli and this one is easily in the top five. Last bottle. Sadly nostalgic.
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4/16/2023 - johnh1001 wrote: 93 Points
A little more dusty and subdued than my last bottle
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1/25/2023 - davudvl Likes this wine: 94 Points
Beautiful fruit and flowers on the nose. Smooth tannins, medium acidity, and long finish with fruit, leather, and smoke. Decanted for about 45 minutes and drank over 2 hours.
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11/13/2022 - wineappellation Likes this wine: 95 Points
Tasted blind, guessed 2000-2003 Barolo Risv. Slowox 18hours. Showy multifaced aromatics, from dried flowers, concentrated red fruits, smoky, leather to wild herbs, deep earthy tone savory tarry characters. Round and velvet already, it is so coherent from start to finish with the flavours echoing on the mid palate & the lifting finale. Beautiful and ready now.
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8/9/2021 - acheng wrote:
A wonderful granbussia cut from same cloth as the 01 granbussia tonight. Started out lacking in focus compared to the 01 but caught up at the end of the evening. Overall, missing a bit of the intensity and concentration of the 01.
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7/3/2021 - Tudz Drkl Likes this wine:
Sorry folks we didn’t take notes - a crime! This was true though: it was fantastic, smooth tannins, fresh bright red thru dark fruits with lots of mushroom, floral and spicy notes. Balance was spot on and it was one of the favorites of a night of many special wines. Get it if you can
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4/27/2021 - Nanda wrote: 94 Points
Barolo at RPM Steak (RPM Steak - Chicago, IL): Explosive layered nose of cherries, balsamico, dark chocolate, mint and new leather. Palate has sweet red cherry with balsamico for days. Broad, rich and intense. Wow.
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4/14/2021 - WoodieBayArea wrote: 93 Points
beautiful wine... no notes but couldn't help but remember folks were gaga over it... as was I
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1/16/2021 - Cmainardi wrote:
There was just a bit of taint in this (mildly corked) to diminish its overall satisfaction
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1/1/2021 - s******n Likes this wine: 93 Points
2007 Sarmassa vs 2000 Granbussia:
- Beide Weine noch konzentriert in der Farbe. Ganz leichte Brauntönung beim Granbussia.
- Schon in der Nase mit viel Komplexität. Kirsche. Granbussia noch mit etwas mehr süßlicher Frucht. Erdbeere. Und auch etwas Alterungsnoten. Pflaume. Sarmassa dagegen mit klarer Kirsche.
- Granbussia erdig und richtig Monteforte. Dabei aber schwebend fein und unglaublich lang. Super!
- Sarmassa total gradlinig und klar. Noch interessanter, weil noch richtige Frucht. Schwebt auch über dem Boden. Wahnsinn!
- Zwei grandioses Weine. Wirklich unterschiedlich. Wenn es bei solchen Weinen einen Gewinner gibt, dann heute ganz knapp Sarmassa für mich.
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12/23/2020 - Fuel55 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted 3 hours. Sweet, full, round, smoky - figs, menthol and hints of licorice and plums. Barely showing its 20 years. Only the dried fruits notes hint at age. Medium, full bodied and very long on the palate. Definitely no rush to drink this one. Easily good for another 10-15 years.
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12/9/2020 - mjdixon Likes this wine: 92 Points
Came alive after 3 hrs decant
Had a plummy over ripe nose and initial taste that I’m not a big fan of but opened up really deep and complex fruit
Can think of better tho
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11/26/2020 - Cbailey501 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Wow! Opened 5 hours in advance of tasting, no decant. Classic aged Barolo. Garnet/rust in color. Nose full of dried cherries and plums, potpourri, tar, tea leaves, earth, leather. Lots of acid, high, but refined tannins, full-bodied and a longgggg finish of leather, dried fruit, earth, savory that goes on and on....I wish I had more. Maybe one of the best Barolos I've ever had.
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10/30/2020 - diggydan wrote: 96 Points
The first of my big blowout A Conternos. This is a wine to luxuriate over.
Beautiful barolo nose, soft but powerful body, palate of tar, leather, and black cherry. Long as a summer's day.
Just beautiful.
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8/29/2020 - johnh1001 wrote: 95 Points
Drank twice this month. Loads of rich plummy fruit, roses and hint of tar. Takes 1 hour to get going but is wonderful also on the second night. Fully open, youthful with great balance and plush finish.
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8/19/2020 - devraj Likes this wine: 94 Points
Ruby red with slight bricking around the rim. Whiff of VA that gives way to a deep spicy, floral and balsamic infused nose of dark red fruits, smoky herbs. A full bodied palate shows sweet and savory mix of smoky dark red fruits, hint of brown sauce, good acidity, fine grained tannins and a long floral tinged finish. Nice!
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1/24/2020 - J @ y H @ c k wrote: 94 Points
In April 2015, I wrote a note that said this wine was five years from its peak. I under-estimated. I had had late meetings and dinners all week, so my wife decided to open this after I had been having business dinners with wine for about 4 days in a row without her. I didn't really want any, but I'm glad I decided to take a glass. Still not at its peak but at the point where it is just starting to show the complexity of age, dark brooding red fruit with just a bit of sweet cherry poking its nose out. Classic nebbiolo nose of violets and herbs/ A touch of earth and road tar with forest floor and mushrooms.
This is really really good and will get much better. I accidentally placed two orders for this wine at K&L years ago when I lost track of the orders I had already placed and their inventory dump lasted for a while. I'm certain glad that I did. I have 3 more and I think I should target 2023, 2026 and as long as my palate still lives for the next three bottles.
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12/27/2019 - DaneM wrote: flawed
Extreme TCA - undrinkable, very disappointing.
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12/19/2019 - sunnylea57 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Terrific showing. Vibrant fruit in an open knit, full and pleasing palate. One for savouring.
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11/13/2019 - SeaSmoke wrote: flawed
This bottle smelled like stewed fruit. I suspect it suffered from getting too hot at some point. Was gifted bottle from a friend. Very disappointing.
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7/26/2019 - burlingtonm Likes this wine: 90 Points
Tasting of 2000 Barolos at Wine Watch. Underwhelmed considering the reputation of this wine although it did improve in the glass but generally somewhat disappointing. Could be that it was still too young and needed more time but feel it should have delivered more at 19 years.
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7/20/2019 - Bordeaux_Jon wrote: flawed
Corked and muddled. Might have had a couple flaws. Much lighter color than the 2000 Giacomo Conterno Francia. That seemed surprising and might be premature aging. Bottle looked in excellent shape though, and cork too, until I smelled the inside side and got a huge whiff of TCA. Still had underlying roses, tar, and dried red fruits. Nobody was a fan though. Last Aldo was a 1999 Cicala also corked. Not feeling good about my other bottles.
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5/26/2019 - WoodieBayArea wrote:
NR as it was ten days ago, but I remember this being really good, definitely not modern (at least not this btl), loads of structure and took a day or two to allow some fruit out of the cage -- I actually think this will be better in ten years
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2/3/2019 - RonniePiemonte wrote: 90 Points
Powerful nose. Dark color. Dark and stout on the palate. Dry cherry, cinnamon. Lingering finish without distinction. Gave it 3 hours in the decanter but it doesn't want to give it up. Lacks expression in favor of a feral presence.
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12/25/2018 - mgreitzer Likes this wine:
Drank two hours after opening, and again the next day. Bacon, mushrooms and brick. Very little fruit, but notes of dried cherry and currants. Opened up more on day 2, so I’d decant for 3-4 hours.
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11/17/2018 - Rollerball wrote: 94 Points
Honestly took three hours in the decanter to open up. After an hour and again after two I feared a huge mistake, that it was actually deteriorating, that we should have pnp’d. But then a depth and sweetness emerged from a heaven within. On arrival finally it’s open, soft, and alert, forming a flavor and textural echo to the chickpea and lentil curried dal. Ridiculously darling. Like irresistible. One of those wines that clicks and then ... you’re captivated. Don’t know why but there’s something about this that leaves you as satisfied as a chocolate chip cookie.
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10/9/2018 - Bob H wrote:
From a 5 liter bottle this past Friday, this was absolutely singing - and this from a guy who is not high on either Aldo Conterno or the 2000 vintage. None of that raisined fruit you get sometimes from producers that didn't "master" the heat of this vintage. Tasted over several hours with consistently outstanding results. I haven't tried this from a 750, so not sure how much of a role the large format played, but quite possibly the best Barolo from this vintage I have ever had the pleasure of drinking.
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8/20/2018 - Ettocs wrote: 91 Points
Tasted for Kaitlin's going to college dinner. Corrected error on first score. Wine was quite good and improved over the course of the meal.
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7/6/2018 - randyjc wrote: 94 Points
Beautifully mature Barolo. Ripe cherry, a bit of menthol on the nose. Floral and a bit of alcohol. Mouthfeel is exquisitely soft but immediately spicy - the acidity is still lively and focuses the center of the wine. Flavors are black cherry, stewed fruit (red fruit) with prominent acidity carrying into a lengthy finish that reveals tar at about the 15 - 30 second mark. This is a gorgeous wine. Plenty of life left but definitely in the drinking window.
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4/6/2018 - redknife Likes this wine: 96 Points
At zucca with Phillip and mike
Decanted for an hr. Cork was dry
Very smooth, creamy delicious wine
Drinking very nicely and will last at this level 5-7 years easily
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12/22/2017 - KillerBs Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wine is ready to drink, with a beautiful nose, secondary earthy and meaty characteristics are showing through. Drink in the next 3 to 5 years!
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9/16/2017 - Brohan Polanski wrote: 93 Points
Pretty ok
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8/7/2017 - il_diavolo wrote: flawed
advanced, oxidized. haven't owned it for long so likely prior bad storage
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2/23/2017 - redknife Likes this wine: 93 Points
Small group with F and J. No formal notes
Quick decant very nice and with plenty of life ahead
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1/22/2017 - ledwards wrote: 94 Points
Very similar profile to the past few bottles over past years. Masculine notes of tar, leather and charcoal combined with mature strawberries and a touch of black currant. Acid definitely present and shows best with food. Still many, many good years ahead.
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11/24/2016 - Rani Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tasted blind next to the 2001. Lovely, plummy nose, bright red fruit and roses. Very fine tannins, earthy and long. Great.
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6/19/2016 - up4wine wrote: 96 Points
I stand(sitting now) in awe of this wine. The most memorable part is the big, rich finish on the palate that just never ends. It leaves the mouth alive with just the right tang of the fruit. The nose had wonderful cherry, cinnamon spice followed by anise, and a rich cocoa that I do not usually associate with Barolo. At 15 years, this wine has really come together from beginning to end. The son was even impressed, but was only willing to give it a 94.
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5/18/2016 - redknife Likes this wine: 93 Points
45 min decant at le provencale with the group
WOTN for many
Just a great barolo drinking very nicely with room for improvement with further cellaring
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3/29/2016 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Casual Dinner with Friends (Spiaggia - Chicago IL): Agree completely with johnh1001. Too flashy to start, too flabby on finish. Inconsistent with previous bottles.
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3/29/2016 - johnh1001 wrote:
Totally disappointing tonight. At first this seemed over done with too much oak and ripe plummy fruit. Overtime this dissolved into a port-like creature. Not consistent with my past experiences.
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2/20/2016 - Puteljen! Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dinner with Finnish company (Ekenhov): I have been looking forward to this bottle for several years, and now's the time. Mushroom risotto with ducksbreast should give the wine ample opportunity to shine. 60 minute decant. Transparent red, bricking at the edges. The nose is initally a bit subdued, but gradually we get roses, cherry, strawberry, cedar and a hint of tar. Not very intense, but beautifully detailed. On the palate also rather elegant, with obvious signs of maturity: mushrooms, dried roses, etc. Fairly elegant structure, but still quite powerfull tannins, which are perhaps not fully integrated. Medium+ acidity. Good length with lemon, and fading red fruits. Still quite youthfull, probably has a decade or two of life left.
Really good, even excellent under normal circs, but perhaps still a disappointment, if a small one. I was sort of hoping for that extra magic.
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2/15/2016 - guitarkim wrote: flawed
Bad bottle. No cork, no oxidation, but not right.
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2/5/2016 - AudunG wrote: 89 Points
Caramel, tar and flower aromas. The nebbiolo fruit shines through the oak. Smooth and opulent in the mouth with a woody finish.
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1/16/2016 - prasm Likes this wine: 94 Points
Opened two hours, recorked, brought to dinner at Grey Plume in Omaha where it was decanted for an hour and consumed over 2 hours. Nose: Medium-plus expressiveness, sweet tobacco, fresh tar, saddle leather, and choke cherry. Palate: Medium bodied, cherry and tobacco attack with just the right amount of acid appearing through the mid-palate to balance out perfectly resulting in a stimulating mid-palate lift, earthiness and spice join in the back-end contributing to a lengthy finish. The balance and flavor integration during this showing tell me this wine is ready now. It paired perfectly with the Ox Tail ravioli and even performed well with the chicken roulade dishes the Mrs and I enjoyed.
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12/17/2015 - cardsandwine Likes this wine:
Superb showing of this wine today. Enticing bouquet with an intense, rich palate of ripe fruit that kept evolving with each sip. Magnificent finish.
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12/5/2015 - bablues wrote: 95 Points
Annual Christmas Wine Dinner and Cellar Raid (Naperville, IL): Didn't take detailed notes. Part of Christmas wine dinner and cellar raid. Didn't blow me away like the first time I tried it (11/26/2009). Perhaps a dormant stage? One left to try in a few years
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11/24/2015 - galenico Does not like this wine: 90 Points
50 ANNI AIS PIEMONTE (TORINO MUSEO DELL' AUTOMOBILE): Da 5litri Magnum. Naso invitante, traspare l' annata generosa in un profilo di frutta matura, zuccherata e macerata. Legno perfettamente integrato e aromi molto suadenti.
La bocca non conferma le attese, è simile al profilo legnoso e imballato di Voerzio. Scomposto e banale.
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11/14/2015 - Chaz Bham wrote:
An evening of Barolo and screening of The Barolo Boys (Old World Deli, Bellingham, WA): Thanks WST for this nice bottle, open and expressive tonight. The palate was the most immediately complex of the lineup, with lots of elements of earth and mushroom overlying the balanced red fruit. This bottle seemed youthful and adolescent, and I believe this has years to go at this level. Delicious.
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11/14/2015 - WST Likes this wine:
One of my three favorites in a tasting of some giants. Double decanted 8 hours before the event. A little softer and drinkable than a few of the young classicists.
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10/26/2015 - SaxWine Likes this wine: 94 Points
Great wine! Lots of earthy notes, leather, tobacco, dried fruits. Tannins have mellowed but still prevalent. Great tasting now but will last at least another ten years.
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10/20/2015 - randyjc wrote: 93 Points
This wine is a beauty, aging gracefully and well into its drinking window. It tastes older than it looks as there is only a moderate amount of bricking. But the flavors are deep and nuanced and actually tasting more like a 25 year old Barolo than 15. Great stuff but no reason to,wait though I was aggressive about aeration and decanting.
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10/5/2015 - johnh1001 wrote: 94 Points
More open and ready. Love the plush plum, dark fruit, floral and subtle tar notes. Outstanding balance and silky texture.
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10/4/2015 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 93 Points
Mike G and Berto visit Cleveland (Italian wines)+ (Willoughby, Ohio): A wine I have had a few times before. It is outstanding, but I always hope for more. In some vintages, this wine hits the higher plateau but in this one, it seems to settle for merely outstanding. Guess I am greedy. On pouring it has this quality that there is something hiding in its depth. So, I left some in a glass for an hour and returned. Pretty much the same, no growth and no deterioration. In any event, this was outstanding. It seems to be at peak. No hurry, I am sure it has a decade or two left, but its not getting any better IMO. Ruby in color. The nose has cherries, dried cherries and just a touch of tar. On the palate, there is a nice complexity here. Cherries layered with slight forest floor notes. Some anise. Worked great with some truffle pasta. This was my last bottle, but I would be very curious to revisit in ten years.
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10/3/2015 - Uglypinga Likes this wine:
I like the nose. Its got what i can only describe as very mature violets. The palate is lighter than I would have hoped. Still some nice red berries and some tannins still there
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9/8/2015 - MWiking wrote: 96 Points
Ett helt fantastiskt vin i min värld, BArolo som inte än nått det stora mognadsfönstret utan all primärfrukt finns där men det börjar slipas ner not något stort som inte riktigt är förlöst ännu, väldigt kompakt mörkt vin med härlig sirklig frukt, körsbär, mandel the apelsinskal och ett djup som kan få vem som helst att drunkna i detta vin. Fantastiskt!
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9/5/2015 - johnh1001 wrote: 93 Points
serious plum, roses and red fruit. Full and plush on the palate.
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8/9/2015 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 95 Points
The 2000 Aldo Conterno Granbussia pulls you in with a bouquet of dried roses, ripe strawberry, dusty spice, undergrowth, and cedar. On the palate, it is powerful with a push and pull of tannin and acidity, yet still open and giving. Intense, tart red fruits and spice saturate the senses, leaving hints of savory herbs and wild berry through the finish. Enjoyable quite now, yet still youthful, with many years of development ahead, even with the ripeness of the vintage.
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7/3/2015 - 560 B&W Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted. In a great place but many years to come. Balance with power. 14.5%
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5/5/2015 - whitmanlholt Likes this wine:
Brought to dinner at Osteria Mozza. No formal notes, but this paired well with a range of dishes and had a great nose. It's in a good place now, particularly with food. If scoring, this likely would have been in the 94-95 point range.
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5/3/2015 - Not647f wrote:
Took to a very nice restaurant with a menu that promised to match well. We opted for the veal T-bone and gnocchi. We could have bought the 2001 Cicala at the restaurant for over $300, so the corkage for this slightly older and slightly more prestigious wine, from a slightly less vaunted vintage, was a no-brainer. (Note, if it had been the SAME wine I would not bring to the restaurant. That's bad etiquette.) I have heard the 2000s will not be as long lived, so 15 seemed like a good age to crack this. And while it might last, I cannot see how it can get a whole lot better. Opened clean, fresh, great nose of the usual tar and roses, not too lean but taut with acid, and absolutely polished tannins. (Part of the reason I wouldn't wait forever if you still have some.) Over night it rounded out a bit, gained gentle spice of cinnamon and vanilla, which Robert Conterno assured me is not oak aging but part of nebbiolo. (Glad that his cousin's estate provided the proof this time, but I've had strongly cinnamon-like G. Conterno, too.) Finish was gorgeous, ethereal and light but persistent, like a dream that lingers out of reach. Waxing poetic? Guilty, but this wine earned it.
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4/22/2015 - J @ y H @ c k wrote: 92 Points
Poured into decanted at 1 pm. POured back into bottle at 5 pm to go to restaurant. Opened and drunk at Keens Chophouse from 5:45 to 7:15. Nebbiolo flavors but still a baby. Violets and red fruit on the nose. Earth, road tar, violet and sweet red fruit on the palate. Color is a bit light, but not Burg light. Very smooth and soft mouth presentation. Luscious and sexy wine. No real signs of age. I suspect there's another 5-10 years before it approaches its peak. A wonderful wine.
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4/15/2015 - acyso wrote: 90 Points
Got served a small taste of this blind. Very meaty and spicy on the nose, with some animale and meat juices on the palate and soft and light tannins palate led me to think this was a good Southern Rhone. In the words of Lana Kane, "nooooooooope!" Needless to say, I was pretty surprised when I learned the identity.
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2/2/2015 - andtheodor wrote: 94 Points
Couldn't be more different compared to the Giacosa next to it. Much cooler toned, plum, menthol, cranberry, cocoa, some oak still apparent. Saturating and penetrating, immensely pleasurable.
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1/27/2015 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:
Seriously good. Opened Monday morning at 11am for a tasting the next night, circa 7pm. Aerated to decanter for 3 hours on Monday, returned to bottle and re-corked until serving on Tuesday (vastly improved from the starting point when the cork was first pulled). Medium garnet, clear, bright, and just a hint of brown at the watery rim. Maraschinos, red floral, big hit of roses, baked choco donut, brown sugar. Incredibly complex on the nose, and no less fascinating on the palate. Mostly red fruited, this gains intensity all the way through night #2, less so on night #3, but still a knockout. Brilliant structure. A joy to behold, share and enjoy.
Night #3: less brown sugar than last night. Instead, soil, scorched earth, rosewood, pretty cherry and a touch of plum. Added weight this night, too, but also pumped up the acids and tannins. Another 7-10 years of flawless drinking ahead, at least.
Served non-blind.
https://italianwine.blog/
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1/3/2015 - johnh1001 wrote: 94 Points
Another fabulous bottle. Starts out a bit angular but improves quickly.
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11/20/2014 - Burgundy Al wrote: 93 Points
Wine Tasted at Acker Auction (Bowery Hotel - New York, NY): Tasting, brief note. Roses, red cherry and licorice, this is prototypically Barolo. Entering its peak drinking window now, this should be wonderful for two decades.
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11/2/2014 - up4wine wrote: 94 Points
Spectacular Barolo. Decanted for 2.5 hours. Hit all the right notes on the nose with a particularly beautiful anise and spice about 4 hours into the bottle. Long, smooth finish with extremely good balance and integration. Tannins were soft and fruit was bright.
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10/17/2014 - Chaz Bham wrote: 92 Points
Juicy red fruit on the nose, boldly fragrant. At times, the tar element of Barolo can be overstated, but this is a distinct characteristic of the back palate. Well balanced earthy and mushroom tones. This seemed to be only at the initial phase of its drinking window, and I would expect this to continue to improve. No rush on this particular bottle.
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8/1/2014 - Rezy13 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Friday Night Double Blind Semi-Mondo $80+ (Bin 75): Dark crimson core with orange rim, good clarity; roses, tar, cherry, pure, cinnamon, menthol, licorice, powerful, classic; powerful on the palate, some age, tannic but not hard, classic, really long finish; I was on Cannubi with the amazing aromatics and great balance, this was a wow wine.
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7/27/2014 - johnh1001 wrote: 94 Points
Lovely nose of raspberry, plum, cherry, vanilla and some blue fruit. This all carried through to the elegantly structured palate. Smooth, round, with just the right amount of grip thanks to the fine tannin. This is delicious today, but will no doubt improve.
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7/10/2014 - guitarkim Likes this wine: 96 Points
Aldo Conterno Barolo Riserva Gran Bussia 2000.
Dette var strålende! Fortsatt ung, men svært tilgjengelig. Dekantert ca to timer.
Klassiske nebbioloaromaer med kirsebær, roseblader, lakris, tjære, friske urter og litt jord. Svært fyldig vin, men samtidig svært elegant. Strålende syre og finkornede, tilgjengelige, men samtidig oppstrammende tanniner. Utrolig presis balanse. Følger opp med en klokkeklar sur/søt kirsebærfruktighet, strålende lengde og en hint av sødme i avslutningen.
Matchen med indrefilet av hjort var perfekt. Vinen ble som en forlengelse av viltkjøttet, eller var det omvendt?
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7/9/2014 - dchoo077 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Had about an hour of air before we really started drinking this in earnest. Expressive red fruit and floral aromatics with some vanilla. Full bodied on the palate with very concentrated fruit. Mouth coating tannins leading into a long finish. Starting to get approachable but better in 5 years.
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7/8/2014 - kwl Likes this wine: 92 Points
Drinking nicely after decanting for an hour. Cherries, flowers and tobacco on the nose. Tannins have started to soften while still supported by refreshing acidity. Still youthful, will probably age well for years to come.
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5/19/2014 - Number51 wrote:
There is a good underlying structure to this Barolo, and it is well polished, which makes it drinkable today. Decanting is certainly beneficial as it is tight and showed better on the second day. (I kept pouring from the bottle over 5 hours, then just put the cork back on the half full bottle without any vacuum pump or argon gas, and placed it in the cellar. I drank over another 4 hours on the second day.)
It's rich with dark fruits, some rustic earth, and a hint of high quality balsamic vinegar.
While this was good, I just wasn't blown away. In fact, I was a little disappointed given its price point. Objectively, I thought it was about 92 points, but I want to be screaming at least 94 points when I pay this much.
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4/12/2014 - svpandae wrote: 94 Points
Double-decant 6 hours, regular decant 1-2 hours. Improved over time. Sour cherry, rich and full. Excellent wine that will last for many years to come.
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3/4/2014 - Lype Likes this wine:
Sweet mouthfeel, good fruit, balsamic, fairly high acidity.
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3/4/2014 - pismo45 wrote: 93 Points
We had this some months ago but I still remember it. Big and dark fruit and already drinking nicely. Wish I had another bottle.
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11/27/2013 - Tom Warden wrote: 96 Points
Beautiful Barolo...absolutely delicious...everything in balance and poised to get even better over the next few years. Glad that I drank two of my four bottles now and have the others to taste in 2017.
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11/24/2013 - wineotim wrote: 93 Points
Light brick color with bright, sharp, acidity. Very juicy Madeira like aromas and fruit. Fantastic treat. Tasted at B-21 Holiday tasting.
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10/19/2013 - indiscriminate palate wrote: 93 Points
Slow ox for for a few hours and then decanted for 1-2 hours. A sip on open revealed bright black fruit and loads of relatively fine, approachable tannin. With air, revealed more savory notes, though this is still quite primary and fruity, with earth and savory notes clearly playing second fiddle for now. Yes, it is relatively modernist, interventionist, fruit-forward, or whatever one wants to call Aldo Conterno, but it is very nice juice. Approachable now with sufficient air but with plenty of reason to give them another five-ten years.
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10/19/2013 - salil wrote: 94 Points
A little tight and restrained at first but this really opens out beautifully with time in the decanter with a lovely savoury aroma developing. There's a core of rich red fruit here framed by surprisingly mature earthy, smoky, truffle and tarry elements, and while there's still some grainy tannin lingering on the palate, it's surprisingly accessible to drink now with great purity and length to the flavours.
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9/25/2013 - lepetitchateau wrote: 87 Points
Some pruny, medicinal notes. Some hints of Barolo but only a bit, much more sensation of Aldo Conterno's hand as opposed to the terrior. This smooths out with some time but will never be special. (Commerce)
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9/1/2013 - rmodak wrote: 93 Points
This was still youthful with bright red cherry, vanilla notes and creamy texture. The floral and herbal components were in the background with rich fruit, medium tannins and fine acidity taking the lead. This will surely get better in the next 5-10 years.
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8/7/2013 - capacious wrote: 91 Points
I liked this and thought it was ready altho early in its life. Went surprisingly well alongside Branzino
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7/21/2013 - tthomas wrote:
Stood upright in cellar for a week. Pulled the cork at 10AM and left bottle in cellar. Poured in the decanter at 3PM and served with osso bucco at 7:30. Wonderful wine that is ready to drink now given sufficient air. Deep barolo nose of roses, tar and dark fruit. Medium+ body, red fruit, dark fruit and licorice with resolved tannin, nice acidity and a long, long finish. Just singing.
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6/22/2013 - ledwards wrote: 92 Points
Popped and poured- what a mistake. It was good but alot of over ripe strawberries and not as deep as those drank previously...90.. Saved half the bottle, drank day 2- significantly better. The Granbussia I know and love. Complexity, depth, earth tones, leather and balanced fruit. 94. I averaged the 2 above...
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6/12/2013 - Motz wrote: 98 Points
This wine immediately followed a 2000 Château Léoville Las Cases, a 2007 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau and two other white wines were sampled before that, which made for a fascinating wine experience. This Barolo was my WOTN!
Over the long haul, the Bordeaux should be equally charming, but this Barolo is just stunning! It features an intoxicating bouquet of fruit and berry blossoms, ripe dark berries, high quality pipe tobacco, what might be described as the smell of 'sweet crude oil' or more simply, tar, cooking spices (savory and sweet), and licorice. The bouquet was so captivating it took an effort to actually drink a swallow. I wasn't sure what to expect on the palate given the bouquet's charm, but was really impressed with this wine's structure, balance, and austerity. The attack shows all the elements of the bouquet to be sure, which lend the wine a flamboyant quality, however, the underlying structure is something to marvel at, particularly considering that I did not sense a drop off in structure or balance from the stellar Bordeaux.
This is approachable now, and an absolute pleasure to drink, but I think it will drink well for at least another ten years. An amazing wine!
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5/13/2013 - BUBBA DAWG Likes this wine: 93 Points
thankfully this bottle is in its prime...beautiful translucent ruby color...strawberry, sandalwood and spice nose...luscious fresh red fruits explode on palate and heighten nose...long persistent velvety finish...rivals a great french burgundy
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5/13/2013 - BUBBA DAWG wrote:
Unfortunately "corked"; hoping remaining fair better
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5/10/2013 - FYC wrote:
An intoxicating Nebbiolo nose with a palate of strawberries, mocha, and a nice lingering sweetness. There was some mature tones in the color. It's hard to believe this is so open and approachable for a 13 year old Barolo, but that's why I went with the 2000 instead of another 1999 or 2001. Plenty of structure here and this isn't going downhill anytime soon.
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3/10/2013 - skp88 wrote: 95 Points
Fabulous earthy nose. Light bodied and full of flavor
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2/13/2013 - Vstalam wrote: 95 Points
Had over two hours with dinner at Fiola. Paired with foie gras appetizer, tagliatelle with boar ragu, and a veal chop. Paired relatively well with all dishes, especially the pasta. Expressive, beautiful nose with hints of rose, truffles, violets, and a hint of cherry. Medium bodied with red fruits still present with the beginnings of the more tertiary flavors barolo is known for on the midpalate and a hint of oxidation on the long (30-40 second) finish. It's drinking beautifully now with a short decant, but don't think it's going anywhere downhill soon, so feel free to hold on longer if you value tertiary flavors more than fruit.
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2/3/2013 - cardsandwine Likes this wine:
Opened but did not decant. Wine showed god balance and fruit but needed a few hours of decanting time. Will benefit from a few years of cellar time.
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1/19/2013 - DarinC wrote: 91 Points
Decanted 2 hrs, consumed the following 3. Very Slight browning at the rim. I'm going to disagree with some of the tasters and say this needs another 3-5yrs. It seems to be in a transition phase where it's just starting to get some secondary but is still mostly closed. There's still plenty of fruity extract, and good acidity. Although the alcohol was more noticeable than than I prefer, it wasn't really distracting. I'll wait 3-5 yrs to try another. 91+?
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12/25/2012 - gigmoney Likes this wine: 94 Points
From K&L. No formal notes. The cork was saturated up 25 percent. 2 hr decant. Amazing aromatics, lengthy finish. Met all my expectations for my first granbussia. I see no reason to rush on opening these. Will wait another 3-5 years before opening another. Make sure to stand this up for a week before decanting if you don't like fine grained sediment.
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7/22/2012 - Poggio Al vento wrote: 90 Points
This second bottle was not as good as the previous one but stile a nice glass of vine! The nose was a bit to evolved and this interrupted the showing of the wine because it was shoving some madeira-character that totally killed the fruit on the nose. The Palet was light and balanced but without the fruit once again the wine seemed a bit week and the finish was gone quickly so I guess this was on the downside of its life!
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7/15/2012 - Poggio Al vento wrote: 92 Points
This wine was a delight but it clearly shoved tones of age especially on the nose where there was some mud and a hint of wet paper but the violet tones and the light-red fruit still showed with a lovely balance making the nose extremely elegant and classy! The Palet was full body and had a hint of heat but is was still tight and balanced from the acidity. The finish was not the biggest but it was still smooth and round and elegant but this is not a wine that will last for much longer so drink up.
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12/31/2011 - Rani Likes this wine: 92 Points
Tasted blind side by side with its 1997 sibling. Decanted 90 minutes. Shoe polish, coffee and raspberry. Very smooth and silky. Really too young and primary now, with black/red fruit dominating the palate.
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12/19/2011 - EmilyE wrote: 90 Points
Good but not great.
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10/19/2011 - Federsin Likes this wine:
Aldo Conterno Tasting @ IWM - Served after the 2006 Romirasco, 2007 Cicala and Colonnello, another very good wine in its own right, but I thought it slightly trailed the others, not quite as complex or interesting, showed the characteristics of the ripe vintage
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9/26/2011 - Jack O'Brien wrote: 90 Points
A nice Barolo, not quite worth the price though. The bouquet was out of this world. A perfect nose. Amazing purity of Nebbiolo fruit with balsamic notes, earthy loam, black tea, dried fruits and crushed flowers. Very aromatic and potent.
It seemed to be fading on the palate – seemed to be drinking on par with all other 2000 Barolo, which seems to be less age worthy than originally guessed. The nose did not match the palate in freshness or flavors. Tasted like a tired old Barolo with little life left in it.
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7/14/2011 - nebbhead9 wrote: 94 Points
Nose shows a viscous syrup of sweet, dark red fruit. Not heavy on the palate but the wine lacks freshness and the oak has not fully integrated. Tannic & a bit out of balance. I think this wine just needs more time to get its act together. No denying the dense fruit.
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4/15/2011 - futronic wrote: 94 Points
Barolo Dinner (Paese Restaurant, Toronto): Decanted 2 hours. Medium-garnet colour. Nose of cherries, roses, tar, earth, leather. Medium-full bodied, with black cherries, orange peel, and red plums. Moderate-length finish, ~30s, with more red fruit and earth notes. Very interesting to try this wine again, as I tasted it from a barrel sample back in 2006. This wine is clearly still very, very young, and needs additional cellaring. 94+ points. Drink 2015-2022+.
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4/1/2011 - tooch wrote: flawed
Cooked.
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1/22/2011 - Dave Dalluge wrote:
No notes taken. Decanted about three hours before serving on New Years Eve. Nothing like the previous bottle of this I had but still tasty. I'll hide the other bottle deep in the cellar in hopes that it will be better in the future.
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11/21/2010 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 94 Points
Dujac, Conterno, Casa Piena, Realm, SQN, Saxum (WSWOTY), Clos Mimi (Dante's): Decanted, but only for about 30 minutes. This is still quite young and needs plenty of time. It did not "mix" well with the other wines on the table and some found it weak in relation. I though it was gorgeous. Great nose of tar, roses, sour cherries and bit of funk. If also had a dusty quality that was difficult for some. Great silky texture. As the eveningprogressed it unwound. I wouldn't open up another bottle for 5 years and 15 would be just fine.
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8/1/2010 - beezer6 wrote: 94 Points
Taste at Elysian.
Left in the decanter from the night before. Still showing really well.
Rustic red fruit with some tarry, rusty nail qualities. Palate is delicate and supple.
Lighter bodied with striking acidity, soft tannins and well balanced alcohol.
Really nice. Maybe the overnight decant helped merit an extra point from the last review of this bottling.
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6/30/2010 - flerve wrote:
Medium bodied, fruity but very complex with an awesome finish.
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5/1/2010 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 96 Points
A Providence, Rhode Island Offline (Blue Grotto, Cigar Master's): The 2000 Aldo Conterno, Barolo Granbussia, showed candied red fruit with cedar, leather, crushed fall leaves and a seductive Christmas spice on the nose. On the palate, it was full-bodied and juicy with ripe strawberry, tobacco, licorice and spice. The finish was long, with red fruit, yet clean, showing silky tannin. This is an approachable bottle now, but it still shows a balance that promises many years of good drinking and, with all this ripe fruit, might one day be a truly classic Barolo.
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1/24/2010 - pc1981 wrote:
Outstanding. Firm yet well-integrated tannins provide a strong grip on a very long and wonderful finish. Beautiful color. The structure and spine promise great things for those with patience.
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11/26/2009 - bablues wrote: 98 Points
Had it with Kobe Beef. Unbelievable. Perfect Ruby color. Nose was a vanilla taffy wrapper. Taste was amazing. Perfect ripe cherries that went on forever. Every taste got better and better
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11/11/2008 - foodandwineblog wrote: 96 Points
Wow, a real treat. This wine is produced from the best vineyards in the best vintages and is no joke. The nose is amazingly floral and elegant with truffle, plum, and dark berry. On the palate the wine is complex and alive with tobacco, licorice, spice, red fruits with impeccable balance and finesse and a long, thought provoking finish. Did I mention, wow?
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10/26/2008 - crimedog wrote: 91 Points
Poderi Aldo Conterno Tasting (B-21s in Tampa): Sat in glass for two hours.
Light ruby/brick color. Bright cherries and a little mint on the nose. More fruit driven wine than the 1999, mostly cherries... Medium+ body, medium+ tannin, medium+ acid. Long finish, but simple wine. Winemaker said it was a more "charming" vintage, not my style.
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5/12/2008 - beezer6 wrote: 93 Points
The Sorting Table / Glunz Grand Wine Tasting (Webster's Wine Bar - Chicago, IL): Tasted at the Sorting Table / Glunz event @ Webster's Wine Bar.
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1/30/2008 - Siggy wrote: 94 Points
Tasting Group Dinner - Piedmont (Our House): Very ripe, intense dark berry fruit on the nose. The palate is equally intense yet impeccably balanced, bursting with ripe raspberry/blackberry fruit and flowers. The primal fruit masks a lot of tannin and structure. With air, this began to show quite a bit of new oak and an almost pruny, Amarone-like character. An infant. Declicious.
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1/30/2008 - Dave Dalluge wrote: 96 Points
Piedmont at Siggy's: One whiff tells you that this wine features extremely ripe fruit. The smell is dominated by piercing and pure black fruit aromas that are just on the right side of the threshold for VA/nail polish. Secondary aromas of earth, tar, nuts and mineral fill in to make this complex and interesting. The taste is equally pure and delights with a fruit driven melange of liquor of black fruit, licorice, tar and earth. No oak discernable at all. The flavor intensity is really spectacular from the attack through mid-palate and finish. Just awesome intensity. Surprisingly well structured -- given the purity of the fruit. Great finish. I kept thinking '97 Harlan while I tasted this (but with the VA in check). This is a special wine.
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6/8/2006 - futronic wrote: 97 Points
Medium-dark garnet colour with orange and ruby flecks. Aromas of cinnamon, cherry, almonds, currant, roses, and tar. Full-bodied, amazing texture. Screams "Barolo," and has notes of almonds, cherry, earth, and hints of truffle on the palate. Long, long finish, 60+s, with replays through from the palate. Seamless. 97+ points.
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