Crimson red. Aromas of fig, tar, and hint of menthol at first. With time, orange peel aromas developed. Tannins are still very moderately firm, but with tagine of lamb this really paired well and was silky smooth.
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Dark crimson in color. 14.5% ABV. Gorgeous nose of red fruits, wet asphalt and roses. Medium body with strong acidity. Ample fruit and prominent tannins but showing well for a vintage that is on the decline. Plums, menthol and tobacco on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. Lacks the concentration to be truly special but a really nice showing nonetheless. Best over the next 2-3 years.
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No real redeeming quality to this wine. Rustic, hot, and removed from any elegance. Couldn't find pleasure in the first bottle, didn't find anything in my sixth (and last) bottle. C'est la vie. And so the Barolo adventures continue!
BYOB dinner at MAMA in Oakland, CA.
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Needs air and time to open. Still tannic in the finish; the fruit shows traditional bold zesty and tart nebbiolo flavors but also shows a streak of stewed plum -- a reminder of the searing 2003 summer. With time, this flaw may become more apparent.
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Decanted for sediment. Pale garnet color with hints of amber toward the rim. Nose showed a mix of baked red fruits, tar, cedar cigar box, baking spices, a bit of raisin/fig. The nose outshined the palate unfortunately as the dominant flavors were ripe, stewed cherries, plums, fig and oak. Medium+ acid and tannin. Finishes a little hot. This unfortunately was likely a product of the warm vintage and has a bit of a port like quality to it almost. I would drink up if holding any.
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Rust colored with considerable bricking. 14.5% ABV. Substantial sediment. Pretty nose of dried red fruits, rose petals and asphalt. Powerful, concentrated and tannic. Everything seems to be in balance. Dried cherries, licorice, tar and tobacco on the palate. The finish is exquisite. Super Barolo that is aging well. Set aside any preconceived notions on the '03 vintage and just enjoy what is in the glass. Best over the next 5-8 years.
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My last bottle. Pnp. Slight bricking towards a translucent rim. Much better showing than my previous bottle. No signs of oxidization, fairly aromatic on the palate, good acidity but also these never ending medium + tannins. A good but not great Barolo aromatically. This has become a bit more approachable but you still need a fairly high tannin tolerance to truly enjoy this wine. The tannins could easily use another 10 years, will the fruit still last? Who knows...
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My fifth bottle from a case over many years. This has been one of the most disappointing wines I have. In early years unpleasantly harsh and tannic, the wine is showing now very oxidative with some unattractive tar notes in the background. Let’s see if my last bottle is just as bad. Kept in impeccable conditions since I bought it but perhaps some heat damage prior to that?
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Opened, poured into a decanter, and let sit in a cool place for about four hours before serving. Served with food (roast pork, sauteed fennel and onions, and broccoli rabe, in case you were wondering). Dark color. Rich nose of dark black fruits, some rose petals and licorice root. this is a rich wine, showing dark black cherries, some slight notes of prune and dried figs, and licorice root on the finish. round in the mouth with gripping tannins on the finish. Quite an enjoyable wine.
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Hmmm, not sure what to make of this. In a nutshell, stay away from this wine as it is a tannic brute right now with way too much oak tannin on the finish. That said, the fruit was nice and free of overly modern fingerprints, but I was left wondering if this wine will hold up to its tannins levels.
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Poured into decanter and drank over several hours. Enjoyed this now more than earlier bottles. Takes about 30 min to open up but then it's stunning. Not a particularly concentrated attack but then a very expressive mid-palate with flowers, earth, herbs and cherries, and a long finish. 14.5% alcohol well integrated. Medium plus tannins which mellow a bit with extended air time but those stunning aromatics become also more muted while some of these hot vintage tar notes start to come through. Have no idea what this implies for long term cellaring of this 03 Barolo as I find Barolos just so much harder to predict than Bordeaux (blends). So if you have not yet opened your case, I would say it's certainly worth a try now.
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Tasting at Corkscrew Museum (Corkscrew Museum in Barolo): Appearance is clear, medium intensity, garnet colour. Legs. Nose is clean, pronounced intensity, with aromas of soy sauce, leather, mushrooms, almonds, earth. Developing. On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium+ alcohol, high tannins, full body. Pronounced flavor intensity, with flavours of red and dark cherries, soy sauce, leather, mushrooms, earth, and a slight bitter almond. Long finish. Outstanding quality. Very nice already in terms of nose and flavours. But tannins still very big. Maybe a few more years will smoothen them out. From the Pajana cru in the commune of Monforte d'Alba.
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Consistent note, if anything this was more tannic than last year as it might have lost a touch of fruit. While I can admire the complexity of the fruit and aromas, with such tannins, for me it's lightyears away from a Bordeaux in terms of sheer pleasure to drink. Planning to try some Barolos from 80s/90s and then perhaps focus on regions I like more...
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From the first sniff I was utterly sold on this. Lovely savoury nose with balsamic and pomegranate notes that really fill the olfactory senses. I was therefore expecting such powerful aromatics to be accompanied by a forceful palate entry. However, this glides across the tongue and down the throat, leaving delicious layers of dark fruits, tar and tobacco. The tannins do clamp down somewhat over the course of the bottle, but these are not particularly drying; instead they only act to coat the tongue with the same wonderful flavours the wine imparted on its first pass through the mouth.
On a related note, my last Barolo having been a 2005, this was a demonstration of why generalisations regarding vintages have to be treated with extreme caution. I would definitely have got the two the wrong way round in a blind tasting.
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Bring on Spring parties ...: Still a bruiser over a decade in, with a block of tannins that seemed to pick up power over the course of the night. Hold! Nice cherry and raspberry fruit profile with balsamic and tobacco notes.
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PnP but takes about 30-45 min before the initially dominating and very dry tannins are in balance with the fruit as the wine opens up. Garnet with slight browning towards the translucent rim. A beautiful nose with intense earthy smell, herbs, red and dark fruit then dried beef, tar, bitter chocolate. Dry, medium tannins announce the transition into a long finish. Has none of the usual heat and overripe fruit found in the 03 vintage across large parts of Italy and France. Also my first really convincing and balanced Barolo. Glad I stocked up on Clerico's 07s. 93 (+?) If it was not a Barolo would say it needs a few more years for the now relatively subtle but dry tannins to soften but with Barolo I guess it's part of the deal and waiting only a few years would not do the trick, so probably drink now
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Decanted for about an hour. Brick color with slow forming legs and aromas of tobacco, tar, sour cherry, dried rose, cola and cedar. It's in total harmony and has flavours of cherry, pomegranate and cedar with a full body. Nice tannins and a long finish.
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nose- funky, ass crack, olive, and ultimately smells like vermouth which is the first hint to me that something is wrong here mouth - per brian a caramelized fruit rollup. in fact paired well with the chocolate cake, but it had a mild yet lingering oxidative flavor leading me to think its a defective bottle. Not everyone agreed, however (perhaps no one else agreed); in fact it was Brian's WOTN, go figure(!)
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Near perfect Barolo. The Pajana is so complex and intricate, more so than any other Barolo I have drunk in recent memory. Amazing nose of freshly picked cranberries, cranberry sauce and cherry jelly. Mineral tones of soil but not in an “earthy/funk” kind of way. Notes of fennel and black liquorish, pine and flowers. All found on the palate, which is dominated by tannins. Amazing in its youth and can definitely age longer. The finish lasted forever.
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didnt take notes or pay too close attention, though overall i though this was drinking nicely now. Has some mature characteristics. Next bottle in a year.
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Nose: Bright and sweet fruit - rose petals, tar, changing rapidity and consistently over 2 hours Taste: Every time I went to it, it showed something different. Rich red and black fruits, VERY VERY DRY AND TANNIC, but well integrated. Very complex, but pleasant. Finish: Very long and complex with tobacco, tar, and fruit mingling. Excellent wine. With plenty of time still to age. $89.99 OH Retail
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Popped and poured. Dark brick. Nose of black cherry, anise and flowers. After warming a bit, some caramel and earth. Full ripe palate of black cherry, spice and licorice. Excellent length. Refreshing acidity. Subtle oak. Grippy, grippy tannins. This is drinking well, but will last and last. Wish I had more!
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taste: big and robust tannins with medium/high acidity and rich tones of dark red cherries, dark berries, roasted herbs, spice tones and tones of oak show as well. Very good depth and the tannins are a bit oppresive
overall: if the tannins can pull back, this could be a great barolo. It has an intensity of the fruit that should be able to hold up for some long aging. The tannins are a bit hard, so they probably will never really shed. This has some very good potential on it and could be very interesting in time
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Pop and pour and consumed over 4 hours. Red tinged with brown. Beautiful complex nose of red fruits (especially cherries), tar/scorched earth, dried flowers, spices, and mocha. Delicious on the palate as well though a bit lacking in presence. Substantial tannins clip the finish short. It was delicious and we enjoyed it but it will be a significantly better wine in 5+ years. 93+.
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7/10/2022 - Thief Likes this wine: 94 Points
Crimson red. Aromas of fig, tar, and hint of menthol at first. With time, orange peel aromas developed. Tannins are still very moderately firm, but with tagine of lamb this really paired well and was silky smooth.
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6/19/2022 - tomlee wrote: 92 Points
Dark crimson in color. 14.5% ABV. Gorgeous nose of red fruits, wet asphalt and roses. Medium body with strong acidity. Ample fruit and prominent tannins but showing well for a vintage that is on the decline. Plums, menthol and tobacco on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. Lacks the concentration to be truly special but a really nice showing nonetheless. Best over the next 2-3 years.
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11/24/2021 - c.roy90 Does not like this wine: 85 Points
No real redeeming quality to this wine. Rustic, hot, and removed from any elegance. Couldn't find pleasure in the first bottle, didn't find anything in my sixth (and last) bottle. C'est la vie. And so the Barolo adventures continue!
BYOB dinner at MAMA in Oakland, CA.
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11/3/2021 - swapdoc wrote:
Needs air and time to open. Still tannic in the finish; the fruit shows traditional bold zesty and tart nebbiolo flavors but also shows a streak of stewed plum -- a reminder of the searing 2003 summer. With time, this flaw may become more apparent.
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2/21/2021 - Rich S wrote: 86 Points
Decanted for sediment. Pale garnet color with hints of amber toward the rim. Nose showed a mix of baked red fruits, tar, cedar cigar box, baking spices, a bit of raisin/fig. The nose outshined the palate unfortunately as the dominant flavors were ripe, stewed cherries, plums, fig and oak. Medium+ acid and tannin. Finishes a little hot. This unfortunately was likely a product of the warm vintage and has a bit of a port like quality to it almost. I would drink up if holding any.
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6/22/2020 - tomlee wrote: 93 Points
Rust colored with considerable bricking. 14.5% ABV. Substantial sediment. Pretty nose of dried red fruits, rose petals and asphalt. Powerful, concentrated and tannic. Everything seems to be in balance. Dried cherries, licorice, tar and tobacco on the palate. The finish is exquisite. Super Barolo that is aging well. Set aside any preconceived notions on the '03 vintage and just enjoy what is in the glass. Best over the next 5-8 years.
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5/3/2019 - pavel_p wrote: 91 Points
My last bottle. Pnp. Slight bricking towards a translucent rim. Much better showing than my previous bottle. No signs of oxidization, fairly aromatic on the palate, good acidity but also these never ending medium + tannins. A good but not great Barolo aromatically. This has become a bit more approachable but you still need a fairly high tannin tolerance to truly enjoy this wine. The tannins could easily use another 10 years, will the fruit still last? Who knows...
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3/8/2018 - pavel_p wrote: flawed
My fifth bottle from a case over many years. This has been one of the most disappointing wines I have. In early years unpleasantly harsh and tannic, the wine is showing now very oxidative with some unattractive tar notes in the background. Let’s see if my last bottle is just as bad. Kept in impeccable conditions since I bought it but perhaps some heat damage prior to that?
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2/9/2016 - Plabella Likes this wine: 92 Points
drank with Bill Anderson at Mangia Qui
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1/28/2016 - Plabella wrote: 88 Points
didnt taste as it should. Fruit was dull and wine was tannic
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1/24/2016 - Plabella Likes this wine: 93 Points
beautiful wine dark fruit, chocalate well balanced
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1/22/2016 - Plabella Likes this wine: 94 Points
this is a full body wine with dark fruit and long flavor
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12/31/2015 - t_moderne wrote: 92 Points
Opened, poured into a decanter, and let sit in a cool place for about four hours before serving. Served with food (roast pork, sauteed fennel and onions, and broccoli rabe, in case you were wondering).
Dark color. Rich nose of dark black fruits, some rose petals and licorice root. this is a rich wine, showing dark black cherries, some slight notes of prune and dried figs, and licorice root on the finish. round in the mouth with gripping tannins on the finish. Quite an enjoyable wine.
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7/21/2015 - blanquito wrote:
Hmmm, not sure what to make of this. In a nutshell, stay away from this wine as it is a tannic brute right now with way too much oak tannin on the finish. That said, the fruit was nice and free of overly modern fingerprints, but I was left wondering if this wine will hold up to its tannins levels.
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1/9/2015 - pavel_p Likes this wine: 93 Points
Poured into decanter and drank over several hours. Enjoyed this now more than earlier bottles. Takes about 30 min to open up but then it's stunning. Not a particularly concentrated attack but then a very expressive mid-palate with flowers, earth, herbs and cherries, and a long finish. 14.5% alcohol well integrated. Medium plus tannins which mellow a bit with extended air time but those stunning aromatics become also more muted while some of these hot vintage tar notes start to come through.
Have no idea what this implies for long term cellaring of this 03 Barolo as I find Barolos just so much harder to predict than Bordeaux (blends). So if you have not yet opened your case, I would say it's certainly worth a try now.
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11/15/2014 - pavel_p wrote:
Brought to a dinner and PnP. Consistent with earlier notes. Fairly big tannins appear with more air exposure. Wait 5 years...?
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9/3/2014 - Derek Darth Taster wrote:
Tasting at Corkscrew Museum (Corkscrew Museum in Barolo): Appearance is clear, medium intensity, garnet colour. Legs.
Nose is clean, pronounced intensity, with aromas of soy sauce, leather, mushrooms, almonds, earth. Developing.
On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium+ alcohol, high tannins, full body. Pronounced flavor intensity, with flavours of red and dark cherries, soy sauce, leather, mushrooms, earth, and a slight bitter almond. Long finish.
Outstanding quality. Very nice already in terms of nose and flavours. But tannins still very big. Maybe a few more years will smoothen them out.
From the Pajana cru in the commune of Monforte d'Alba.
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6/8/2014 - pavel_p wrote:
Consistent note, if anything this was more tannic than last year as it might have lost a touch of fruit. While I can admire the complexity of the fruit and aromas, with such tannins, for me it's lightyears away from a Bordeaux in terms of sheer pleasure to drink. Planning to try some Barolos from 80s/90s and then perhaps focus on regions I like more...
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4/27/2014 - strickt01 wrote: 93 Points
From the first sniff I was utterly sold on this. Lovely savoury nose with balsamic and pomegranate notes that really fill the olfactory senses. I was therefore expecting such powerful aromatics to be accompanied by a forceful palate entry. However, this glides across the tongue and down the throat, leaving delicious layers of dark fruits, tar and tobacco. The tannins do clamp down somewhat over the course of the bottle, but these are not particularly drying; instead they only act to coat the tongue with the same wonderful flavours the wine imparted on its first pass through the mouth.
On a related note, my last Barolo having been a 2005, this was a demonstration of why generalisations regarding vintages have to be treated with extreme caution. I would definitely have got the two the wrong way round in a blind tasting.
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3/23/2014 - pgb67 wrote: 94 Points
Bring on Spring parties ...: Still a bruiser over a decade in, with a block of tannins that seemed to pick up power over the course of the night. Hold! Nice cherry and raspberry fruit profile with balsamic and tobacco notes.
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12/30/2013 - pavel_p Likes this wine: 93 Points
PnP but takes about 30-45 min before the initially dominating and very dry tannins are in balance with the fruit as the wine opens up. Garnet with slight browning towards the translucent rim. A beautiful nose with intense earthy smell, herbs, red and dark fruit then dried beef, tar, bitter chocolate. Dry, medium tannins announce the transition into a long finish. Has none of the usual heat and overripe fruit found in the 03 vintage across large parts of Italy and France. Also my first really convincing and balanced Barolo. Glad I stocked up on Clerico's 07s. 93 (+?)
If it was not a Barolo would say it needs a few more years for the now relatively subtle but dry tannins to soften but with Barolo I guess it's part of the deal and waiting only a few years would not do the trick, so probably drink now
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6/6/2013 - EmilyE wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for about an hour. Brick color with slow forming legs and aromas of tobacco, tar, sour cherry, dried rose, cola and cedar. It's in total harmony and has flavours of cherry, pomegranate and cedar with a full body. Nice tannins and a long finish.
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10/27/2011 - soyhead wrote: flawed
nose- funky, ass crack, olive, and ultimately smells like vermouth which is the first hint to me that something is wrong here
mouth - per brian a caramelized fruit rollup. in fact paired well with the chocolate cake, but it had a mild yet lingering oxidative flavor leading me to think its a defective bottle. Not everyone agreed, however (perhaps no one else agreed); in fact it was Brian's WOTN, go figure(!)
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10/17/2011 - Jack O'Brien wrote: 99 Points
Near perfect Barolo. The Pajana is so complex and intricate, more so than any other Barolo I have drunk in recent memory. Amazing nose of freshly picked cranberries, cranberry sauce and cherry jelly. Mineral tones of soil but not in an “earthy/funk” kind of way. Notes of fennel and black liquorish, pine and flowers. All found on the palate, which is dominated by tannins. Amazing in its youth and can definitely age longer. The finish lasted forever.
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6/25/2011 - soyhead wrote:
didnt take notes or pay too close attention, though overall i though this was drinking nicely now. Has some mature characteristics. Next bottle in a year.
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3/11/2011 - austinbeeman- austinbeeman.com wrote: 92 Points
Nose: Bright and sweet fruit - rose petals, tar, changing rapidity and consistently over 2 hours
Taste: Every time I went to it, it showed something different. Rich red and black fruits, VERY VERY DRY AND TANNIC, but well integrated. Very complex, but pleasant.
Finish: Very long and complex with tobacco, tar, and fruit mingling.
Excellent wine. With plenty of time still to age.
$89.99 OH Retail
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8/17/2010 - JNHBSF wrote: 92 Points
Dark. Cherries. Massive. Needs time.
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7/15/2010 - Wink wrote: 92 Points
Popped and poured. Dark brick. Nose of black cherry, anise and flowers. After warming a bit, some caramel and earth. Full ripe palate of black cherry, spice and licorice. Excellent length. Refreshing acidity. Subtle oak. Grippy, grippy tannins. This is drinking well, but will last and last. Wish I had more!
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5/22/2010 - S. Lorin wrote: 92 Points
Powerful wine with rich fruit, strawberries, flowers, licorice and spice - lots of intensity, flavor, and texture here
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3/8/2010 - KeithAkers wrote: 92 Points
Robert Houde Wines Portfolio feat. Marc De Grazia selections (Ritz-Carlton, Chicago IL): nose: robust and rich nose of red fruits, dark red cherries, dark berries, and a good amount of roasted herbs. Good depth, and while it has an intensity to it from the vintage, it isn't over baked
taste: big and robust tannins with medium/high acidity and rich tones of dark red cherries, dark berries, roasted herbs, spice tones and tones of oak show as well. Very good depth and the tannins are a bit oppresive
overall: if the tannins can pull back, this could be a great barolo. It has an intensity of the fruit that should be able to hold up for some long aging. The tannins are a bit hard, so they probably will never really shed. This has some very good potential on it and could be very interesting in time
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5/9/2009 - jwsmith wrote: 91 Points
Excellent 2003 very approachable and nice
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7/18/2008 - rsepulve wrote: 93 Points
Pop and pour and consumed over 4 hours. Red tinged with brown. Beautiful complex nose of red fruits (especially cherries), tar/scorched earth, dried flowers, spices, and mocha. Delicious on the palate as well though a bit lacking in presence. Substantial tannins clip the finish short. It was delicious and we enjoyed it but it will be a significantly better wine in 5+ years. 93+.
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