I find it’s a complex one. It tastes oxidized and yet gets better after a half hour. It’s got a nose of raisins like a Pedro Ximenez but a very nice structure of acid and a bit of pleasing tannin. Overall I would buy and drink this again but it’s likely not for everyone.
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Stood up for 3 weeks, decanted off 2oz sediment. Light ruby, medium bricking consistent with its age; aromatic, roses and tar; palate is light bodied, medium-plus acidity, tannins present but well integrated, tart red fruit throughout, medium-plus (14%) alcohol; medium length finish, slight bitterness. Overall a good, mature barolo, but not showing any incredible complexity. My last of 3 bottles consumed over the last 7 years, and the first was the best, so perhaps I shouldn't have aged it this long. 90-91
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Stood up for > 1 month and decanted. Light-medium ruby with age-appropriate bricking; medium aromatics with red cherry, forest floor mulch; palate is light bodied, high but plush tannins, medium-plus acidity, balanced mature red fruit; medium length finish. Not quite as striking as my last bottle nearly 5 years ago, but a perfectly nice mature example of Barolo with character of Monforte (slightly burlier and textured). 91 With an hour of air: a bit of roses on the nose and palate comes out more. A lovely Barolo, though still not a show stopper. 91-92 Day 2: Tannins a bit more prominent, or maybe the fruit is a bit more reticent.
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Ugh... bricking and a bit brown around the edge. Not the beautiful Barolo I’ve had before from Seghesio. Almost spoiled or just got cooked. Only a few (out of hundreds) have left me with a bad vibe but this was one of them!
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Slightly floral with lots of sediment, but decanted very quickly to produce a wonderfully 20 year aged Barolo that was still luscious, slightly fruity. Dark blackberry and simply enjoyable.
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All hail, Nebbiolo!! This 20 year vintage aged was a bit thin and translucent upon opening but with about 30 minutes of air, it suddenly became alive. Dark and luscious it was truly built to last the ages. Am certain that another 20 years would do this vintage just fine.
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The wine was medium garnet in colour and threw some sediment. It smelled of withered flowers, rosewater, red fruit, Asian spices and smoke. On the palate, the wine showed red fruit, cherry, raisins, roasted notes, espresso, chocolate, Asian spices, rosewater and a hint of marzipan, with average to good length. The wine was on the riper end of the spectrum, but still tannic, with a sandpapery texture. It seemed to have seen a lot of new oak, and it lacked energy and real nerve. Smoother and more complete on day two. I would hold and see what happens. This is not bad; just not special.
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Decanted for two hours. Clear medium (-) ruby with garnet hues. The nose is clean, with dried black fruit, dried red flowers, coffee and subtle oak aging. The palate is medium bodied, with medium (+) acidity, tannins and alcohol. This wine is showing amazing longevity and has plenty of years left, assuming proper storage.
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Brickish red in color. After about 1 h in the decanter -- lovely aromas of dried roses, dark florals, dark cherries, leather and hints of tar envelope the senses. The palate is very refined with good depth to the sweet reddish-black small fruits, medium (+) acidity, well integrated tannins and a long floral and wood perfumed finish.
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Opened by Mark. Not decanted and it probably could have used an hour or two. The most tannic of the 3 Barolos. Crimson color. Restrained fruit with notes of earthy red fruit, cedar and leather. Medium bodied with a shorter finish. 89 points
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Fantastic for an aged Barolo that didn't cost too much. I've cellared for about 6 years and the cork was in perfect condition. Translucent color coming out of the bottle. Gave this a 2 hour decant to be on the safe side.
Great nose. Floral element to it with a touch of licorice and some earth. Med bodied palate/bright and lively. Very tasty to drink. This leads to a med+ finish with tannins fully integrated and some nice acidity to back this up.
Won't get any better but in a great spot as is.
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Ashish's Birthday dinner (Home (Noe st)): 14% alc. Gorgeous and classic, in a somewhat cleaner, more modern style. Dried roses, black liquorice, slight presence of bruised apples (oxidative aging). Oak is well-integrated. Satisfyingly chewy ripe tannins. 9-9.5
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Thanksgiving Dinner (Fremont, CA): Coravin 11/26/15: Clear pale ruby with moderate bricking appropriate for age; nose is aromatic, pure floral, roses, red leaf mulch; palate is medium bodied, well integrated but prominent tannins, high acidity, excellent fruit, good depth and excellent complexity; medium length. This is excellent, close to superb, much better than other notes imply. Yes, it could use the superb complexity of a >$400 barolo, but it is balanced, aromatic on the nose AND complex on the palate, balanced acidity and tannins, enjoyable now but has at least a decade or more of potential ahead of it. 93+ 12/4: a ton of savory character, more than when first opened. Very nice, fades a tad on the midpalate, similar to last time overall. 93.
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Cellared since release. Cork in great condition. Decanted. Drank over several hours. First hour was the best. This wine is probably a bit passed peak, but it's still very good. Plum Brown edges, lovely floral nose. Medium weight. Palate more earthy than fruity. Dried herbs, spice, plum, smokey cedar notes, some licorice and tobacco. High acidity, smooth tannins. Drink up if you have them.
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An evening of Italian wines with friends (Cleveland): Sadly, an off bottle. Dark brown/red in color. The nose shows some oxidized notes with brown sugar, nuttiness, and alcohol. On the palate, this is devoid of fruit. Mike bought this locally near release. Could have been the cork too. A shame, as it should have been better.
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See my previous TN. Full disclosure: stray bottles purchased in bin ends collection at auction. I don't trust the provenance, as others from this collection showed poorly, seemingly from poor storage. I'll mark it officially flawed, seeing as the last time I failed to do so, I was called out!
That said, I don't think was officially TCA/flawed. This bottle showed a very brown, faded robe. Madeira on the nose is something that usually doesn't pop in Barolo, but certainly can when the Italian bottle is old! Not much fruit here, but enough acidity present to pleasantly complement braised short rib pizza leftovers. Far better with the food than without (when it is overly pruney and sappy). Eager to try another bottle of this if possible in the future. 85 pts if this wasn't flawed.
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Carefully stored since release; cork was perfect. Popped and poured. Surprisingly primary. Firm tannins and somewhat grapey. Good acid structure. Full bodied and ripe. If your bottles are of good provenance, suggest forgetting about them for a while. Or give lots of air. Probably would have been better with food.
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Ruby red with slight bricking. Pretty intense aromas of dried roses, tobacco, leather, red cherries and toasted baking spices make up a captivating nose. A medium bodied palate shows superb balance to the silky plum and cherry liquer, tar, perfumed wood spice with medium acidity and fine grained tannins on the long but slightly drying finish. What a value!
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Floral nose with violets and plums. Plum, dark cherry notes on palate along with rich, earthy, leathery flavors. Tannins quite mild - At peak. 91 points
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Really drinking well. Plenty of structure here. This wine will hold for years to come. Started out tight and opened beautifully over the course of 3 hours. Roses, cherries. Delicious!
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Trip’s visit to DC (Marks duckhouse, Falls Church, Va): Perhaps this would have done a lot better as a dinner wine with simply grilled meat or pasta. The nose is shy, sappy, raisin, leather and dry cherry. The palate is lean with a slightly bitter end. With time, a hint of rose and tar. This bottle displays mostly tertiary notes and the fruit is shy.
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Decanted 1 hour. Wonderful nose! Perfumey. Floral. Some tar and a streak of sweet-tart fruit that was unique and fascinating (rhubarb?). Voluminous palate, still tannic...I could see this opening into something even better 4 or 5 years down the line. Wish I had another to try.
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Nice menthol, cherry nose, (do I detect a hint of mushroom?). Real nice core of fruit and fine tannins on the finish. Still young do a long decant or better hold for a few more years, this amateur predicts a beauty in a few years.
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Classic Barolo! Much better than previous bottle. Really drank nicely after 30-45 minutes of aeration. Lovely floral nose with violets and plums. Plum, dark cherry notes on palate along with rich, earthy, leathery flavors. Tannins quite mild. Paired well with wine-braised beef ribs in a slow cooker.
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Brick-brown coloration. Chocolate, plum, tobacco, strawberry, garrique. Well balanced; slightly bitter earth flavors up front, wtih sweet fruit coming through on the long finish. Lots of sedminent.
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This was really great and a big surprise (at how good it was). Deep burgundy and perfectly mature. Round, rich, cigar, cassis and earthy notes. Drinking great but lot of life left.
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(note to self) Agree with others that it is drinking nicely now.Stared as brick brown which had me startled. Was purely gorgeous an hour later. Perfectly balanced. Not thick nor thin either, just perfect cross between and bordeaux and a burg. This wine validated the complexiity and pureness of barolo and its winemaking.
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Pretty decent. Some wild notes. This is drinking well now. I am not sure how much longer this will hold up. It seemed older than a 1997 Altare Barolo at the same dinner.
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Slow O'd for 5 hours before dinner. Terrific bottle of wine. Tannins are fully integrated, lo vely red berries, balsam, almost some caramel. Long finish. Excellent with a veal dish with porcini mushrooms. Glad I have 2 left.
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completely bummed this is my last bottle... dark orange in colour... bunch of funk in the mouth... still a bit tannic... but with a long finish... just a lovely drink...
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Very nice floral, perfumey nose with violets and strawberries. A bit muted and austere on the palate, although it did seem to open up a bit with some air. Medium bodied. A little disappointing given the price/reputation.
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Brick-brown color made me think it was dead. Not so though. Silky berry fruit with graphite and tar. Firm tannins and a little heat make the wine a little unbalanced, but the finish was long and tasty.
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This wine is not completely resolved and has many years ahead of it. That being said it is a beautiful wine with a long finish accented by caramel. Big and powerful now it has a lot of potential.
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Parker was spot-on with this one. This made for superb drinking last night. Popped and poured, and initially there were hints of oxidation that went away as the wine opened up. Balsam, tobacco, tootsie roll (yep), menthol, dried strawberry, and roses. Nice sweet fruit. To my taste, this wine is mature; with such pretty fruit and tobacco aromas, why wait? If hard tannins were there, I didn't notice. Went perfectly with fettucine in porcini cream.
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Popped and poured. Some sediment so I would recommend decanting. Nose of muted red fruits, potpourri, menthol and orange rind. Medium weight palate with a nice velvety mouth feel. Refined and drying tannins on the finish. Drinking nicely, but in no danger of falling apart any time soon. Finished the bottle on day 2, it held up well and seemed to pick up some added weight on the palate and some more complexity on the nose, less menthol.
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this has an orangish purpleish hue... classic nebbiolo aromas of rose petals and tar. mentholated in the mouth with tannins arriving late.... long finish... really good wine...
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spice mint smoke on the nose, deep rich red fruits , cedar, mint and bramble on the palate with long lingeering mid palate and finish, very nice wine which paired very well with capello di FUnghi con Salsice e Gorgonzola, clearly a case were the rich dish helped to lessen the effect of the big tannins and make for a wonderful food wine pairing
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Good sweet nose (with a strong birch beer note, though more interesting than that sounds)...a touch cloying on the palate. Perhaps still too young, though the tannins are under control for youngish Barolo. Lacking in mid-palate depth.
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This wine was just awful. Brought to dinner with my son. The wine has weak color and reminds me of the wine folks used to make in their bathtubs. Tannins are strong, weak fruit and absolutely no complexity. Even after 30 minutes of aeration, the wine had no character. A real disappointment. 70 points
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Italian Night at Wally's (Barrington, IL): Ruby red with a peculiar nose of caramel, violets and dark fruits. Brutally tannic --- like liquid sand paper. Can this ever come around? 4+12+15+6=87
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took a while to open up... then showed wonderful stuff... but by the end of the evening, the wine was still tannic... needs more time... good potential....
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Truffle Dinner, Pinot Tasting, and Piemonte (3x DRC, 2x Gaja, and more): Very, very deep color for nebbiolo. Nose immediately shows that root beer/sassafrass/anise character that I associate with modern Barolo and that I find in every young Clerico wine. There's also what should be there -- some violet floral scent and a bit of tarry scent. There's also a supersweet, superdark plum fruit that hides whatever lighter and brighter fruit may be there. Palate benefits from earth and is surprisingly approachable with soft tannins. Less sweet than the nose, the palate matches surprisingly well with the truffled risotto and the Bolognese-like ragu. A further confirmation that new-style, young Baroli are not on my buying list, but it was quite enjoyable nonetheless and presents reasonable value around $55. My first experience with this producer. Clearly modern, but not entirely over the top as long as one can look past the Barq's.
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Dinner at Roy Hersh's (Roy's place, WA): Somewhat reticent nose of violets. Quite tannic, but very ripe fruit. Marascino cherries and red apple skins. This wine went quite well with Roy's eggplant parmesan and improved alongside the food.
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Farmington Wine Class. Opaque rusty brick color, with considerable orange at the rim. Strong buttery/movie popcorn element to the nose. Nice, but somewhat one dimensional. Fruit forward, this seems rather international in style to me. Short finish, oak tannins. Pleasant, straightforward wine - not particularly well integrated. Tannins are so dry, I wonder about the ability of this wine to age.
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(dinner at Purple Cafe)Dark! Violets, rosebud, and plum explode from the glass. A very fun wine to swirl and sniff. Upon tasting, it was obvious that this was infancide. It didn't rip the enamel off my teeth and provided an abundance of cedar, sweet tobacco, and some bitter chocolate on the finish. The finish was pretty shut down. 2 hours in the decanter provided no noticeable changes. Good wine that needs many more years before being great.
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2/14/2023 - jchrisharris wrote: 89 Points
My wife’s tasting note: It’s old.
I find it’s a complex one. It tastes oxidized and yet gets better after a half hour. It’s got a nose of raisins like a Pedro Ximenez but a very nice structure of acid and a bit of pleasing tannin. Overall I would buy and drink this again but it’s likely not for everyone.
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7/3/2022 - aagrawal wrote: 90 Points
Stood up for 3 weeks, decanted off 2oz sediment. Light ruby, medium bricking consistent with its age; aromatic, roses and tar; palate is light bodied, medium-plus acidity, tannins present but well integrated, tart red fruit throughout, medium-plus (14%) alcohol; medium length finish, slight bitterness. Overall a good, mature barolo, but not showing any incredible complexity. My last of 3 bottles consumed over the last 7 years, and the first was the best, so perhaps I shouldn't have aged it this long. 90-91
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1/23/2021 - Vascular46 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Clearly not past. Deep ruby colored full bodied wine with fruit still intact. Glad I have another bottle.
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9/22/2020 - aagrawal wrote: 91 Points
Stood up for > 1 month and decanted. Light-medium ruby with age-appropriate bricking; medium aromatics with red cherry, forest floor mulch; palate is light bodied, high but plush tannins, medium-plus acidity, balanced mature red fruit; medium length finish. Not quite as striking as my last bottle nearly 5 years ago, but a perfectly nice mature example of Barolo with character of Monforte (slightly burlier and textured). 91
With an hour of air: a bit of roses on the nose and palate comes out more. A lovely Barolo, though still not a show stopper. 91-92
Day 2: Tannins a bit more prominent, or maybe the fruit is a bit more reticent.
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5/21/2019 - Nerdy Earth Boy Does not like this wine: 88 Points
Ugh... bricking and a bit brown around the edge. Not the beautiful Barolo I’ve had before from Seghesio. Almost spoiled or just got cooked. Only a few (out of hundreds) have left me with a bad vibe but this was one of them!
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11/18/2018 - Nerdy Earth Boy Likes this wine: 92 Points
Slightly floral with lots of sediment, but decanted very quickly to produce a wonderfully 20 year aged Barolo that was still luscious, slightly fruity. Dark blackberry and simply enjoyable.
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9/14/2018 - Nerdy Earth Boy Likes this wine: 92 Points
All hail, Nebbiolo!! This 20 year vintage aged was a bit thin and translucent upon opening but with about 30 minutes of air, it suddenly became alive. Dark and luscious it was truly built to last the ages. Am certain that another 20 years would do this vintage just fine.
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5/12/2018 - PSPatrick wrote: 89 Points
The wine was medium garnet in colour and threw some sediment. It smelled of withered flowers, rosewater, red fruit, Asian spices and smoke. On the palate, the wine showed red fruit, cherry, raisins, roasted notes, espresso, chocolate, Asian spices, rosewater and a hint of marzipan, with average to good length. The wine was on the riper end of the spectrum, but still tannic, with a sandpapery texture. It seemed to have seen a lot of new oak, and it lacked energy and real nerve. Smoother and more complete on day two. I would hold and see what happens. This is not bad; just not special.
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3/29/2018 - ctjared Likes this wine:
after some air, the intense tobacco mellows out. very nice and a lot of life left here yet
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8/13/2016 - SteelerFan wrote: 90 Points
Slightly over the hill, although still enjoyable.
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5/31/2016 - TannicBeast Likes this wine: 91 Points
Decanted for two hours. Clear medium (-) ruby with garnet hues. The nose is clean, with dried black fruit, dried red flowers, coffee and subtle oak aging. The palate is medium bodied, with medium (+) acidity, tannins and alcohol. This wine is showing amazing longevity and has plenty of years left, assuming proper storage.
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4/16/2016 - devraj Likes this wine: 93 Points
Brickish red in color. After about 1 h in the decanter -- lovely aromas of dried roses, dark florals, dark cherries, leather and hints of tar envelope the senses. The palate is very refined with good depth to the sweet reddish-black small fruits, medium (+) acidity, well integrated tannins and a long floral and wood perfumed finish.
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2/12/2016 - Vino Me wrote: 89 Points
Opened by Mark. Not decanted and it probably could have used an hour or two. The most tannic of the 3 Barolos. Crimson color. Restrained fruit with notes of earthy red fruit, cedar and leather. Medium bodied with a shorter finish. 89 points
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12/13/2015 - yonster24 wrote:
Fantastic for an aged Barolo that didn't cost too much. I've cellared for about 6 years and the cork was in perfect condition. Translucent color coming out of the bottle. Gave this a 2 hour decant to be on the safe side.
Great nose. Floral element to it with a touch of licorice and some earth. Med bodied palate/bright and lively. Very tasty to drink. This leads to a med+ finish with tannins fully integrated and some nice acidity to back this up.
Won't get any better but in a great spot as is.
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12/4/2015 - RajivAyyangar wrote: 92 Points
Ashish's Birthday dinner (Home (Noe st)): 14% alc.
Gorgeous and classic, in a somewhat cleaner, more modern style. Dried roses, black liquorice, slight presence of bruised apples (oxidative aging). Oak is well-integrated. Satisfyingly chewy ripe tannins. 9-9.5
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11/26/2015 - aagrawal wrote: 93 Points
Thanksgiving Dinner (Fremont, CA): Coravin 11/26/15: Clear pale ruby with moderate bricking appropriate for age; nose is aromatic, pure floral, roses, red leaf mulch; palate is medium bodied, well integrated but prominent tannins, high acidity, excellent fruit, good depth and excellent complexity; medium length. This is excellent, close to superb, much better than other notes imply. Yes, it could use the superb complexity of a >$400 barolo, but it is balanced, aromatic on the nose AND complex on the palate, balanced acidity and tannins, enjoyable now but has at least a decade or more of potential ahead of it. 93+
12/4: a ton of savory character, more than when first opened. Very nice, fades a tad on the midpalate, similar to last time overall. 93.
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11/21/2015 - wine4ever wrote: 88 Points
Cellared since release. Cork in great condition. Decanted. Drank over several hours. First hour was the best. This wine is probably a bit passed peak, but it's still very good. Plum Brown edges, lovely floral nose. Medium weight. Palate more earthy than fruity. Dried herbs, spice, plum, smokey cedar notes, some licorice and tobacco. High acidity, smooth tannins. Drink up if you have them.
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3/22/2015 - Loren Sonkin wrote: flawed
An evening of Italian wines with friends (Cleveland): Sadly, an off bottle. Dark brown/red in color. The nose shows some oxidized notes with brown sugar, nuttiness, and alcohol. On the palate, this is devoid of fruit. Mike bought this locally near release. Could have been the cork too. A shame, as it should have been better.
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3/8/2015 - nortonnose wrote: flawed
See my previous TN. Full disclosure: stray bottles purchased in bin ends collection at auction. I don't trust the provenance, as others from this collection showed poorly, seemingly from poor storage. I'll mark it officially flawed, seeing as the last time I failed to do so, I was called out!
That said, I don't think was officially TCA/flawed. This bottle showed a very brown, faded robe. Madeira on the nose is something that usually doesn't pop in Barolo, but certainly can when the Italian bottle is old! Not much fruit here, but enough acidity present to pleasantly complement braised short rib pizza leftovers. Far better with the food than without (when it is overly pruney and sappy). Eager to try another bottle of this if possible in the future. 85 pts if this wasn't flawed.
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7/17/2014 - cabber wrote: 91 Points
Rioja v. Barolo (Manhattan Beach, CA): Balanced, nice acidity. silky
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4/19/2014 - S Spade wrote: 87 Points
Carefully stored since release; cork was perfect.
Popped and poured. Surprisingly primary. Firm tannins and somewhat grapey. Good acid structure. Full bodied and ripe. If your bottles are of good provenance, suggest forgetting about them for a while. Or give lots of air. Probably would have been better with food.
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2/22/2014 - nortonnose wrote: flawed
Heat damaged? Starting to grow very suspicious of bottles bought from same auction . . .
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2/11/2014 - devraj Likes this wine: 92 Points
Ruby red with slight bricking. Pretty intense aromas of dried roses, tobacco, leather, red cherries and toasted baking spices make up a captivating nose. A medium bodied palate shows superb balance to the silky plum and cherry liquer, tar, perfumed wood spice with medium acidity and fine grained tannins on the long but slightly drying finish. What a value!
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2/8/2014 - HRT wrote: 90 Points
Full bodied and rich. Scents of earth, tobacco, mushrooms. Still packs lots of tannins. Long finish. Very powerful.
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1/17/2014 - BklynNeophyte wrote: 91 Points
+. Lovely. Bitter cherry, nicely balanced.
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10/7/2013 - sastewart wrote: 91 Points
Floral nose with violets and plums. Plum, dark cherry notes on palate along with rich, earthy, leathery flavors. Tannins quite mild - At peak. 91 points
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3/28/2013 - mnoljo wrote: 91 Points
w dean and elsa mid weight smooth and well balanced went well with tapas
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1/12/2013 - Carniolan Likes this wine: 92 Points
simply luscious - smooth tannins, plenty of fruit - loved it
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12/8/2012 - toddp wrote: 94 Points
Fabulous. Big but refined tannins. Dry. Nice aging. Worth at least $60
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10/21/2012 - winemaker wrote: 92 Points
Really drinking well. Plenty of structure here. This wine will hold for years to come. Started out tight and opened beautifully over the course of 3 hours. Roses, cherries. Delicious!
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6/6/2012 - MGrange wrote: 89 Points
Last bottle. Not as good as the previous, slightly oxidised with lots of tar, truffle but not enough fruit. Past it's peak.
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4/20/2012 - dcwino wrote: 90 Points
Trip’s visit to DC (Marks duckhouse, Falls Church, Va): Perhaps this would have done a lot better as a dinner wine with simply grilled meat or pasta. The nose is shy, sappy, raisin, leather and dry cherry. The palate is lean with a slightly bitter end. With time, a hint of rose and tar. This bottle displays mostly tertiary notes and the fruit is shy.
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4/20/2012 - S. Lorin wrote: 92 Points
Wonderful aged barolo with a lot of typicity, tar, anise, red fruit, mature
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4/6/2012 - Bumbanian wrote: 93 Points
Decanted 1 hour. Wonderful nose! Perfumey. Floral. Some tar and a streak of sweet-tart fruit that was unique and fascinating (rhubarb?). Voluminous palate, still tannic...I could see this opening into something even better 4 or 5 years down the line. Wish I had another to try.
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1/21/2012 - mburke wrote:
Nice menthol, cherry nose, (do I detect a hint of mushroom?). Real nice core of fruit and fine tannins on the finish. Still young do a long decant or better hold for a few more years, this amateur predicts a beauty in a few years.
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1/16/2012 - Sijan wrote: 92 Points
Classic Barolo! Much better than previous bottle. Really drank nicely after 30-45 minutes of aeration. Lovely floral nose with violets and plums. Plum, dark cherry notes on palate along with rich, earthy, leathery flavors. Tannins quite mild. Paired well with wine-braised beef ribs in a slow cooker.
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12/10/2011 - jayw wrote: 91 Points
Brick-brown coloration. Chocolate, plum, tobacco, strawberry, garrique. Well balanced; slightly bitter earth flavors up front, wtih sweet fruit coming through on the long finish. Lots of sedminent.
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8/12/2011 - SteelerFan wrote: 93 Points
This was really great and a big surprise (at how good it was). Deep burgundy and perfectly mature. Round, rich, cigar, cassis and earthy notes. Drinking great but lot of life left.
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8/6/2011 - HRT wrote:
Full bodied, well balanced, sweet plums. Very consistant with firm tannins and aging potential.
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6/19/2011 - jeanluc07 wrote: 91 Points
(note to self) Agree with others that it is drinking nicely now.Stared as brick brown which had me startled. Was purely gorgeous an hour later. Perfectly balanced. Not thick nor thin either, just perfect cross between and bordeaux and a burg. This wine validated the complexiity and pureness of barolo and its winemaking.
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2/27/2011 - winemaker wrote: 89 Points
Pretty decent. Some wild notes. This is drinking well now. I am not sure how much longer this will hold up. It seemed older than a 1997 Altare Barolo at the same dinner.
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2/6/2011 - winemaker wrote: 93 Points
Slow O'd for 5 hours before dinner. Terrific bottle of wine. Tannins are fully integrated, lo vely red berries, balsam, almost some caramel. Long finish. Excellent with a veal dish with porcini mushrooms. Glad I have 2 left.
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11/15/2010 - HRT wrote:
This is the third bottle and it's consistent with the others. Full bodied with sweet berries, tar, smooth tannins. Showing well now.
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10/9/2010 - HRT wrote:
Smooth tannins. Earth, tar, chocolate. Well balanced.
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5/18/2010 - carlwhat wrote:
completely bummed this is my last bottle... dark orange in colour... bunch of funk in the mouth... still a bit tannic... but with a long finish... just a lovely drink...
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5/8/2010 - HRT wrote:
Sweet red fruits, plums and lush loom on the nose. Full bodied and well balanced. Velvety tannins.
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11/17/2009 - Sijan wrote: 87 Points
Very nice floral, perfumey nose with violets and strawberries. A bit muted and austere on the palate, although it did seem to open up a bit with some air. Medium bodied. A little disappointing given the price/reputation.
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8/7/2009 - WDK wrote: 89 Points
Brick-brown color made me think it was dead. Not so though. Silky berry fruit with graphite and tar. Firm tannins and a little heat make the wine a little unbalanced, but the finish was long and tasty.
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6/2/2009 - bwillia wrote: 94 Points
This wine is not completely resolved and has many years ahead of it. That being said it is a beautiful wine with a long finish accented by caramel. Big and powerful now it has a lot of potential.
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5/9/2009 - cpoulos wrote: 94 Points
Parker was spot-on with this one. This made for superb drinking last night. Popped and poured, and initially there were hints of oxidation that went away as the wine opened up. Balsam, tobacco, tootsie roll (yep), menthol, dried strawberry, and roses. Nice sweet fruit. To my taste, this wine is mature; with such pretty fruit and tobacco aromas, why wait? If hard tannins were there, I didn't notice. Went perfectly with fettucine in porcini cream.
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9/16/2008 - llink wrote:
Auduzed for 8 hours in the cellar. Consistent notes from 4/5/08. Full mouth feel with a nice velvety texture.
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9/1/2008 - WDK wrote: 85 Points
Brutally tannic, with understated fruit and a bit hollow.
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4/5/2008 - llink wrote:
Popped and poured. Some sediment so I would recommend decanting. Nose of muted red fruits, potpourri, menthol and orange rind. Medium weight palate with a nice velvety mouth feel. Refined and drying tannins on the finish. Drinking nicely, but in no danger of falling apart any time soon. Finished the bottle on day 2, it held up well and seemed to pick up some added weight on the palate and some more complexity on the nose, less menthol.
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2/6/2008 - herberto wrote: 93 Points
This was still fairly closed at first, but opened up in the glass over the course of a meal, and ended up with nice rich dark fruit and tar.
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1/2/2008 - jds wrote: 91 Points
Execellent. drinking well now.
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11/25/2007 - carlwhat wrote:
this has an orangish purpleish hue... classic nebbiolo aromas of rose petals and tar. mentholated in the mouth with tannins arriving late.... long finish... really good wine...
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9/22/2007 - Jim wrote:
spice mint smoke on the nose, deep rich red fruits , cedar, mint and bramble on the palate with long lingeering mid palate and finish, very nice wine which paired very well with capello di FUnghi con Salsice e Gorgonzola, clearly a case were the rich dish helped to lessen the effect of the big tannins and make for a wonderful food wine pairing
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9/11/2007 - WDK wrote: 85 Points
Out of balance. Very tannic with little fruit. Disappointing
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5/7/2007 - djb wrote: 90 Points
Good sweet nose (with a strong birch beer note, though more interesting than that sounds)...a touch cloying on the palate. Perhaps still too young, though the tannins are under control for youngish Barolo. Lacking in mid-palate depth.
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4/3/2007 - PapaBoomBoom wrote:
This wine was just awful. Brought to dinner with my son. The wine has weak color and reminds me of the wine folks used to make in their bathtubs. Tannins are strong, weak fruit and absolutely no complexity. Even after 30 minutes of aeration, the wine had no character. A real disappointment. 70 points
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2/15/2007 - Nanda wrote: 87 Points
Italian Night at Wally's (Barrington, IL): Ruby red with a peculiar nose of caramel, violets and dark fruits. Brutally tannic --- like liquid sand paper. Can this ever come around? 4+12+15+6=87
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10/29/2006 - Eric wrote: 90 Points
Seattle Tasting Group does Italy (Bellevue, WA): Also quite floral with some tar. Savory, a bit heavy, a very nice wine but it lacks some definition.
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4/8/2006 - carlwhat wrote:
took a while to open up... then showed wonderful stuff... but by the end of the evening, the wine was still tannic... needs more time... good potential....
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1/25/2006 - herberto wrote: 90 Points
Silky, earthy, nicely balanced with fruit. Not a blockbusted by very nice. Look forward to trying again in a couple of years.
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12/1/2005 - jrufusj wrote:
Truffle Dinner, Pinot Tasting, and Piemonte (3x DRC, 2x Gaja, and more): Very, very deep color for nebbiolo. Nose immediately shows that root beer/sassafrass/anise character that I associate with modern Barolo and that I find in every young Clerico wine. There's also what should be there -- some violet floral scent and a bit of tarry scent. There's also a supersweet, superdark plum fruit that hides whatever lighter and brighter fruit may be there. Palate benefits from earth and is surprisingly approachable with soft tannins. Less sweet than the nose, the palate matches surprisingly well with the truffled risotto and the Bolognese-like ragu. A further confirmation that new-style, young Baroli are not on my buying list, but it was quite enjoyable nonetheless and presents reasonable value around $55. My first experience with this producer. Clearly modern, but not entirely over the top as long as one can look past the Barq's.
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2/13/2005 - Blair Curtis wrote: 92 Points
Dinner at Roy Hersh's (Roy's place, WA): Somewhat reticent nose of violets. Quite tannic, but very ripe fruit. Marascino cherries and red apple skins. This wine went quite well with Roy's eggplant parmesan and improved alongside the food.
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3/9/2004 - Spencer wrote: 85 Points
Farmington Wine Class. Opaque rusty brick color, with considerable orange at the rim. Strong buttery/movie popcorn element to the nose. Nice, but somewhat one dimensional. Fruit forward, this seems rather international in style to me. Short finish, oak tannins. Pleasant, straightforward wine - not particularly well integrated. Tannins are so dry, I wonder about the ability of this wine to age.
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3/9/2004 - ErikK wrote:
(dinner at Purple Cafe)Dark! Violets, rosebud, and plum explode from the glass. A very fun wine to swirl and sniff. Upon tasting, it was obvious that this was infancide. It didn't rip the enamel off my teeth and provided an abundance of cedar, sweet tobacco, and some bitter chocolate on the finish. The finish was pretty shut down. 2 hours in the decanter provided no noticeable changes. Good wine that needs many more years before being great.
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7/5/2003 - JeffGMorris wrote: 91 Points
This wine was a pleasure to drink. Very surprising for a young Barolo it was not overly tannic. Very earthy aromas and flavors.
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