1959 Bersano Barolo Riserva

Community Tasting Notes (1)

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  10/15/2022 - WST Likes this wine:

  I had little optimism for this wine, considering the age and the vintage.
  It wound up being one of the best examples of 1959 Nebbiolos I've had. Decanted for a few hours, then poured back into the bottle for another few hours. Initially, it smelled old, tired and dead. It fully resuscitated with air. The color was amazing, more red than amber. The wine had equal proportions of fresh and dried dark red fruit and tertiary notes (tea, leather, tar and moist earth), but little oxidation. The thick wax capsule had made an airtight seal. Elegant, delicate and dignified, this lasted through the night without decline.
  
  It was a challenge to open. I couldn't tell right away if it was a thick lead capsule or petrified wax. It turned out to be the latter. I first tried to gradually scrape the wax off with a knife, but after a slight finger wound, switched to a hammer and awl (trying not to shake up sediment as it lay in my decanting cradle. I pivoted to the boiling water on a towel technique, gradually softening it enough to get a corkscrew through both the wax and cork. The cork was contracted, barely contacting the glass, so the wax was the only true seal.
  
  I have opened several different 1959 Barolos and Barbarescos, as it's my birthyear. I still have some in the cellar, although I've purchased more wines from the outstanding '58 vintage.

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