Barolo 2009 Vintage....time for Vintage Talk?

I am wondering what others have heard about the 2009 Barolo vintage. I tried a search through Wine Talk before posting this, but when I searched for Barolo 2009 I encountered over 8,000 posts. The abundance of results made it very difficult to find a good summary or thread on the vintage basics.
Also wonder if it might make sense to set up another directory within Wine Talk or a new one called Vintage Talk which is broken down by major wines. I know that there is an enormous amount of information here, but still struggling with the best way to retrieve it.

With the 2008 vintage just hitting stores, unless folks have barrel-tasted, you’re still a little early for specific wine feedback at this point.

Tanzer (in his initial commentary) did say that the vintage temperature/weather-wise was more similar to 2007 than 2008 (so a riper, warmer vintage), but other than that, haven’t read too much.

It’s seemed like the last run of vintages has been warmer in odd years, and more classic in even years…

Clearly though that generalization isn’t worth too much!

Cannot speak about Barolo 2009, but have tasted quite a number of Barbaresco 2009, when I was last year in Piedmont.

In general I was not convinced: The wines were mostly quite alcoholic and fruit forward. Colours were on the paler side and there was not terribly much extract. Of course, Barolo may well have fared better, but I will stick to 2008: fresher and more taste of terroir.

Besides: From what I have heard 2010 is going to be the real showstopper.

Greetings
Eric

Lately how Chateauneuf goes has been an indicator of what to expect in Piemonte. I only mention it because the CdPs are release two years earlier than Barolo, one year earlier than Barbaresco typically.

2006 More classic in both regions
2007 More ripe in both regions
2008 More classic in both although much weaker in CdP
2009 More ripe in both regions
2010 More structured in both regions

'10, '11, and '12 are going to be the vintages to buy. Drink and buy 08’s until the '10s are released.

I only tasted 09s Barolo from barrel, several dozen Barbaresco from bottle last May. They struck me as better than 07s, more akin to 2000. There will be lots of media love for them as they are rather plump, soft and approachable. I expect that they will be highly scored and as such we will see an early flood of interest but I would be in no rush to buy unless you got a really compelling offer on a wine you had to have.

Had the F. Rinaldi Barolo normale for lunch yesterday. It could have been anything: a middling CA blend, a Spanish wine, an over- the-top Barbera. Big fruit, tannins submerged, drinkable but undistinguished. I have also had 2009 Barberas that were like Zins. 2009 was not quite as hot as 2003 in the Piemonte, but it was close. Parker would love these wines. Caveat emptor! I am neither a buyer nor a drinker of 2009 Piemontese wines. I bought only a few bottles of the 2007s, but I have had a number of them in ristoranti, and I find them to be fruit-forward, but generally well-balanced and good for early drinking. 2009 will necessarily produce too high a percentage of high-alcohol freaks…

The 2009 been released?

Yep, of that wine anyway. Not one of my faves, but was lunching in a bar with limited choices.

Agree with the others. Many of the 2008s I tasted at Slow Wine & Gambero Rosso won’t be released until this summer. Many of the wines I wanted in my report are not released yet.

I tasted the 2009 Comm. G.B. Burlotto Barolo Monvigliero last weekend.

My notes : The nose was lush, showing heady aromas of ripe red berries and roses with crushed olive, rosemary and hot tar. On the palate it was tightly wound, showing densely packed red fruit and herbal notes before it’s fine tannins coated the senses. The finish was long, yet dry with red berry-concentrate saturating the senses. (92 points)

I’m not sure that this wine is a good indicator for the vintage, especially since it’s so unique on an average day, but I found it to be of very good quality.

Just back from a quick trip and the “Even/Odd” year comparisons among vintages keeps rolling along… I found the 2009 to be lovely “early drinkers”… Not nearly as in-your-face as the 2007, but still, no shortness of sweet, round tannins - dry for sure, but not puckering in any way. Most of the wine makers I spoke with prefer their 2009 to their 2007.

2011 appears to be a carbon copy of 2009 with maybe just a little more elegance than 2009 - the nose on several were incredible for such young wines. Really thought that a couple of Cru from Verduno (Neirane and Monvigliero) were exceptionally pretty.

2010 is all power! The wines I tasted from both Barbaresco and Barolo were structural monsters yielding very little fruit on the palate at this time. These puppies are going to need some serious cellaring time to really show well - at nearly 50, might be the last “great vintage” I will be able to buy with some level of confidence that I’ll be around to enjoy them when they start to peak. I didn’t taste enough from Barbaresco to make an informed opinion, but it will be interesting to see which region will “outperform” the other in this mighty vintage.

since this thread about 09 Barolo was posted first … bimp