NEBBIOLOS, WHITE TRUFFLES, VOLUME II - Chicago, IL (10/27/2017)
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NV Jérôme Prévost Champagne La Closerie Extra Brut Les Beguines - France, Champagne
LC14. This is a much, much better iteration than the LC13, in which I’ve found weirdness, as well as a palate presence that was a bit too acidic and sharp. This is much rounder, with a great balance of stone and orchard fruit, but still adequate acidity and chalkiness to balance it out. Incredibly fresh (as it ought to be), but absolutely approachable now. (93 pts.) - NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée - France, Champagne
- Not the most convincing showing of the GC in this bottle. It’s got the classic Krug profile, but it has a bit of white grape flavour that doesn’t quite work too well. Not as rich and powerful as I would have expected it to be, either. A good showing, but not particularly convincing. (93 pts.)
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1982 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon - France, Champagne
An original release, believe it or not. This still has some life in it, but it is a fully mature champagne. There are some caramel notes to the palate, as well as some bruleed fruit. A bit tropical and exotic in profile (slightly unexpected in that respect). Still a hint of effervescence, but it’s on its last legs. (93 pts.) -
2004 Dom Perignon Champagne Rosé - France, Champagne
In the last few years since I had tasted this, this has apparently gotten incredibly better. Much better knit, with a roundness that I don’t remember ever experiencing. This is still steely and acidic, but it has certainly rounded out very nicely and is much more balanced now. There are a few notes of sour strawberries here that stick out quite prominently. Lots of upside still, of course. (93 pts.)
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1967 Cappellano Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The first nebbiolo ended up being my favourite of the evening. Fully mature, with an incredible nose and palate, so chock full of red fruit and perfumed florals. Soft, delicate, and silky, nay, ethereal. Fully mature, with seamless tannins. A touch of sweetness on the palate balances the earth tones. This is, in my mind, the archetype of properly aged nebbiolo. -
1969 Cappellano Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Corked. -
1971 Cappellano Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Estate bottling. Another classic and excellent Barolo, but this suffered slightly in that it was next to the absolutely stunning 1967. In many ways, the two were very similar wines, but the 1967 just had a little more density to it than this. The 1971 did show a little more ripeness and sweetness in comparison. Again, a silky and elegant bottle of Cappellano.
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1961 Marchesi di Barolo Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Extremely dark colour – in fact, quite unexpected. This seems extremely fresh for its age, and there’s a really powerful black fruit profile here that is really compelling. Not as earthy as some of the other wines, nor perfumed, this is a bolder, more forward style. This definitely shows a lot younger than expected – there’s no way anyone at the table would have guessed that this was the oldest wine we drank tonight. (93 pts.) -
1974 Marcarini Barolo Brunate - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
I liked this, but didn’t love it. Again, I think it’s the Marcarini house style that I can’t really get past. This has a very potent autumnal quality about it, with a lot of decaying leaves, counterbalanced by some mushrooms and red fruit. It’s that bit of muddiness in this wine that just doesn’t do it for me. (93 pts.) -
1979 Giuseppe E Figlio Mascarello Barolo Villero - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
From magnum. Corked. (93- pts.)
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1993 Roagna Barbaresco Riserva - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
A really interesting bottle of Barbaresco – this showed a fairly dark fruit profile, with fine-grained tannins that were still very prominent. I like the touch of polish here that you find from the sweet fruit. Quite dense, but the freshness keeps this going. (93 pts.) -
1982 Gaja Barbaresco Sorì San Lorenzo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
This should have been a great wine, but it was mostly stewed and unpleasant. (93- pts.) -
2003 Gaja Langhe Nebbiolo Sorì San Lorenzo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Langhe DOC
Corked. (93- pts.)
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1997 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Santo Stefano - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
An absolutely gorgeous Barbaresco that shows the potency of the Giacosa wines. Clearly young, this has a sappy sweetness and concentration to it that is held together so well by the floral elements as well as some earthy ones. Expressive and really strutting its stuff now, at twenty years, this is definitely roaring to go. (93 pts.) -
1998 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Riserva Santo Stefano - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
An incredibly dense wine, and admittedly more impressive than viscerally delicious right now. Dense fruit, which is mostly clamped shut by both the tar and the tannic elements, which will need a long time to resolve. On the other hand, it’s pretty obvious that the material here is slated for the long haul. Not as expressive as the 1997 white label Santo Stefano that we had next to it, but it is clearly the better wine (and in fact, one of my top wines of the evening). (93 pts.) -
2008 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
This just didn’t want to come out and play today. A bit simplistic for the label, with a nice dose of red fruit and a slight bit of earth, but really not much else. A bit hollow on the midpalate, this showed a lot of structure and not a lot of fruit. (93 pts.)
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1996 Conterno Fantino Barolo Sorì Ginestra - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The token modernist wine tonight, this was surprisingly silky and well-integrated, though the French oak is definitely still present. One of the inkiest and darkest wines, the fruit profile here is pitch black, but at the same time, the oak does provide a bit of added seasoning to keep this interesting. Not my style, but admittedly a fairly good bottle. (93 pts.) -
1997 Bartolo Mascarello Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
The nose on this I liked a lot better than the palate. It was simply so expressive to start, with a really dense sweet fruit character as well as some earthiness to boot. The palate wasn’t as impressive for me; it seemed a little earthy and dirty, and there was a slight stewiness that I didn’t particularly enjoy. The secondary characteristics are out in full force here. (93 pts.) -
1999 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo Brunate Le Coste - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Another one of the highlights of the evening for me. This is a very floral and red-fruited Barolo, with a slight bit of juiciness that makes this more accessible right now. It’s got some really nice acidic cut, as well as a hint of cough syrup that works so well with the rest of this wine. Surprisingly primary right now, but despite that, still very good. (93 pts.) -
1999 Cappellano Barolo Piè Rupestris Otin Fiorin (Gabutti) - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Bright, elegant, and soft, but still serious and powerful at the same time. This is a Barolo that really manages to hit all the spots. There’s a beautiful red-fruited lightness here as well, and the tannins are sneaky and delicate, but present on the back end. Like the Rinaldi in this flight, this is surprisingly young and primary, but approachable and delicious now.
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2001 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Medicinal, tannic, and hard as nails. This is a pretty brooding and powerful Barolo which isn’t really giving up too much right now. Black fruited, with a bit of a high-toned aldehydic quality that isn’t too easy to approach. Certainly the amount of material here seems like this is a wine built for the long haul, but 16 years out is not a particularly long haul. (93 pts.) -
2005 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
If the 2001 was shut down, then the 2005 was clamped down. This wine seems very similar in profile (down to the heightened aldehydic qualities) to the 2001, but just bigger in every way. More fruit, more tannin, more density, more everything. Just a bit tough to slog through; I wouldn’t even bother revisiting this for a decade. (93 pts.) -
2004 Cappellano AB Normal - Italy, Piedmont, Vino da Tavola
From magnum. A bit of a combo breaker tonight in that it’s not a nebbiolo, but this was a brilliant wine in its own right. A very pleasant and intense fruit character here, as well as a fairly light palate presence. This doesn’t show any oddness from the ten years in cask, and in fact, is probably the best barbera I’ve ever had. I suppose all that time really helped concentrate this wine and give it some serious density.
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2001 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Falletto di Serralunga d’Alba - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Of the three 2001 white labels, this was the one that really hit the spot for me (most others preferred the Asili). I found this concentrated, dark, and brooding, with a really intense fruit profile that worked really well with the earthiness and florals. And despite the relatively darker character of this wine, there’s a contrast with the lightness and lift which is really enjoyable. (93 pts.) -
2001 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Asili - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
Of the 2001 Giacosa white label flight, I slightly preferred the Falletto, though more at the table preferred this wine (the Santo Stefano brought up the rear on most people’s hierarchy). This has an elevated nose, with high-toned florals and light red fruit. Elegant and silky on the palate, with acidity that is crisper than that of the Falletto. I didn’t find the palate here to be as substantial as the Barolo (which I preferred a slight bit), but this was outstanding nonetheless. (93 pts.) -
2001 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Santo Stefano - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
This bottle fell a little flat in comparison to the Falletto and Asili. While it had many of the same light red fruited characteristics as the Asili, all in all, this was a less intense and concentrated version of that wine. The palate also came across a little less concentrated as well, and even though this is an excellent wine in its own right which I would be happy to drink independently any time, it did suffer a bit in comparison to the domaine wines. (93 pts.)
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2003 Willi Schaefer Graacher Domprobst Riesling Auslese #18 - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
#18-04. “I do love putting Willi in my mouth.” Absolutely delicious Auslese and another example of why I love the 2003 German wines so much. Granted, it’s not the most complex example of the GD Auslese that Willi Schaefer has ever made, but it is a wine that handles the power of that vintage extraordinarily well. Sweet yellow fruits and honey are counterbalanced by a vein of acidity which comes out of nowhere. (93 pts.) -
2003 Château La Tour Blanche Sauternes - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
From half bottle, served double blind (in a flight of 2003 Sauternes). It took a while to reach Sauternes, given that the other two wines showed a little oxidative and odd, but I thought this was the best of the three (and actually commented repeatedly that this had many characteristics of Yquem – the coconut, the marmalade. A bit candied and sweet, but delicious in modest quantities. (93 pts.) -
2003 Château d’Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
From half bottle, served double blind (in a flight of 2003 Sauternes). A huge disappointment at the reveal. This tasted really dirty and a bit oxidized (though it had been bought at release by the owner and stored properly since). I’m really not sure what happened here. This showed none of the fruit and coconut richness I’m accustomed to, nor did the palate really have the heft I’d expect from a 2003/Yquem crossover. I’ll probably have to open one of my own bottles to double check my assessment of this wine… (93 pts.) -
2003 Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
From half bottle, served double blind (in a flight of 2003 Sauternes). This bottle tasted quite similar to the Yquem, in that there appeared to be some oxidized notes, as well as a fair bit of dirty rot. There’s a tea note here that I found interesting; perhaps a little more evocative of sweet Loire than Sauternes. Not too complex, but a good balance of sugar and acid. (93 pts.) -
1964 Ansaldo Cinque Terre Sciactrac Liquoroso Riserva - Italy, Liguria, Cinque Terre
Served double blind. At least I correctly said it wasn’t madeira. Ended up guessing it was a marsala or something like that. More interesting than good, this had an oxidative profile, but some figs and dates. Kind of like a vintage port without all the spirit, but that had been oxidized as well. (93 pts.)
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