Thank you to our gracious host for including me in this fine tasting. I had a great time seeing familiar faces, as well as meeting a couple folks whom I had never met, as well as a couple folks whom I had met only in an online sense. My big takeaway from this tasting, for better or worse, is that I simply don’t like (most of) these wines enough to pay the asking prices. Generally, I did enjoy the wines, but there’s only a couple I would consider forking-out for. I guess I’ll just keep throwing money at France …
(if any fellow attendees notice that I have bottle preparation notes wrong, please point those errors out to me and I will fix accordingly. Thank you!)
1st Flight
It was fairly easy for me to declare the Sandrone as my favorite of this flight. The Bartolo was showing next to nothing, and the Pira was slightly corked, so the Sandrone was a runaway default winner.
2011 E. Pira & Figli (Chiara Boschis) Barolo Cannubi - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 9 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 5 minutes –
NOSE: super minty; spearmint; light TCA
BODY: bricking garnet color of medium depth; medium-light bodied.
TASTE: medium acidity; hints of leather and stony mineral; medium-light drying tannins; 14.5% alc.; low-level TCA. {same bottle as Robert Pavlovich on same date} NR (flawed)
2011 Luciano Sandrone Barolo Le Vigne - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– popped and poured –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes –
NOSE: red-fruited; light cranberry-orange mix; a bit fumey; red licorice; fruitier than the preceding 2011 E. Pira – Cannubi; hints of rosemary and mint.
BODY: ruby color of medium depth; medium-light to medium bodied.
TASTE: smoky; medium tannins; good acidity; dark leathery plum-cherry; 14.5% alc.; presents with a “warm” personality, if I were to personify it. I liked it, but would never seek it out. {same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note of same date}
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2nd Flight
This flight got more interesting, but still yielded a hands-down winner for me: the Vietti, which may be the only Italian we tasted this evening that I would seek-out for my own cellar. The Cogna was my runner-up in this flight. It was lots of fun to see the widely divergent opinions across the table.
2011 Bartolo Mascarello Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 9 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes; revisited later, non-blind –
NOSE: tight; hint of anise; cherry; apple pie.
BODY: medium-light bodied.
TASTE: incredibly tannic; short; medium to medium+ acidity; not much going on. Later, after the astonishing reveal, I re-visited it and it had opened just a touch, but was still left entirely unimpressed. [same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note on same date and Sh@n A’s note of 1/23/19}
2011 Vietti Barolo Ravera - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 10 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes; revisited later, non-blind –
NOSE: fennel seed; cran-orange; medium expressiveness.
BODY: medium-light to medium bodied.
TASTE: young-tasting; hint of oak; medium-fine tannins are quite drying; intense florals; a touch bitter; gently spicy; medium acidity; this seemed to have an energy that others lacked. Re-visited the bottle after we had gone through all the flights and my opinion remained unchanged. Excellent, and my WOTN. {same bottle as Sh@n A’s note of 1/23/19}
2011 Cappellano Barolo Piè Rupestris Otin Fiorin (Gabutti) - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 10 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes –
NOSE: very similar to the 2011 Cogno – Bricco Pernice, but a bit tighter and a little more vegetal/oxidized.
BODY: medium-light to medium bodied.
TASTE: leather/funky — a bit of brett; slightly oxidized; hint of brown sugar and a bit spicy. My least favorite of the flight; may have received too much air. {same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note on same date and Sh@n A’s note of 1/22/19}
2011 Azienda Agricola Elvio Cogno Barolo Bricco Pernice - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 10 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes –
NOSE: red licorice; hint of mint; second-favorite Nose of the flight, behind only the Vietti.
BODY: bricking garnet color of medium depth; medium bodied
TASTE: medium-fine tannins are very drying; tight; slight vegetal/oxidized note; hint of sweetness; red-fruited (strawberry); my runner-up of the flight. {same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note on same date}
3rd Flight
This flight was noticeably more “serious” than the previous flights, perhaps reflective of the vintage. The Cavallotto was my winner here.
2010 Giacomo Fenocchio Barolo 90 di Riserva Bussia - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 10 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes –
NOSE: floral strawberry.
BODY: earthy burgundy color of medium depth.
TASTE: bitter and tight, but nonetheless prefer it to the 2010 Elio Grasso - Runcot. {same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note on same date}
2010 Elio Grasso Barolo Riserva Rüncot - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 10 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes –
NOSE: oaky – sweet; red licorice; hint of Moroccan spice blend; middle-of-the-fairway.
BODY: bricking garnet color of medium depth; medium-light bodied.
TASTE: oaky; dark-fruited; a touch bitter; hint of leather; way too oaky; sweet oak — just say, “No.” {same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note on same date}
2010 Cavallotto Barolo Riserva Bricco Boschis Vigna San Giuseppe - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 10 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes –
NOSE: expressive; slight green note; dandelion and black potting soil; hints of jalapeno and grapefruit; my favorite Nose of the flight. Complex.
BODY: medium bodied.
TASTE: leather; plum; dirty/earthy; medium acidity; hint of ruby red grapefruit; liked this one a lot, it was my favorite of the flight. {same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note on same date and Sh@n A’s note of 1/22/19}
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4th Flight
Final Piedmont flight of the evening, and the Gaja took it for me, but I did enjoy all three in this flight.
2010 Fratelli Brovia Barolo Garblèt Sué - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 11 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes –
NOSE: red-fruited, with a hint of tar. Anyone who has lived in the Midwest has dealt with their fair share of snow – I grew-up in Minnesota, and using a snow-blower was commonplace in my life; the Nose on this took me back to putting the snow blower back into the garage after clearing the driveway — so, not sure what that means, other than, perhaps, a mix of gasoline, rubber, mineral, and sweat.
BODY: medium-light bodied.
TASTE: spicy; red-fruited with medium tannins; not funky or oaky; I liked this a lot.{same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note on same date}
2010 G.D. Vajra Barolo Bricco delle Viole - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 11 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes –
NOSE: RC Cola; root beer; asphalt; hint of cumin.
BODY: medium bodied.
TASTE: purple-fruited; not funky; ripe/big; very different than all other wines tonight; I like it. {same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note on same date}
2010 Gaja Barbaresco - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco (1/20/2019)
– double-decanted approx. 11 hours before tasting –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes; revisited within the hour –
NOSE: red-fruited; very pretty; hints of rubber and flowers.
BODY: medium-light bodied.
TASTE: medium-fine tannin; “clean”; purple-fruited; nice energy; seemed to be nicely-proportioned, and I could see this developing quite nicely over the next couple decades. Easily my favorite of the flight. {same bottle as Robert Pavlovich’s note on same date and Sh@n A’s note of 1/23/19}
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Bonus Burgundy
This wine, in conjunction with all the Piedmonts that preceded it, made a couple things crystal clear to me: I have a strong preference for Pinot Noir over Nebbiolo, and Nebbiolo is no substitute for Pinot Noir.
2014 Domaine Robert Arnoux / Arnoux-Lachaux Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru (1/20/2019)
– pretty sure this was popped and poured –
– tasted a single pour, blind, over approx. 20 minutes –
NOSE: red-fruited; a bit oaky; obviously Pinot Noir
BODY: medium-light bodied.
TASTE: red-fruited; cigar/spicy; velvety; cranberry; smooth, with medium acidity. Very nice. Tasty now, but a waste to do anything but Hold.