2016 Sottimano Barbaresco Cottá- Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco (1/22/2020)
A wow wine, already, and likely to improve from here. After tasting all of the new (2016) releases, including the late-release Basarin, I’m giddy with excitement; all have their own personalities, yet all are in the same class: world class. The best new release wines I’ve tasted from Sottimano in more than a decade; perhaps, ever. Brilliant. if you have several open one now and you won’t be sorry just be sure to give it 30-60 minutes of air. Strong buy; drink thru 2045+, 14,0% abv. highly recommended
Just had their 2006 Barbaresco Fausoni last weekend, beautiful stuff. For me definitely falls in the traditional camp with moderate proportions, bright fruit and no oak dominance.
I had a 2013 last night and it was nothing special to be honest. Tannic raspberry juice that smelled like a bottle of rubbing alcohol. Lacked that Anise/Licorice taste and scent I love so much in Italian wine. I decanted and drank over 5+ hours and it never came around.
Had a chance to try the 16’ Cotta and Pajore, but now noticing I didn’t publish any TN’s. I liked both of the wines, though with my already high expectations, trying them on release didn’t move me to buy any more than the mixed case I already had. Sometimes, it has to be possible to buy the right amount?
16’ Cotta: Sports a good mix of depth and freshness in the palate. The bold dark purple/black fruit is tasty but very direct and kind of one note, though it shows nice black and white pepper accents. Shows fine, moderate tannins (for Barbaresco), and plus length. Can be enjoyed on its own, but better with food. The good, slightly elevated acidic freshness and pepper notes being key.
16’ Pajore: Compared to the Cotta, the fruit profile is more dark red and complex, the wine has a lot more going on but it’s also less approachable. Almost painfully young, with strong acidity, even after some air it showed this fairly prominent green apple note that the coating of fruit couldn’t quite contain. A powerful wine with a good amount of intrigue, though tough to assess its potential, I do like that it seems built to age.
The wine is built to last for decades and certainly not suited for immediate consumption. If you thought the other 2013 was tannic raspberry juice, this is not going to be any better for quite a while.
