20 Years on: A trio of 1989 Barolo

WINE TALK
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I’m sitting here as I type this savoring a last glass of the 1989 Corino Vigna Giachini. I was prompted to open up a few bottles tonight based upon the great showing a couple of nights ago by the '89 Scavino normale (really quite nice right now, and especially impressive for the normale!).

So we journeyed to a local Italian byob tonight to check out the:

1989 Scavino Barolo Bric del Fiasc
1989 Luigi Einaudi Barolo
1989 Corino Barolo Vigna Giachini

I had heirloom tomato salad, burrata on toasted bread and veal scallopine to accompany the wines. As I’m sitting here, the Corino is still very dark red at it’s core, fading to a translucent red around the rim. The wines were all uncorked about 4 1/2 hours ago, but not decanted. Of the three, this was the slowest to come around, but now the nose is redolent with red fruits, and this is super smooth on the palate - I would say at peak, although not showing any indication whatsoever of a downhill slide.

Of the three, I think the Scavino is the most complete wine, and also the one that has the most in reserve. I think all three are on the plateau of maturity, but this was the only wine that I believe might have the potential for further positive development. The Einaudi was the most interesting wine from the nose, with an intriguing dose of funk that livened things up. All three offering a different facet of the nebbiolo grape, which definitely enhanced the side-by-side aspect of the meal. Not a bad way at all to spend a Thursday evening, and I still have “leftovers” to accompany my pizza tomorrow night [wink.gif]

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Good useful notes as I have a couple bottles of the Scavino.

The Einaudi I had til I dropped it about a year ago. Cellar smelled great for a long time. [welldone.gif]

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Bob – You’re a brave man to be trying your 89s. I’ve buried mine. But these are all very much in the modern camp, so I guess they’d be good bets to more approachable.

4

I love Einaudi, and for all the reasons you mentioned. Great wines, too bad the prices keep creeping up on recent releases.

5

John, I’ve also had multiple great experiences with Giacosa’s Rionda Riserva from '89, so I’d say that with adequate decanting there’s not a wine out there at 20 years of age that can’t be enjoyed. Sure, some day the '89 Rionda may even be as good as the '78, but when that day arrives I might also be dead [wink.gif]

Bottom line, IMO, is one needn’t be shy about approaching any wines at this juncture from vintages like '90, '89, '85 or '82. With the exception of the '90 Monfo [cheers.gif]

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Hi Bob

I’m also a fan of old Barolo and I have a few in the cellar.

A few months ago I opened some relevant wines and posted about them on Wine Disorder. The most relevant ones were the 1989 Barolo Sperss from Angelo Gaia – I have opened other bottles of Sperss but I have never had one quite as ready and open as this one. I would say it was hitting on all cylinders. We had one or two real “oak-o-phobes” present and they thought it was delicious, too. The “disadvantage” of the Sperss was that it tasted a little like a hybrid of a very good Barolo and a very good Bordeaux.

Another relevant wine was the 1982 Scavino Bric del Fiäsc, provided by my friend Dave Cuneo. This was an amazing wine, and I can tell you that Scavino had not bought his oak barrels in 1982. This was a bright vivid 100% Barolo wine, sappy and fresh and scarlet.

Our other Barolos that night:

1993 Barale Castellero
1982 Giacomo Conterno “Cascina Francia”
1990 Marchesi di Barolo (surprisingly quite good)
1993 Clerico Ciabot Mentin

Long story short, all extremely good. Long live Nebbiolo, long live Barolo!!

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Certainly the Scavino and Corino. But do you really think the Einaudi normale is “very much in modern camp?” I don’t know about 1989, but I’d call most of the vintages of the 90s as fairly traditional (the Costa Grimaldi is more modern styled). But I am no Piedmont expert/

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I was basing that on more recent Cannubi’s.

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I think back in '89 Einaudi would still have been considered a traditionalist – I know at that point he was one of the few winemakers (along with Bartolo Mascarello) that was still producing only blended barolo, although at some point in time during the 90’s he also decided to go the cru bottling route.

Frank, I like that '93 vintage - very underrated wines in general, but given good provenance, still drinking very fresh at this time. Perhaps you, me & Maria Ozawa could share a bottle or two in the future [wink.gif]

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Bob, if you like old school pre-oak Barolo you need to get some Barale.

The stuff appears to be immortal and it is sappy fresh and delicious.

I’d love to share Barolo with people who understand what they are drinking. But I’m in New Jersey and Maria is in Japan, where are you, maybe we could make a date.


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I have notes on the other wines if anyone wants to hear about them. I’m not the greatest tasting note writer so don’t expect too much…

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Frank, I’d be curious as to your thoughts about the '93 Clerico, as I believe I still have some of the Pajana in the cellar (at least according to CT).

Re: locations, I’m originally from NJ myself (Bloomfield & Parsippany), so I don’t where where you are in NJ, but there are certainly folks who get together and like to drink fine Barolo. Two board members that immediately come to mind are Brad Kane & Paul Joauen (and looking at it, I’m sure I’ve butchered the hell out of Paul’s surname), and we’ve gotten together once or twice at a place in the mid-50’s in Manhattan called Il Corso.

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I’ve met both Brad and Paul – I teach at Rutgers and I’m in the New Brunswick area because of that.

I know they are both discriminating wine lovers but I haven’t seen a lot of specific interest from them about Italian reds. A lot of Bordeaux lovers don’t quite get the point of Italians in general, much less Barolo (of course I could be wrong).

My only note about the Clerico was that previous bottles I have opened from other vintages were rich in flavor and deficient in bouquet. The 93 had ample quantities of both. It was a “late evening” bottle, after many other great bottles, and so we had smelled enough tar and roses to make it hard to remember all of the details.

Thanks for your Barolo notes.

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Well, Brad’s employer (Winebow) is the importer for Giacosa, so he definitely has an affinity for Barolo (although I will say he has a serious aversion to oak, even when most “normal” folks would detect none, so I don’t think Scavino or Clerico are in Brad’s wheelhouse). Paul has a more eclectic palate, and does enjoy some nice Bordeaux & southern Rhone, but I know he cellars/drinks stuff like Roagna & Cavallotto, so he is not a neophyte by any means.

BTW, if you can get Maria to fly out for a dinner, I will break out some of the Monfortino’s & Giacosa’s that I have waiting for this special occasion [wink.gif]

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I don’t think Dave Cuneo would mind my re-posting his note on the 93 Corino:

1993 Clerico, Barolo “Ciabot Mentin Ginestra”. Another beautiful wine done in the traditional style, it also has more to give and could benefit from more cellar time. Spicy red and orange fruits, with underbrush and herb, full, rich, intense. Another winner from the under-rated 93 vintage. Grade: A- now, perhaps A in the future.

I don’t mean to be negative about my NJ neighbors, I suppose I have a larger and older slight paranoia – going back to when I read Hugh Johnson’s wonderful book “Wine” and learned that Italian reds were sharp inferior products made in dirty conditions. Having tasted examples made in the time-frame when Hugh Johnson was writing that, I think he must have known several of the wrong people in Italy. But this has been a rather general view of Italians, and one that I learned was false during a period, mostly in the 1990’s, when I was collecting a mix of Italian reds.

Anyway I have more French reds than Italians, and I think more Italian reds than California, and hardly any Australians, and those ratios seem to suit me pretty well.

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IMO Bobulus, you’re already dead! [pillow-fight.gif]

OK, I mean IMO the 89 already exceeds the 78. You might recall the time we had the “soulless” 78 Monfortino (which I rated 99/100) and the 78 Rionda (which I rated 100/100). Then we had the 89 Rionda and I had to rate it 102/100). The greatest single wine I’ve ever had.

To the more general topic here, every 89 Barolo or Barbaresco I’ve had in the last few years has been terrific. Maybe the greatest vintage of my lifetime. Real Barolo-lovers Barolo! [dance-clap.gif]

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John - My recollection of the 1989s when they came in is that the difference between modernists and traditionalists was far, far less marked than by the mid-1990s. We are talking incremental in 1989, but by 1996, it was outright difference in approach. FWIW, I purchased very little 1989 (not because I doubted the vintage, but because relatively little was available here), but the Azelia Bricco Fiasco (made by Roberto Scavino) was breathtaking a few years ago – ask Charles for confirmation.