I happened to look at the CT notes on the '15 Piè Rupestris, and was taken by how disappointed the few folks who’ve had it seemed to be. Curious if anyone around here has had the wines, or heard much about the vintage there, etc. Was it really a tough vintage for them, did they underperform, etc? Thanks for any perspective or experience you’ve had vs others in '15…
the three notes you’re referring to are all from one tasting through. Could be an off bottle. Could be getting shipped the 4oz bottles in heat. The other note that seems to be outside of their tasting (or maybe the person that bottled the samples) looks very positive. Galloni’s note from 2/1/2020 is very positive as well.
I tasted it about a week ago and posted my note on CT - I thought it was a very good wine, one of the better 15s I’ve had. My note: “The nose opened with aromas on the darker, spicier end of the spectrum, with black raspberry, spices, fresh herbs, tar, and candied orange peel. On the palate, the wine is concentrated and rich with a velvety, demi-glace texture. There is a wave of sweet dark red fruit ending in a finish of dark fruit, licorice, and spices, with firm but smooth tannins. It’s an incredible wine, and so different than the 2014 I tasted recently, with much more richness in the texture and a bit of darker profile. I find this to be one of the better 2015s I’ve tasted, with all the richness in aroma and texture of a warm vintage but great balance.”
As for the other reviews, there are three of them but they all seem to be from people who participated in the same virtual tasting, and my hunch is this is the problem: “Tasted double blind on zoom after bottling in small bottles and shipping overnight cross-country.” Especially this time of year, I’m not surprised doing that resulting in the wine not showing well.
I’m one of the people who was part of the Zoom tasting. I’m not selling any of my 2015 Cappellano, and I have quite a bit. It wasn’t a great showing, but it was hardly the ideal setting. I didn’t think any of the reds showed especially well, to be honest.
For what it’s worth, I know other people whose palates I respect who like the wines a lot.
I was part of that tasting, and I think my note was the one which documented the circumstances around the tasting. For what it’s worth, I really don’t think the wine was damaged by heat/travel or oxidized, I just think it was closed. I think the same thing would happen if you opened a bottle of young Nebbiolo yourself and let us sit exposed to air for 1-2 days… there would be times where it showed well and times where it showed poorly. I certainly got glimpses that I liked, and periods where I couldn’t get much. The person who organized the tasting said it showed well straight out of the bottle.
I’m certainly not selling the few bottles I have, but I have also had better experiences with young Cappellano (2013, for example). I’ll be looking for more opportunities to try it again.
Also, for what it’s worth, a 2012 G. Rinaldi Brunate that was also part of this tasting was lovely.
Yeah, I think most people liked the Rinaldi more than me - my palate was grumpy that day, I think. 
Not that I think it was bad, mind. The only wine I just outright didn’t like was the Isola e Olena.
root day obviously
FWIW Augusto prefers 2015 to 2016–perhaps because that is the vintage on sale now? At any rate, Rosenthal’s notes below
The 2015 vintage treated Augusto well, and in fact he remarked to us that he prefers it to the much vaunted 2016, at least for the moment. The slightly schizophrenic nature of the growing season—alternating periods of intense warmth and unseasonable coolness—culminated in a relatively normally timed harvest, with Augusto picking the Barbera on September 28th and the Nebbiolo beginning on October 8th. The finished wines offer the richness and power of a warm vintage, but with a delicately articulated sense of equilibrium more commonly found in less solar years. Furthermore, they are surprisingly generous out of the gate, and while ample patience with these lovably old-style wines is always encouraged, it is not necessarily mandatory with these irresistible 2015s.
Not sure this is the best way to evaluate a young Barolo, especially one that is probably shut down at this point. Just leave them alone for 15 years and then start to evaluate them. ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
I would love to do this. But I am only getting into Cappellano over the last few years and don’t want to cellar a wine for over 15 years before I try a bottle and decide if I like it. I’m willing to accept some rate of shut down wines. And, honestly, the vast majority of them have been beautiful: 2008, 2011, 2013.
Don’t get me wrong… I also plan on trying these after age 15.
I used to have this philosophy, but during COVID have started tasting younger Barolo frequently. I think it’s absolutely worth it and very educational and I was missing out before. It is very rare that I’ve had a bottle that felt like a waste, and most wines have drank very well - every '16 Barolo I’ve had has drank well, the '15 Cappellano was gorgeous, 2013 Cogno Elena was amazing recently, etc. As AAgrawal says I don’t see how else you become educated on these wines - even if you had access to all the wines from say 1999 or 2004, styles and quality levels have shifted over the past 15-20 years, and each vintage is unique. You either rely 100% on critics or you have to taste the wines yourself, or you restrict yourself to a small # of estates where you know you want to buy those wines every vintage no matter what.
I do find young Nebbiolo doesn’t respond well to being open for a long time / air exposure, coincidence or not (perhaps, rather than heat, that was the issue with the virtual '15 Cappellano tasting - who knows). I always PnP and try to finish the wine the first day and haven’t had a situation where I thought the wine was better on day #2.
I tasted the 2015 Pie Rupestris and Pie Franco over the weekend.
The 2015 Pie Rupestris was excellent (albeit it carried some alcohol). Red berries, orange rind, earth, saddle leather and fresh herb. Lovely fruit. I rated it 96 points.
The 2015 Franco seemed very advanced for its age, pouring slightly brown. Nose was dominated by Amaro, mushroom funk and darker fruits. It had hints of the (incredible) 2013 but was a very poor wine given its pedigree. It was not corked and was tasted with the importer who imports on refrigerated reefers. Bad bottle? Maybe, but 92 points maximum for me.
Of course the fact that these were tasted alongside the 2016 Rinaldi Brunate & Tre Tine did not help their cause.
That depends on your view of recent Rinaldi vintages. Was this tasting with Rosenthal?
No, this was a tasting held in Sydney, Australia.
Interested to hear your views on the recent Rinaldi releases. I thought the 2013 were superb, the 2014 good, the 2015 a bit of a miss vintage (unbalanced wines in my view).
As others have said, I don’t agree with this. While I’m not touching my 13s (the tannic structure is just forbidding for a lot of them right now), the 2011 Cappellano has been gorgeous since release and the 2014 is also drinking fine. Not every vintage of barolo needs to age for 15 years.
Got it. In my opinion, the recent Rinaldis have been good, but not quite of the same level as the prior regime. While partially a function of price, let’s just say I buy a lot more Cappellano these days than Rinaldi.
Hah! Just not an Italian day for some reason. Then we all loved a Barolo I brought to a big burgundy dinner on Saturday. Who knows.
i sent out sample bottles of 2013 bartolo for our group. Bottled on monday, consumed on Saturday. It was delicious!
Rob, part of my comment was the way this was tasted. If I’m going to try a young Barolo, I’m going to decant it, and have the experience of trying the wine over a few hours, not just a small sample like that when you aren’t sure of the treatment it received. Sure, I’ve had young Barolo that tastes pretty good. But if you’re someone like me who values the aged complexity, texture, and balance of an aged wine you just can’t get that from a young Barolo. Of course there are changes over time in producers and vintages, but that is part of the fun. Sometimes you’re slightly disappointed by how a wine aged, but it’s still pretty dam good. Sometimes you’re amazed by something that you thought was just a solid value when young but turns out beautifully. I just wouldn’t write off the Cappellano after this showing…my guess is that it’s best days are in the future.
Interesting. I seem to recall Roberto Conterno saying the same thing, I think in a zoom with Galloni. Perhaps it is a Serralunga thing?