Is the 04 Massolino Barolo on Cinderella wine worth a spi @ $30n? I know little about Barolo (other than that I like it) but always looking for a way to experience more
I can’t say I’ve ever even seen a note on Massolino, so I wasn’t tempted to buy in, even though I love the vintage.
There are some decent notes on CT, FWIW. But I dont recognize any of the handles.
You might want to put the wine name in the subject heading to draw more responses.
Good producer, has varied winemaking techniques over the years, moving consistently towards a return to more traditional ageing. Some really fine Vigna Riondas produced over the years, the winery is called Azienda Agricola Vigna Rionda. Tasted the 2006 Classico and 2004 Rionda last year. I hope this gives some idea of quality and style.
2006 Barolo Classico
20-22 day maceration
2 years in botte, 1 year in bottle
Dried fruit, strawberries and roses greet the nose with hints of licorice, orange, evergreen balsam and medicinal aromas. Round, clear and precise in the mouth with apply acids and plenty of tannin covered in plum skin fruit with earthy, slightly tarry tones and an underlay of strawberry jam. The backend shows a nice sandalwood note with candied medicinal herbs that extend through the moderately long finish. 90pts
2004 Barolo Vigna Rionda Riserva
28-30 day maceration
3 years in botte then 2 yrs in bottle
From the moment this is opened it exhibits a beautiful array of integrated spice tones, poppy seeds, subtle mint and basil stem tones with a touch of coffee accenting the dark, dense dried strawberry fruit. The fruit is very ripe on the palate with bright acids and just a hint of tannin protruding right up front. The tannins are very ripe though and the fruit is so rich that they are barely noticeable on the mid-palate. This shows huge follow through on the backend with gorgeous and complex inner mouth perfumes, tarry, mineral, and spicy notes that accent the astringent red berry and plum fruit that extend through the long finish. This really has wonderful balance and power with great rich, ripe fruit from one of the finest vineyards in the world. What’s not to like? 94pts
Thanks, Greg. Seems like enough for me to pull the trigger on a few.
I liked the 04 regular bottling from Massolino. I thought I only paid $30 for it when it first came out from the Wine Club but I could be wrong. Anyways I think that’s a very fair price for this wine. Solid middle bodied nebbiolo: It won’t blow your mind but its a great drinker.
I think of Massolino as an excellent producer. In many vintages, their single-vineyard Rionda comes the closest to what Giacosa used to do with this vineyard. Their base Barolo is generally quite a good value. I would agree with Gene that $30 is a fair price, or maybe even a good price, but not some astonishing value. Still, if you’re looking for $30 Barolo, you could do a lot worse. If I didn’t already have so much, I would hop on 6 of these.
71 Vigna Rionda…going,going…soon to be gone.
For the love of Rionda.
05 Massolino normale is a good buy too.