TN: 1988 Giacosa Barbaresco and 2000 JM Boillot Corton Charlemagne

[Ken_V]

@Matt Neel

Ken, really? Is this opinion re Giacosa or re Barolo/Barbaresco generally? The thread is ambiguous. I LOVE '88 in Piedmont, but have little/no experience with Giacosa '88s. As a generality, I prefer '88 to '90.

The vintage in general. You’re in good company. I know Greg dal Piaz prefers 88, but for me it is not even close. I would also rank 85, 95, and 05 ahead of 88 (just to pick a few vintages many people do not think are great). I guess there are limits to my love of austerity.

[carl_klapper]

For me it’s the vintage generally but also very much about Giacosa specifically. While none of my handful of go-to traditional producers made wine in 88 that I would include in a list of their top 10 greatest hits, in my opinion only Giacosa underperformed in the context of the vintage. Indeed, I get more pleasure from his 86s and 87s than his 88s.

[Mark_Golodetz]

Like Ken, I have had a few bottles of the 1988 Santa Stefano red label, and I have found it very hit and miss. The worst including a magnum were very oxidized, the best extremely good, but I can never think it one of the great Santa Stefanos.

[Steven_Heydemann]

@Ken V

@Henry Kahn

reluctant to state this publicly, but 88 is shaping up to be an very very good to excellent barbaresco vintage, so no surprise with this normale bottling

My experience is that the 88s are generally quite austere.

We’ve tasted the 88 SSR together a bunch of times. I don’t have TNs, but I recall this wine as being quite advanced relative to other riservas. The 88 Granbussia Riserva (okay, not a barbaresco) brought to a tasting in NY was also quite far along - a bit on the decline. I have not found 88 Barbaresco austere at all, but as always with wines this old, storage is everything. The experience with Giacosa’s 88 SSR has been pretty consistent across maybe 4 or 5 tastings. Maybe from lots that were not handled well in shipment or storage?

[Steven_Heydemann]

@Ken V

@carl klapper

Unlike Ken’s, my own experience with Giacosa’s 88s led me to conclude long ago that the vintage was one of his exceedingly rare “misses”. Always glad to see a note like this one that suggests I’m wrong.

This would seem to mean you agree with me. I am not a fan of 1988 in Barolo or Barbaresco.

The first bottle of 1988 SSR I ever in the early 1990’s was stunningly good, but ever since I have had nothing but mediocre and bad bottles.

Matches my experience as well. I thought you meant austere as a complement, and consistent with Tom and Rico’s view that some of the 88s are just now showing their best.

[Bob_Hughes]

Another non-fan of the '88’s here - and I think '85 is clearly a better vintage, albeit overrated initially by the wine press. If we define the '80’s as vintages '80-'89, then '89 and '82 are the only years I would consider great.

[Bob_Hughes]

That said, I am always up for trying 25 year old wines and being proven wrong .

[Steven_Heydemann]

@Bob Hughes

That said, I am always up for trying 25 year old wines and being proven wrong .

That’s the spirit.