TN: 1997 Parusso Barolo Bussia Vigna Rocche (Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo)

WINE TALK
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  • 1997 Parusso Barolo Bussia Vigna Rocche - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo (12/13/2009)
    Oddly, you don’t hear or see a lot of notes on Parusso, but I feel he is lurking somewhat under the radar, and a producer well worth paying attention too. This bottle was no exception. This is probably the only Barolo I own that you could even entertain the ‘M’ word (mature) with, though it would be on the young side of that curve and still destined for a long life ahead. Unapologetically a 97, and once the wine had a few moments to get comfortable with its surroundings in the decanter and burg stems, an extroverted Nebbiolo nose sprang forth of fresh cut rose petals that were sprinkled with cloves and Allspice. A saline smell added complexity as well as salivating my taste buds for the veal chop with porcini glaze that was destined my way at any moment. Certainly from the modern school, this was very dark in color, with loads of deep plum and sloe flavors that carried a terrific edge of acidity and cut, as Tanzer would often say. Fine grained minerals resonated on the impressively persistent finish, leading to a very satisfying Barolo experience last night. My only regret was that I didn’t get to spend more time with the wine, as I would have been curious to see how this evolved over a 24 hr period. (93 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

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It sounds wonderful, Dale.

I’m with you, in the fact that my ‘mature’ Baroli start around '96 or '97 - in 20 years, I’ll be golden!

I’m also a fan of finding a saline component in my wines. It seems to extend the meaty characteristics, sort of a bloody meat type of note, but not in an overpowering way.

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Indeed its a tough undertaking, this whole Piedmont thing Todd. I’ve only been buying anything of real Nebbiolo quality for about 4 or 5 year now, and can’t really afford to buy large enough quantities to just pop at a whim. So patience, patience, patience, let these gems sleep, drink a ton of Barbera and Dolcetto, open a great Barolo or Barbaresco on a special occasion, and life will be good.

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Dale,
A very nice note on what sounds like a very enjoyable wine. I’ve had three bottles of the '97 Parusso Mariondino Barolo over the last several years. My impression each time was that it was a serviceble Barolo, but there were no exemplary qualities. I suspect that the Bussia Vigna Rocche is a step up in quality from the Mariondino.