The Auswine Forum

I know there are at least a few other Nebbiolo tragics lurking around the forum, would love to hear what you are tasting / buying / drinking at the moment, especially from Barolo and Barbaresco.

To kick things off, a few recent tasting notes / impressions:

Borgogno Barolo 2004
Decanted for 6 hours (and it needs at least 4), intoxicating and constantly shifting aromas of new leather, aniseed, cherry, pine needles and briar patch. Its full bodied and rich on fruit by old world standards, has length for days and is still showing a gloriously fine tannic backbone. Will certainly improve over the next 5-10 years.

Giovanni Rosso Barolo Cerretta 2008
Committed some vinfanticide, looks pretty ordinary for the first 4 hours or so in the decanter (tar & roses and seemingly shut down), then springs to life with plenty of Giovanni generosity. Fruits ranging from cranberry to black cherry, aniseed, roses, bit of tar, constantly shifting in the glass, so fresh, all class, drink from 2020?

Paolo Scavino Barolo 2010
There is quite a lot of this floating around on various auction sites at the moment, if you are patient you can pick them up for around $40/bottle, which is outstanding value by import standards. On the leaner / more classic end of the spectrum from the 2010 vintage, it needs another 8-10 years at rest to develop some secondary complexity, however the overall quality and balance is clearly present.

Poderi Luigi Einaudi Barolo Terlo Vigna Costa Grimaldi 2010
Also floating around at Auction, though will likely come in at $60/bottle minimum, still good buying at that price point, complex, classic style, will go the long haul.

Giovanni Rosso Langhe Nebbiolo 2011
This could be the wine to convince your Australian Cab/Shiraz drinking friends to step over to the dark side, generous fruit paired with silky tannins and excellent balance, good drinking right now.

Brezza Nebbiolo d'Alba "Santa Rosalia" 2012
Tasted at the recent Italian food & wine show in Sydney, really stood out due to its savoury yet fruity balance and lovely mineral freshness on the finish.

Luke Lambert Nebbiolo 2012
Tastes very Yarra Valley, if that's not a silly thing to day, has a sappy 'pinosity' about it however the tannin structure is definitely Nebbiolo. The best Australian Nebbiolo I have tried to date, have two more bottles which I will definitely leave alone for another 5+ years and see what happens.

I'll be looking at this thread very closely. Hunter Shiraz and Nebbiolo (both Italian and Australian) are the two areas I'm looking to skew my buying towards.

I've recently picked up some 2013 Joshua Cooper Nebbiolo - I really want to open one but I know its best days are ahead of it!

I'm very interested to follow this thread and all things nebbiolo.

Just a couple of Aussie Nebs

Glenlofty nebbiolo 2011
A nose somewhat typical of the varietal but as with the palate a fairly simple wine.

Star lane nebbiolo 2012
A much better wine, tar and roses on the nose and good tannins. Not piemonte, but decent anyway.

2011 Giaconda Nebbiolo is a real elegant wine. It needs a bit of time (7-8 years) to get in its window but will be very good for a decade beyond that. It come from a very very small parcel of grapes (1 acre) at 2 tonnes per acre making just 175 dozen. It's up their in price, but worth tracking some down. Current release is 2012 (not sure what it is like).

Giaconda also do another Nebbiolo under a different name. McClay Road Nebbiolo, which is also nice, but not as good as the latter but still about half the price.

I picked up some of the 2010 Paolo Scavino Barolo at auction too. For the price I thought it was silly not to. That being said my experience with the variety is very limited so far.
Most of the Australian Nebbiolo I've had, has been a bit on the boring side. I'm holding onto a couple SC Pannell 2010's that I'm yet to crack open. Should I hang onto these another 5 years or so or are they worth drinking young? I never know with Aussie Neb.
I've heard good things about the Luke Lambert Nebbiolo but it appears pretty hard to come by. I'll need to be prepared to pounce on next years vintage.

I'll be keeping an eye out for any other Italian recommendations around the $100 mark or less.

Great thread. Problem is that many people like to talk as if they are experts, but often they have limited experience and give opinion based on limited experience.

It would be great if people staged how many wines they've tried over how many vintages before claiming 'this wine needs to be consumed over the next 6 years' or 'this wine will go 20 years.'

When did giving an opinion on something, especially something as subjective as wine, require someone to qualify and quantify their experience first?

You have given your opinion on many things without doing so...as does everyone else on this board...

The only Barolos I have had have been the cheaper ones so I don't know what the good ones are like but I have had a couple of Nebbiolos from Amulet and Brokenwood (Indigo vineyard) in Beechworth, and Freeman vineyards in Young. They have all been younger wines (around 2010) and have been very good to drink with food and I would definitely buy the Freeman again as It seemed to be a very well balanced wine and would cellar well.

Pej wrote:I picked up some of the 2010 Paolo Scavino Barolo at auction too. For the price I thought it was silly not to. That being said my experience with the variety is very limited so far.
Most of the Australian Nebbiolo I've had, has been a bit on the boring side. I'm holding onto a couple SC Pannell 2010's that I'm yet to crack open. Should I hang onto these another 5 years or so or are they worth drinking young? I never know with Aussie Neb.
I've heard good things about the Luke Lambert Nebbiolo but it appears pretty hard to come by. I'll need to be prepared to pounce on next years vintage.

I'll be keeping an eye out for any other Italian recommendations around the $100 mark or less.

To be honest I've had the Pannell Nebb twice and found it a little bland. I love his wines but would personally suggest leaving it for a year or 3 and hopefully it'll gain another dimension.

Luke Lambert is a better wine for mine, however I would again leave it alone for a few years if you only have the one bottle. otherwise it's a good wine now.

I've not been happy with any of the Pannell Nebs...the tannins feel wrong which throws off the texture for me...

Giaconda Neb is decent..Joseph Neb is pretty decent as well....I think my issue is I'd rather just get a basic Produttori which I know will perform and ages very well even for what is a relatively entry level Barbaresco...

Had another bottle of Bartolo Mascarello Barolo 2010- I was insitant it shouldn't be opened But it wasn't my bottle. The balance is what stood out. A wonderful wine in 10 for 20+..... Sorry Swirler it ain't rocket science.

winetastic wrote:
Luke Lambert Nebbiolo 2012
Tastes very Yarra Valley, if that's not a silly thing to day, has a sappy 'pinosity' about it however the tannin structure is definitely Nebbiolo. The best Australian Nebbiolo I have tried to date, have two more bottles which I will definitely leave alone for another 5+ years and see what happens.

Totally agree winetastic, best Oz Nebbiolo I've had, not that I've had too many from Australia. Balance, acid, fineness all there. I haven't tried the 2013 which I will have to rectify.
Cheers
TA

swirler wrote:Great thread. Problem is that many people like to talk as if they are experts, but often they have limited experience and give opinion based on limited experience.

It would be great if people staged how many wines they've tried over how many vintages before claiming 'this wine needs to be consumed over the next 6 years' or 'this wine will go 20 years.'

I hate reading lots of text, so rather than providing a resume of wines consumed prior to offering our drinking windows how about we assume there is an asterisk with an attached disclaimer stating this is my opinion and based on my experience and taste.

Polymer wrote:When did giving an opinion on something, especially something as subjective as wine, require someone to qualify and quantify their experience first?

You have given your opinion on many things without doing so...as does everyone else on this board...

Did I write that? Should have been posted under what I'm drinking now

I'd delete it, but it's already been 'preserved'

JamieBahrain wrote:Had another bottle of Bartolo Mascarello Barolo 2010- I was insitant it shouldn't be opened But it wasn't my bottle. The balance is what stood out. A wonderful wine in 10 for 20+..... Sorry Swirler it ain't rocket science.

Jamie, nobody would question your knowledge of Piedmont wines. Not even a drunken fool

I'm just a drinker.

Taking your point further, in the last few years, the new wave of Piedmont fashion has actually seen the rapid emergence of wine critic experts ( Australia included ) who have bugger all drinking exposure and salt of the earth knowledge of the region. And Piedmont is about the people and the land more so than say Tuscany. So I've found these critics boring and sexing up wines for expedience.

Bloggers can often be far more knowledgeable through drinking exposure and this sits well with Nebbiolo as it can be very temperamental.

Sorry for thread drift I'll open a great Nebbiolo tonight for the footy- perhaps even a Monfortino if the doggies are up at half time.

I wrote up a tastingnote for Fletcher Barolo 2010 but lost it, so briefly from memory: opened up very tart with cranberry, sour cherry and not much else. After 4 hours in the decanter it softened and some blackberry and spice emerged. Limited floral elements, OK value at 65/bottle.

I recently tasted a range of 2011 Barolo, relevant to this thread because this is the current vintage starting to arrive in Australia. It would possibly be a good one to try if you are looking to dip your toe into the water with Piedmont. 2011 was a warmer vintage and the wines are more forward than the more classic 2010's. So you can drink 2011 while waiting for 2010 to come around.

There wasn't really a dud in the tasting, and generally speaking all the wines showed lovely red fruits, often accompanied by floral characters and the tannins were relatively soft for Nebbiolo, meaning the wines are approachable or will be earlier than perhaps normal. They still had all the great characters and structure of Barolo, just in a more friendly format.

My other advice for those new to Barolo, is not to buy too many of one wine until you are sure you like the style. There are makers that don't use a lot of new oak and some that do. FWIW, I particularly liked Marcarini, E Pira (Chiara Boschis), Guido Porro, Massolino and Elvio Cogno.

Chris H wrote:My other advice for those new to Barolo, is not to buy too many of one wine until you are sure you like the style.

Excellent advice. Although I like many Italian wines, Barolo isn't to everyone's taste. I bought into the 1974 vintage, and sat on them for a while. Popped open several over the years, with a variety of foods. Although I kind of liked them, my wife did not. Haven't bought any since. Barbaresco, however, is another story .

Chris H wrote:I recently tasted a range of 2011 Barolo, relevant to this thread because this is the current vintage starting to arrive in Australia. It would possibly be a good one to try if you are looking to dip your toe into the water with Piedmont. 2011 was a warmer vintage and the wines are more forward than the more classic 2010's. So you can drink 2011 while waiting for 2010 to come around.

Good call, what I have tasted of 2011 Barolo and even more-so Barbaresco is that they are very approachable now and generous with the fruit profile, drinking 2010 Barolo at the moment is perhaps a task for the tannin masochists among us.

Pej wrote:I'll be keeping an eye out for any other Italian recommendations around the $100 mark or less.

Id recommend keeping an eye out for 2004 Borgogno Barolo on the auction sites, just starting to enter its drinking window and should come in around $80.

I tend to cap my Barolo purchases out at the $80 mark, some suggestions that are still floating around at retail:
2010 Linnaea Trifulau Barolo ($55 from auswine right now, amazing value)
2010 Benevelli Piero Barolo Ravera ($85)
2010 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco ($67)
2010 Cantina del Pino Barbaresco ($72)

del Pino is great and I visited them last year. They have vineyards in the hailed slopes of Albesini i.e.: Santo Stefano !

Don't dismiss bare-bones nebbiolo which offers great value. I had a bad footy weekend so cracked a smart Olek Bondonio 2012 nebbiolo and a Langhe Nebbiolo Produttori del Barbaresco 2011. Cheap-cheap both but smart ! A better intro to the grape than Barolo me thinks !

Agree about the S Pannell Neb 2012... that was until we left it in the decanter for 48 hours and now it is a thing of beauty. Delicate, ethereal and powerful. Will hold my other bottle for at least five more years.

Cheers, Travis.

2006 Castello di Neive Barbaresco Santo Stefano Riserva- I got a six pack of these and I thought they may be entering a window. Far from it and unfortunately, commited infanticide on a bottle which awoke prematurely from needed long sleep as a vinous monster. I'll ship 4 to the cellar in Australia for 10+ and may have another crack in a few years on the other.

Highly recommended wine from local Piedmont friends.

JamieBahrain wrote:del Pino is great and I visited them last year. They have vineyards in the hailed slopes of Albesini i.e.: Santo Stefano !

Don't dismiss bare-bones nebbiolo which offers great value. I had a bad footy weekend so cracked a smart Olek Bondonio 2012 nebbiolo and a Langhe Nebbiolo Produttori del Barbaresco 2011. Cheap-cheap both but smart ! A better intro to the grape than Barolo me thinks !

Agree totally!

JamieBahrain wrote:Don't dismiss bare-bones nebbiolo which offers great value. I had a bad footy weekend so cracked a smart Olek Bondonio 2012 nebbiolo and a Langhe Nebbiolo Produttori del Barbaresco 2011. Cheap-cheap both but smart !

Indeed, just picked up half dozen each of the Benevelli Langhe Nebbiolo 2013 and Brezza Nebbiolo d'Alba Santa Rosalia 2012 so as to try keep the Barolos safe in the cellar.

winetastic wrote:

Pej wrote:I'll be keeping an eye out for any other Italian recommendations around the $100 mark or less.

Id recommend keeping an eye out for 2004 Borgogno Barolo on the auction sites, just starting to enter its drinking window and should come in around $80.

I tend to cap my Barolo purchases out at the $80 mark, some suggestions that are still floating around at retail:
2010 Linnaea Trifulau Barolo ($55 from auswine right now, amazing value)
2010 Benevelli Piero Barolo Ravera ($85)
2010 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco ($67)
2010 Cantina del Pino Barbaresco ($72)

Cheers for that!

Recent purchases in the last month, without publishing my CV...
2011 Giovanni Rosso Ceretta
2011 Giovanni Rosso Serralunga
2010 Cappellano Pie Franco
2010 Cappellano Pie Rupestis
2011 Principiano Serralunga
2010 Canonica Paiagallo
2010 Traversa Barbaresco Starderi
2011 G.Rinaldi Brunate

I'm not sold on 2011, as yet. Case by case.

Cappellano is a great lineage and tells a history of the region and beyond ( African colonialism with the Barolo Chinato ).

They're the wines I tell folks to buy when they come to Hong Kong. Knowing the importer I help arrange the purchase thought it's getting harder now with the Cappellano story becoming more well known. The Franco is one of the greatest Barolos.

Still showing its class. Need my 2011's to arrive so I stop drinking the the 2010's which I think will be all class in 10 years +.