Giacomo Conterno Barolo 2008

This is very bright on the nose with acid-driven notes of sour red fruits over sweet graham cracker tones and a plodding, almost vanilla-laced creaminess. On the palate this is big and a touch alcoholic with a disjointed feel and lots of tannin bouncing all over the palace. The wine has certain hollowness to it, revealing some heat on the palate, but it does gain focus with air. The fruit, while red and bright, takes on a subtle candied tone and remains very simple and sweet through to the modest finish. This was most likely caught at an awkward moment and should improve with time but was underwhelming from this bottle. 89pts

Deep and intense on the nose with strong anise and tar tinged sweet dark fruits. Real complexity here with layered notes of medicinal herbs, leather, prosciutto, and spice notes over that core of precise fruit. In the mouth the fine round tannins are young yet silky giving the wine unusual elegance. Though the intense frutti di bosco and seared red cherry notes are deep and rich the intense inner mouth note of drying roses offer great lift. Mineral and smoky tones add complexity and length on the finale which is a bit bracing and belies the generally strict character of this wine. The tannins are just a bit austere; a good thing for me, but the fruit buffers it perfectly. Very complete and while excellent this is youthful and will benefit from additional cellaring 2008-2025 93pts.

This is another open and giving nose full of hot iron, candied herbs, big sweet black cherry fruit that is a bit liquory, and ever-so-slightly herbal edges. On the palate it doesn’t quite deliver the intensity and depth that the nose suggests, though there is a lot to like here. The fruit is ripe yet remains transparent with very aromatic notes of licorice and tar in the mouth. The finish shows dark fruit, more in the black raspberry end of the spectrum, and while all the structural elements are very well integrated, the wine lacks just a little follow through. Perhaps with time this will come, though there is nothing wrong with enjoying this today for it all offers. 92pts

Good stuff.

similar to the Cascina Francia if a shade lighter – exoticly spicy on the nose, confiture note, wood smoke, cherry jam, cedary, strawberry, mace, more obviously fruity but also more complex than the CF, a complex curry like spice, more like cardamom and fenugreek with a bit of café latte – sweet entry, good acidity, tannins well buffered in the plush fruit but boy there are some tannins, tarry, leathery attack, tannins quickly build adding a nutty note before they clamp down on the finish which is very black spiced, tar and licorice, with a black cherry confiture core, a hint of porcini in the spiciness, long savory finish last for a minute easily after 3 hours in the decanter very light nettle on the nose, quite dried rose, a bit of heat, spicy plums, almost saline, a bit of walnutty oak, smoky charcoal note, this has shur down since opening – very well integrated entry, a bit of bright yet monolithic cherry/strawberry fruit, long layered finish, quite an overlay of tannin, bit of walnutty oak leads into med-length finish. Put this away for 12-15 years at least, seems to be more in the vein of the 1985 and 1990 Monfortini so should be approachable if not enjoyable at that point. 93pts

This is textbook Barolo, a nose redolent of limestone, antiseptic medicinal tones, cherries in alcohol, a touch of angelica root, and subtle insinuation of herb in a very focused and driven aromatic display. On the palate this is superbly precise with abundant tannins that are so finely textured they are already showing signs of a textural silkiness. The fruit here is extremely fresh with notes of strawberry and cherry all driven by the superbly vibrant acidity. This is exquisitely balanced and already shows uncommon elegance for a Barolo of this size. It’s another legend in the making, combining power with a certain transparency and weightlessness. Having said all of that, this remains a wine of potential that will need another 5-8 years to fully reveal itself. 96pts

Tight and youthful on the nose with huge notes of candied herbs, sweet herbs, and licorice. This is surprisingly savory with nutty tones and autumnal earthy notes giving this a medicinal and black mineral note. On the palate this is moderately big and rich and packed with ripe tannins, dark savory fruit, and great acidity. The front is definitely leaning towards the dark earthy end of the spectrum but the crisp, hard, black raspberry-toned fruit pops on the back end with the rush of ripe tannins driving the fruit through the long, medicinal finish, which ends with a drying note of black tea. 91pts