The Barolo Boys In Piedmont - Visit To Aldo Conterno

Loving the new labels! :-)

Visiting Giacomo is always a treat! He is a charming, vocal, opinionated and the most gracious friend and host you could ask for. The hours just flows by, and then there are the wines...

2017 Bussia d´Or
In this hot year (I was in Langhe in August and the temperature was hitting 35+ degrees some days) Giacomo harvested the Chardonnay grapes on the 25th of August.
The nose is deep and spicy with notes of bloor oranges, grilled lemons, smoke and sweet minerals. Open for business. Very, very good.
The taste is dense and concentrated with notes of sweet lime, smoke and tangerines. A very good structure and a fine acidity. Tasted again two hours later at room temperature and it hold very well together. Reminds me of the 2015.
92p   (tasted 2020/01)

2017 Barbera d´Alba Conca Tre Pile
A deep, smoky nose with a fine warmth and notes of red beets, raspberries and dry licorice. A very fine body.
The taste is structured and balanced with notes of red beet juice, dry licorice, asphalt and fresh herbs. A long, juicy finish. Very, very good.
92p   (tasted 2020/01)

2017 Il Favot
A fresh, low keyed nose with notes of ripening strawberries, red currants and minerals. Some iron scents. Very, very good.
The taste is easy going and direct with notes of cool strawberries, iron and earth. Very, very good but a tad anemic in the finish.
89p   (tasted 2020/01)

2016 Barolo Colonnello
The Colonnello displays a refined and racy nose with notes of hard cherry candy, red currants, sweet minerals and violets. Very fine.
The taste is rich and generous with notes of sweet/sour cherries, forest floor, violets and hints of tobacco. Very long and fine. 6+ years.
94p   (tasted 2020/01)

2016 Barolo Cicala
A very deep, tight nose with notes of dried up cherry jam, violet scented soap, leather and iron. Dense and very fine.
The taste is taut and structured with notes of sweet/sour cherries, earth, dry tobacco and violets. Very long, very intense and very fine. 8+ years.
96p   (tasted 2020/01)

2016 Barolo Romirasco
Bottomless deep, complex and utterly gorgeous, this youngster shows of notes of sweet/sour cherries, rosehips, smoke and a hint of shoe polish. Perfectly balanced. Just stunning.
The taste is tight and sandy with notes of hard cherry candy, mushrooms, forest floor, rosehips and a hint of cool tobacco. The length is counted in minutes. Tasting the Romirasco is always a treat. 8+ years.
98p   (tasted 2020/01)

2012 Barolo Ríserva Granbussia
A very complex, multi layered nose with notes of leather, sugared coffee, ripe strawberries tar and the dark rubbery scent of a hockey puck! Very, very deep.
The taste is the proverbial "iron fist in a velvet glove", with lovely notes of dried red fruit, asphalt, undergrowth, violets and dark dry cookie dough. Long, long, long. Great wine. 6+ years.
98p   (tasted 2020/01)