An outrageously beautiful winter day greeted a small group of die hard wine lovers this past Sunday for the January BAWE Borolo/Brunello tasting, held courtesy of skwid in his home above the zoo in the Oakland hills. I am happy to report that out of 6 Borolos and 3 Brunellos, there was not a dog in the bunch. On the contrary, the extremely high quality of the wines were consistent across the board.

Many thanks for skwid for our starter, the simply wonderful and unbelievably vibrant 1985 Krug Champagne!

Searing acidity and scouring tannins marked the day with these impressive, incredibly spicy Borolo offerings for flight #1:

1. Some bricking makes this wine appear old, but the nose strikes me as quite young. Very spicy, showing anise notes, ripe & rich, good pure focus, solid tannins, and a long finish.
1997 Corino 4 votes for #1, 1 vote for #2 and WINE OF THE FLIGHT!

2. Very dark purple, huge nose that comes across distinctly like a Syrah! A little funk on the nose, smooth fine tannins, very very young. As it sat in the glass dried flowers emerged, but to my palate it seemed to thin out on the palate (though the nose remained huge).
1999 VignAalta 1 vote #1, 1 vote for #2

3. Light bricking, very nice nose of clove, cedar, very fine tannins and sharp acidity. Mild and soft, somewhat elegant, but lacked staying power.
1997 Cavalotto 1 vote for #2

4. Hint of bricking, wonderful spicy nose, big tar component, pepper, slightly astringent on the finish.
1998 Silvio Gasso

5. Very light bricking, very very spicy with just a hint of funk on the nose. Rich, buttery(!), with just a touch of tar, wonderful.
1997 Marengo 2 votes #1, 2 vote for #2

6. Clear red color, spicy with sharp acidity and tons of tannins, very young, shouwing pepper and a touch of prune.
1997 Renato Ratti 1 vote #1, 3 vote for #2

Flight #2 was a little easier, with the softer Sangiovese fruit:

1. Very light fading, dark red, nose of spice, soft and fruity with vibrant acidity, a little tar, anise, short finish.
1996 Uccelliera

2. Very dark red color, a little funk in the nose. A big wine, with sturdy tannins and high acid, a touch earthy and herbal, very nice.
1996 Sassetti 5 Votes for #1, 3 Votes for #2, and WINE OF THE FLIGHT!

3. Deep dark red saturated color, stunning nose of allspice and ripe fruit, great acidity, tremendously long finish. Outstanding.
1997 Castel Giocondo 3 votes for #1, 5 votes for #2

To wrap things up, skwid provided a Cal Cab, so that we could soft of ‘ground’ ourselves with something we knew better, something showing that familiar berry fruit that you won’t get from Borolo. What skwid generously provided was the 1998 Duckhorn Cab! A very fine wine indeed, and surely a star of the much maligned 1998 vintage (nobody could believe it was a 98!).

All in all an outstanding tasting, can’t wait until next month when we’ll be doing Tempranillo!

One thing I love about your group, Eric, is that you guys keep experimenting with different varietals. I am hoping we can do more of the same with the Wine Syndicate on the East Coast. Sounds like a great tasting.

jb

That is part of the idea of the group JB, try things you normally wouldn't taste. This way you only have to purchase one bottle and get to taste ten or so different bottles. This is how I found out I liked rieslings (not at a BAWE tasting, at a different event). I never would have purchased a riesling if I had not been at a tasting where there were a few of them that tasted pretty darn good.

So far we haven't duplicated any varietal but we may have to soon.

Here are the full names of the wines in case anyone is interested:

1997 Corino Barolo Vigna Giachini
1999 Vinga Alta Badia di Morrona
1996 Cavallotto Barolo Vignolo
1998 Silvio Grasso Barolo Pi Vigne
1997 M. Marengo Barolo Annata
1997 Marcenasco Barolo Renato Ratti

1996 Uccelliera Brunello di Montalcino
1996 Sassetti Brunello di Montalcino Pertimali
1997 Castel Giocondo Brunello di Montalcino (Frescobaldi)

The second wine was not a Barolo as it is not labeled as such and doesn't have the pinkish "barolo" sticker at the base of the neck. The Cavallotto is a 1996 not the 1997.

skwid -

THANK YOU

Btw, the Duckhorn cab was the Duckhorn Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Monitor Ledge Vineyard, not the regular Duckhorn Cab. There's a big difference in price.