A few nights ago I drank a bottle of 1994 Cappellano Barolo Gabutti (Serralunga). 1994 is said to be a "disastrous" vintage for nebbiolo in the Langhe, with heavy rains during harvest. Which in my mind makes this a rousing success, as it's a beautiful wine that is only just entering early adulthood, and still years from peak.
This particular bottle was rather mute after pulling the cork, so into the decanter it went for two hours. It was then consumed over another two to three hours.
By about the 3rd hour after opening, this had morphed from merely interesting into something remarkable. The nose was lovely, if not quite stunning, with strawberry, moist decaying leaves, and powdered cocoa. But it really delivered on the palate, showing a striking balance between full-bodied richness and water-like subtle weight, with layers of sweet strawberry fruit, black tea, earth, mushroom, and almost mouthfilling concentration. Just head-noddingly lovely.
It's still years from peak, with a bit of unresolved tannin, but very enjoyable now with decanting. This wine just kept improving with air and never shown a sign of closing up.
Note that due to the reputation of the vintage, this wine is rather undervalued in the market. A certain Sonoma based purveyer of Rare Wine has some bottles at what I consider an excellent price.
This particular bottle was rather mute after pulling the cork, so into the decanter it went for two hours. It was then consumed over another two to three hours.
By about the 3rd hour after opening, this had morphed from merely interesting into something remarkable. The nose was lovely, if not quite stunning, with strawberry, moist decaying leaves, and powdered cocoa. But it really delivered on the palate, showing a striking balance between full-bodied richness and water-like subtle weight, with layers of sweet strawberry fruit, black tea, earth, mushroom, and almost mouthfilling concentration. Just head-noddingly lovely.
It's still years from peak, with a bit of unresolved tannin, but very enjoyable now with decanting. This wine just kept improving with air and never shown a sign of closing up.
Note that due to the reputation of the vintage, this wine is rather undervalued in the market. A certain Sonoma based purveyer of Rare Wine has some bottles at what I consider an excellent price.