Purchased on release, one of Altare's few bottles sold. The rest were tainted by bad corks and withdrawn from the market. Tasted with the 1997 Sandrone (Boschis) and the Scavino (BdF). All three wines were beautiful, with tannins faded and Barolo bouquets. Very similar wines, with the Sandrone the biggest, the Scavino next and then the Altare. These three were 'modern' Barolos, made under the influence of their importer, Marc De Grazia. Some critics claimed these wines wouldn't age, but these sure did. We tasted the above against some current releases and it verified one of my beliefs: Barolo's bouquet evolves as the wines age and is often muted at first. Their bouquet only increases and gets better with age... a lot of aging!
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2017 Domaine Matrot Meursault Les Chevalières
5/7/2024 - WinoRick wrote: 92 Points
Acidity has mellowed from my last bottle consumed in 2021. Classic Meursault... which may contribute to my score of 92.
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1994 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain
5/5/2024 - WinoRick wrote: 92 Points
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1997 Elio Altare Barolo
4/23/2024 - WinoRick wrote: 93 Points
Purchased on release, one of Altare's few bottles sold. The rest were tainted by bad corks and withdrawn from the market.
Tasted with the 1997 Sandrone (Boschis) and the Scavino (BdF). All three wines were beautiful, with tannins faded and Barolo bouquets. Very similar wines, with the Sandrone the biggest, the Scavino next and then the Altare. These three were 'modern' Barolos, made under the influence of their importer, Marc De Grazia. Some critics claimed these wines wouldn't age, but these sure did.
We tasted the above against some current releases and it verified one of my beliefs: Barolo's bouquet evolves as the wines age and is often muted at first. Their bouquet only increases and gets better with age... a lot of aging!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment