WTN: 2000 Cappellano Barolo Pie Rupestris

Yes! Gorgeous. Thank you.... for reporting that the 2000 Barolos may be fading, and giving me the incentive to open a bottle.

All of those descriptors apply. I never would have opened this bottle tonight (I had a 2005 Produttori Barbaresco lined up), but I didn't want to end up with bottles, especially this one, of wine that were past their prime.

An alluring nose of florals, vanilla, and earth. The palate was sweet with perfume, cranberries, and leather. Tannins are dry, but the fruit is fresh and lively, and in the forefront. This elegant wine has a long, polished finish, and I don't see any rush to drink up.

[David M. Bueker]

Sounds like it was drinking quite well. The bit about there being a leather element but having the tannins be "drying" might indicate that the aromas are maturing faster than the tannins, so drinking in the relative near term could be best.

I would be more inclined to agree with you about leather and drying tannins as an indicator, if it weren't for the vibrant fruit that balanced it out. I drank it without food, and then with dinner of risotto and white fish with mushrooms and a drizzle of truffle oil. Either way, it was a lovely wine.

I drank an 1994 Cappellano almost a year ago. A weak vintage, but the wine was beautiful.

I trust Galloni. He has been a big fan of Cappellano, and I wonder what his opinion of this wine is, as well as their future since Teobaldo passed on 2 years ago.

I only have a few more 2000s - another bottle of this, a Bartolo Mascarello, and Conterno Fantino, which I was very disappointed with a while ago. The CF had dry tannins and was leathery, but not the fruit to sustain it, and that one I would say is fading.

I'm not saying anything new here, but there is a pendulum-swing (esp. in Italy) away from the Langhe modernists (i.e. shorter macerations, ultra-ripe surmaturite harvest, micro-oxygenization, and barrique aging); the warm 2000 vintage, esp. with regard to "modernist" wines suffers from this pendulum-swing, as well. The fact that Wine Spectator (James Suckling) and Wine Advocate loved this vintage (over more typical great years such as 1999 and 2001, for example) is something traditionalists cannot abide!

Cappellano & Mascarello are in the traditionalist camp, whereas Conterno-Fantino is not; I suspect that Galloni will come down in sync. with Diane's tasting notes, concluding that many of the "modernist" interpretations of 2000 Barolo (and Barbaresco) are cracking up, while the traditional renditions from that year are lovely and will keep and still improve.

With that said, I am not one of those who likes great Langhe Nebbiolo super old (20-25 years +); I think for my taste, a Barolo from a good-great year is perfect at 10-15 years, while Barbaresco shines between 8-15 years. I'd add about 3-5 years when calculating the drinking window for a G. Conterno or a Produttori for example. The point is, the time for starting to drink the 2000's (with a meal) is now; it's hard to believe, but 2000 was eleven years ago.

marco

Hi Diane -

Thank you for the note. I haven't had any of Cappellano's 2000s, but this sounds like a lovely wine.