We tasted tonight (2/21/18) Some Nebbiolos:
1. WindGap Nebbiolo LunaMattaVnyd/PasoRobles (18 brls/420 cs; #553; 14 1/2%; www.WindGapWines.com) 2009:
Med.light color; strong rather tarry/pungent light floral/violets/rose petal/dusty light toasty/pencilly/
oak very Piemonte-like complex perfumed nose; quite tart/lean/acidic rather pungent/road tar light pencilly/
oak very light floral/lilacs/Nebb bit complex flavor w/ light very bitey/astringent tannins; very long
rather tangy/metallic/lean rather pungent/tarry slight floral/lilacs finish w/ light astringent/bitey tannins;
a really lovely rather Piemonte-like Nebb nose but quite hard/lean/austere/hurtey on the palate. $40.00
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2. Harrington Nebbiolo PasoRobles (40% LunaMatta/60% AJB; 14.1%; www.HarringtonWine.com) 2010: Med.color; very
fragrant perfumed/floral/rose petal very light tarry/road tar/pungent quite fragrant bit complex nose; fairly
tart/tangy rather floral/violets/rose petal/Nebb very light tarry flavor w/ modest tangy/bitey tannins; med.long
rather tart/tangy/austere fairly floral/rose petal/Nebb very slight tarry/pungent finish w/ light bitey tannins;
lovely aromatics but a bit hurtey on the palate. $30.00
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3. Terrane Nebbiolo LunaMataVnyd/PasoRobles (14.1%) HarringtonWines 2013: Med.light color w/ slight bricking; quite
fragrant/perfumed floral/Nebb/dried rose petal/spicy very light pungent/tar rather attractive nose; rather tart/
lean/sour some floral/Nebb/rose petal light tarry/pungent flavor w/ light tangy/hard tannins; very long some
floral/rose petal/Nebb very slight tarry/pungent tart/tangy/somewhat sour finish w/ light hard tannins; seems
to show less Nebb character and more generic Calif RW character; lovely aromatics but hard on the palate. $30.00
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4. Harrington Nebbiolo PasoRobles (PelletiereVnyd + LunaMattaVnyd; 13.5%) 2014: Med.color; beautiful very perfumed
floral/Nebb/lilacs/rose petal/spicy bit licorice/dusty somewhat more pungent/road tar some complex nose; fairly
tart/tangy some floral/Nebb/rose petal slight road tar/pungent flavor w/ light gentle tannins; very long bit
tangy/cranberry/tart some floral/rose petal/Nebb light tarry finish w/ light slight bitey tannins; lovely aromatics
that speak strongly of Nebb; my favorite of the Harringtons because the tannins are not as hard and lovely aromatics.
$30.00
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5. Castelli Nebbiolo LunaMattaVnyd/AdelaidaDist (14.4%; U/U; 36 mo. in neutral Fr.oak) 2011: Med.light color; very light
pencilly/oak quite fragrant/floral/rose petal/Nebb/lilacs/very spicy low-key tarrt beautiful aromatic nose; lightly
tart beautiful floral/lilacs/spicy/Nebb/rose petal light pencilly/oak very slight tarry/pungent slight earthy/dusty
complex flavor w/ light tangy tannins; very long/lingering very spicy/floral/Nebb/lilacs/rose petal very light tarry
bit complex finish w/ modest tangy tannins; speaks very strongly of Nebb more like from the AltoPiemonte. $26.00
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6. Castelli Nebbiolo LunaMattaVnyd/Adelaida/PasoRobles (14.2%; 50 cs) 2012: Med.color; very fragrant/perfumed some
pencilly/oak/smokey strong floral/lilacs/violets/very spicy very slight tarry beautiful aromatic nose; lightly
tart/tangy strong floral/Nebb/lilacs/violets slight smokey/oak/pencilly very light tarry bit complex flavor w/ modest
tangy/gentle tannins; very long/lingering very floral/perfumed/violets/lilacs/Nebb light smokey/oak some complex finish
w/ modest smooth/tangy tannins; a bit softer/smoother on the palate w/ wonderful classic floral Nebb aromatics;
my favorite of these Nebbs. $26.00
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7. NOAH Dd'OC: Bramaterra (14%; L0213; NealRosenthalImports; maggiorino trellising system) Andrea Mosca &
Giovanna Pepe Diaz/Brusnengo 2011: Dark color; rather fragrant some earthy/dusty/OV lightly floral/lilacs/Nebb
slight plummy/blackberry bit oak somewhat atypical Nebb very attractive nose; very lightly tart some plummy/
blackberry/rich light floral/lilacs/Nebb bit complex flavor w/ light hard tannins; very long very light floral/
lilacs/Nebb somewhat rich/plummy/blackberry some earthy/dusty/OV finish w/ light hard tannins; rather atypical
Nebb & richer than most and a bit like Valtelline Nebb but quite an interesting red that speaks of Nebb w/ a
whisper. $34.00 (G/MT)
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8. Produttori di Nebbiolo di Carema DOC: Carema (13%; L.546; ToscoWines/Richmond) Carema 2012: Med.light color w/
slight bricking; bit reductive/funky somewhat tarry/road tar/pungent very perfumed/floral/violets/rose petal
very spicy/gingerbread fairly complex rather perfumed nose; bit tart very spicy/gingerbread bit tarry/floral/
lilacs/Nebb perfumed rather complex/interesting flavor w/ light tangy/hard tannins; very long/lingering quite
spicy/gingerbread fairly floral/lilacs/Nebb/rose petal light earthy/dusty finish w/ modest tangy tannins;
rather perfumed and quite interesting if a bit atypical Nebb at a very good price. $26.00 (EVN)
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9. Manzone DOCG: Barolo Bricat (14%) Giovanni Manzone/Castelletto/Monforte d'Alba 2004: Dark color; rather
musty/TCA/wet newspaper bit earthy/oaked bit oldBarolo/fragrant somewhat beat-down nose; lightly tart bit
musty/TCA some plummy/floral/lilacs/ripe bit tangy/metallic/earthy flavor w/ ample hard/astringent tannins;
a rather hard/astringent Barolo but compromised by the TCA. Larry's mystery.
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More stuff from the fake-BloodyPulpit:
1. LunaMatta: This is a west-side Paso vnyd owned by Jon & Jody Ahner. Farmed by Stephy Terrizzi/Giornata. The
vnyd, rather hilly & rugged, has a lot of Italian varieties and sells to a number of wineries interested
in Italian varietals. Pretty much all the wines that come from this vnyd are top-notch.
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2. I went back and retasted all of the wines that had been left out, uncovered, in their respective btls.
In almost all cases, the nose had lost some of their aromatics, sometimes quite a bit. So much for the
myth that Nebbs must breathe for a day or two to really strut their stuff. In almost all cases, the tannins
were not nearly as agressive/hard/bitey on the palate. So Nebbs do need to breathe to soften the tannins??
Not so fast...when I retasted them, they were all at a temperature that was prolly 6-8 degF warmer than the
night before. Which is why the tannins were not as hurtey. Suffice it to say, I'm not a big believer that
Nebbs nead to breathe for hrs or days. I'm always amused when I read somewhere that this or that Barolo/
Barbaresco needs 18.7 hrs of breathing to really show well.
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3. Terrane: This is the label BryanHarrington uses for his no-SO2 wines:
(www.harringtonwine.com/terrane-no-sulfi ... fur-story/).
When Bryan comes out w/ a new Terrane, we'll often taste it alongside the regular version of that wine. The
differences are distinct, but subtle. But I've yet to identify anything that I'd chose one over the other.
I'd love to do that same comparison tasting w/ Bryan someday w/ some of his more aged reds.
Bryan's Nebbs are consistently one of the best from Calif at our NEB gatherings. Since the John Berardo
vnyd in Paso was sold, Bryan only takes Nebb from LunaMatta.
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4. Castelli: This is Emilio Castelli in the GreenVlly area betwixt Graton/Occidental. He gets Nebb grapes from
LunaMatta and RanchoSisquoc/SantaMariaVlly, occasionally from LakeCnty. Plus he also grows his Estate Nebb,
farmed by Fukuoka, there in GreenVlly. His Estate Nebb is usually the star of the show at our NEB gatherings.
His Nebbs in this tasting were both my favorites of the bunch.
Tom