WTN: Some Older Italian Reds....(short/boring)

Our SantaFeWinos group tasted ystrday:
1. Giarone A.Bertelli Barbera d'Asti 1990:Med.color w/ some browning; slight musty/earthy that clears to rather spicy/Barbera/dried Italian herbs bit pencilly/oak quite complex lovely nose; fairly tart classic Barbera/spicy/Italian herbs slicht pencilly/cedary/oldRed light earthy quite complex flavor w/ light gentle tannins; a wonderful example of a fully mature Italian Barbera probably a bit on the downside.
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2. Luigi e Fils Dessilani Barbera Del Piemonte 19??: Med.light color w/ considerable browning; fairly earthy/dusty rather metallic/burning steel wool rather faded/dried out bit oaked little fruit nose; lightly tart rather tired/died out little fruit slight spicy bit pencilly/oak bit oxidized flavor w/ slight bitter tannins; speaks of Barbera in a whisper but pretty much dead & gone; couldn't identify the vintage from the mangled label nor the cork, probably an '89.
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3. Prunotto DOCG Barbaresco 1989:Dark color w/ light bricking; beautiful fragrant/floral/Nebb/violets/dried rose petal slight tarry/pungent/road tar very complex soaring/ethereal Nebb nose; lightly tart strong floral/violets/Nebb/rose petal/fully mature slight tarry bit earthy very complex elegant/delicate flavor w/ light smooth tannins; very long /lingering quite perfumed Nebb/violets/rose petal/bit tarry very complex finish w/ light gentle tannins; displays all the soaring/ethereal aromatics you expect in a fully mature Barbaresco; a beautiful complex fully-mature Nebb.
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4. Produttori Del Barbaresco Barbera Asili 1989: Med.color w/ some browning; beautiful very spicy/Barbera/dried Italian spices/Italian sausage slight pencilly/oak bit earthy/dusty very complex perfumed nose; fairly tart strong Barbera/spicy/dried Italian herbs light earthy/dusty slight pencilly/oak rather complex fully mature Barbera perfumed flavor w/ light bit tangy tannins; very ling/linger spicy/Barbera/perfumed w/ slight drying on the aftertaste; still has lots of spicy Barbera character & in wonderful shape but probably won't improve much.
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5. Conti Sertoli Salis DOC Valtellina 1997: Dark color w/ slight bricking; rather musty/earthy some TCA/corked very slight Nebb/licorice/pungent nose w/ little fruit; rather strong musty/earthy rather TCA-infected flavor w/ light tangy tannins; pretty much destroyed by the TCA; whatta shame.
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6. Lungarotti Rubesco Rosso (Sangiovese) 1988: Fairly dark color w/ slight bricking; lovely very fragrant Sangio/cherry/black cherry some toasty/oak quite complex perfumed nose; lightly tart strong Sangio/cherry/black cherry slight earthy very smooth/fully mature slight pencilly/oak very fragrant very complex/cedary flavor w/ light gentle tannins; a beautiful example of a fully mature Sangiovese with fully resolved tannins that's not likely to improve any.
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7. Aia Vecchia Lagone Bolgheri (Merlot/CabSauv/CabFranc) 2009: Dark color; classic Cab fragrant blackcurranty some toasty/oak very perfumed/fragrant slight earthy/Bdx-like classic SuperTuscan fairly complex nose w/ plenty of Cab/fruit nose; very strong blackcurranty/Cab/bit plummy slight herbal some Bdx-like strong toasty/Fr.oak bit earthy/herbal classic SuperTuscan rather complex flavor w/ light firm tannins; lots of blackcurranty/Cab fruit & a classic fully mature SuperTuscan in wonderful shape.
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8. Rocco Della Macie Chianti Classico Riserva 1997: Dark color w/ no bricking; strong very perfumed/fragrant Sangio/black cherry/cherry very light pencilly/oak slight earthy/dusty rather complex nose; lightly tart fairly smooth/lush strong black cherry/Sangio/cherry/spicy light earthy slight pencilly/oak rather complex flavor w/ light tannins & a bit of drying on the backtaste; a lovely fully-mature expression of Sangio/Chianti.
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9. Fattoria Viticcio Prunaio Chianti Classico 1990: Very dark color w/ little bricking; very strong/intense black cherry/Sangio/cherry/spicy/bright some toasty/oak rather earthy/dusty/OV bit smokey quite complex classic CC nose; slightly tart strong Sangio/black cherry/slight licorice/pungent some dusty/OV slight earthy/dusty/OV quite complex flavor w/ light gentle tannins; a beautiful example of a fully mature CC that still has plenty of life in it w/ no signs of drying out.
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10. Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Vincenzo Abbruzzese 2010: Near black color; very intense black cherry/Sangio/blackberry/boysenberry slight licorice/pungent light toasty/oak huge Sangio fruit bit complex nose; lightly tart intense Sangio/black cherry/ripe/blackberry/boysenberry bit licorice/pungent light toasty/oak some earthy/dusty quite youthful flavor w/ modest chewey tannins; still quite youthful w/ loads of intense dark Sangio fruit; will easily go another 10 yrs; beautiful expression of Brunello.
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11. Nocetto ShenandoahVlly Sangiovese 2012: Med.color w/ no bricking; fairly strong vanilla/Am.oak/pencilly light cherry/Sangio slight briary/dusty nose w/ not much complexity; bit soft strong Am.oak/cedary/vanilla light cherry/Sangio bit earthy/briary flavor w/ light smooth tannins; not showing a whole lot of evolution and just a bit on the unthrilling side w/ not a whole lot of interest.
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More kicklesputter from TheBloodyPulpit:
1. These were Italian wines from the cellar of SueNoel. She volunteered to offer them for the first tasting of the SantaFeWinos Facebook group. Her late husband, Bruce, was very/very knowledgeable of Italian wines and bought very astutely over the yrs.He was particularly fond of Tuscan wines, as represented by this list.
The wines had been very well stored (except for humidity issues that made some of the labels rather tattered & difficult to read). All the fills were excellent & no signs whatsoever of leakage. The corks were all solid & tight but removable w/ an AhSo, I didn't need to use my Durant once. One cork (#10) crumbled a bit, but eventually came out relatively intact.
These wines were pretty much all (except #2 & #5) in very good shape. My favorite was the Barberesco because it displayed all the soaring aromatics that make Nebb such a special grape. Closely followed by the Brunello because of its youthful intense fruit. But none of them I would throw out of bed.
We had a plethora of wonderful appetizer platters from Laura's Pig+Fig Cafe. Because she was doing a LAPS Foundation Octoberfest dinner that night, the apps had a bit of a German influence to them. But they were a big hit.
Tom

What a great tasting! And what a shame about the corked Valtellina! I have special memories of Sertoli Salis and was a happy owner of several of their bottles. The late Cesare Sertoli Salis, who died prematurely at the age of 53, used to be a regular visitor to present his wines at tastings when I was living in Belgium. He was a fine example of that almost defunct concept, a gentleman. The family estate looks like a splendid affair https://www.palazzosalis.com/en/the-history .

O\4. Produttori Del Barbaresco Barbera Asili 1989: Med.color w/ some browning; beautiful very spicy/Barbera/dried Italian spices/Italian sausage slight pencilly/oak bit earthy/dusty very complex perfumed nose; fairly tart strong Barbera/spicy/dried Italian herbs light earthy/dusty slight pencilly/oak rather complex fully mature Barbera perfumed flavor w/ light bit tangy tannins; very ling/linger spicy/Barbera/perfumed w/ slight drying on the aftertaste; still has lots of spicy Barbera character & in wonderful shape but probably won't improve much.

Unusual. I've never seen a PdB Barbera. And really shocked they'd have enough to make a single vineyard (esp. Asili).
89 PdB Barbaresco Asili can be stunning, would be interesting to taste a Barbera.
Interesting tasting, very generous of her.
We have different methods of opening, I'd never think of Durand as backup for ah-so.

O\4. Produttori Del Barbaresco Barbera Asili 1989: Med.color w/ some browning; beautiful very spicy/Barbera/dried Italian spices/Italian sausage slight pencilly/oak bit earthy/dusty very complex perfumed nose; fairly tart strong Barbera/spicy/dried Italian herbs light earthy/dusty slight pencilly/oak rather complex fully mature Barbera perfumed flavor w/ light bit tangy tannins; very ling/linger spicy/Barbera/perfumed w/ slight drying on the aftertaste; still has lots of spicy Barbera character & in wonderful shape but probably won't improve much.

Unusual. I've never seen a PdB Barbera. And really shocked they'd have enough to make a single vineyard (esp. Asili).
89 PdB Barbaresco Asili can be stunning, would be interesting to taste a Barbera.
Interesting tasting, very generous of her.
We have different methods of opening, I'd never think of Durand as backup for ah-so.

Yup, Dale... you're right. The label was badly scuffed & I couldn't read it well. It was a Barbaresco, not a Barbera.
I went back ystrday & tried the dregs & it reminded me more of Barbera than Nebbiolo. When you get old wines, the varietal character is often sublimated.
Tom

Good to see that the Lungarotti Rubesco 1988 showed so well. Lungarotti had quality and reliability problems in the mid-late 80s. There were problems with in-bottle fermentation pushing up the corks and making the wine fizzy and funny-tasting.

-Paul W.

My notes on the 89 Asili are here: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=66997&p=505480&hilit=Produttori+Del+Barbaresco#p505480