Barbaresco - Roccalini			1989	Giacosa Frat.

8/96. Bought locally for $28. As always, this bottle must cost around $10 anywhere else.
An extremely nice surprise. Have not had many Barbaresco in the past (or Italian wines in general), and those I had during my visit to Piedmonte are faded memory by now.
I thought this will be a simple, light, pizza wine, and was even worried a bit whether the wine will be a good match to the rabbit stew we had for dinner.
Surprise surprise!
COLOR: Good medium-red color with some clearing towards the rim.
NOSE: Excellent nose that immediately commands respect. Nothing 'simple' here. Quite complex with different tones of fruit (though not the black-current type of the Cabernet Sauvignon and neither the cherry type of the Pinot Noir). The nose persisted and developed for more than two hours.
TASTE: On the palate, the wine is rich, full of flavors, with healthy amount of soft tannins and good acidity.
LENGTH: Good length and pleasant aftertaste.
TEXTURE & BALANCE: Superb balance too with plenty of fruit, acidity, alcohol and tannins.
OVERALL: All in all an excellent food-wine that will not suffer in comparison with much more expensive wines. I expect this wine to hold on and maybe even improve for at least five more years.
MARK: 17+/20.aaaaaaaaBUY MORE? Yes.

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Copyright 1996-2003.
Jacob "Yak" Shaya.