1979 Barolo in 2014
While this tasting predates my tasting of 1980 Barolo by more than a year, I have been moved by the performance of those wines to publish these notes. As much a surprise as the 1980 horizontal, though for entirely different reasons, this is the tasting that set my expectations for the 1980 so terribly low. Prior to both tastings I had had enough wines from each respective vintage to believe that 1979 was a vintage that had aged well, better than expected in fact, on it’s acid and rough tannins while 1980 had continued along on its four square path.
Of course these two tastings taken together certainly illustrate that that was a false impressions, and also help to illuminate the fickle world old wine, particular from less than stellar vintages, tends to occupy. There are no great wines, only great bottles. I would tend to believe that applies to vintages as well, but when you have such disparate results from two tasting of wines that are so very similar in many ways you begin to question accepted beliefs.
There were only a few producers whose wines were represented in both tastings, and truth be told, the average level was indeed higher with the 1980s that I had accumulated, though this group was fairly strong as well. Still this was a fascinating peek back into the past, once again reminding us that the body of critical work we tend to rely upon as references for these vintages is incomplete at best, and just plain old faulty at worst.
1979 was considered to be a serviceable and sometimes quite good vintage upon release. Volumes were high, the highest of the decade, which certainly made producers happy but the quality was marked by rain and even some snow towards the very end of harvest. Some producers harvest before the rains, but the best wines came from those who harvested after the rains but before the snow. No matter when one harvested though the wines were marked by a cool season with high acids.
Those high acids threw people off during the wine’s adolescent years. Often appearing out of balance and as a result the wines felt thin and under fruited as they aged. Of course the wines were relatively leaner and with high acids, but they also had some hidden fruit that just needed significant time to emerge and add some flesh to palate. No one would say that these wines are still at peak, though the remain in many cases quite enjoyable. They have the acid of a cool vintage which has helped these wines remain fresh even at this age, and the hard tannins that nebbiolo tends to produces except in the finest vintages, but they also retain lovely aromatics and good complexity on the palate.
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As the world awakens to the beauty of barolo and barbaresco we are seeing the wines appreciating at an irrational rate. Wines from past vintages can still be values, but increasingly what I am seeing are wines that are expensive simply because they are old, and rare. I can’t say I would be in the market for many 1979s at this point. 1980 seems to be a better buy, reputation and my recent report on them notwithstanding. They seem to be outperforming their reputation, and my report will fly under the radar, but I loved those wines while this line-up was certainly spottier and historical I have had a fair handful of 1979s and am familiar with the style of vintage. If prices were equal I would still prefer the 1980s, and since they tend to sell at a discount to the 79s there is no contest here.
I am looking forward to my next nebbiolo horizontal tasting coming up next month. We’ll be taking a look at 1974s. Yet another difficult vintage, but one that was much more highly acclaimed in its youth before the wines shut down hard for two decades, causing many to lose hole in the wines. I have found that the 1974s perform very well in general, like 1979s with ripe fruit if that makes any sense. Today 1974 as a vintage has regained the respect of the Nebbiolo lovers community so they wines don’t come cheaply. They are also rare, in the 40 years since the vintage nearly all of them have been consumed leaving us scrounging for what crumbs we can find. But even with an incomplete and second tier group of wines lined up I am thrilled to be able to have the opportunity to do this once again.
Tasting old wines is an exercise in patience and disappointment, but also an invaluable learning experience. Without understanding what happens to these wines in vintages strong and weak you can not accurately assess our modern vintages. Look at 2005 and 2008, two vintages that have been considered among the weakest of the past decade. A look back at 1980 or 1979 gives me confidence in these vintages. They have what it takes to age into terrific, engaging, and delicious wines. Not at the level of the very best, but who needs very best all the time? You only recognize very best by checking all the boxes that fall beneath it. And sometime very good is just what you need.
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1979 Marcarini Barolo La Serra
At decanting: smoke, leather, cherry, limestone, and beef!
Celery seed and sweet beef bouillon greets the nose and while this is sweet and totally tertiary it is also savory and delicious reminding me of BBQ potato chips. Superb balance, in the mouth, along with lovely fruit, bright, sapid, and richly flavored with wild amarena cherry, and limestone lingering through the long finish while picking up some nice citrus/citrus peel notes and a hint of unripe strawberry on the finale. Sapid and bright with great length and beautiful faceted complexity, the only knock could be that the tannins are a touch angular. Seems pretty classic to me. 91pts
1979 Vietti Barolo Briacca
100% Rose clone
At decanting: almost no sediment, light seaweed, rose petal, medicinal, strawberry fondant
Medicinal on the nose with hints of celery seed, spicy, dried strawberry, crushed flowers,, and a big roasted veal base note. This is bright in the mouth with high acids supporting a rich core of fruit. Almost silky, on the palate with lots of mineral and spice notes accenting a core of very earthy and savory fruit. This is intense and deep, with a lovely succulent finish. Decidedly not fruit driven but complex and elegant. 91pts
1979 Brezza Barolo Sarmassa e Castellero
At decanting: sweet cherry/strawberry fruit, clay, bramble, lovely intensity
Showing a lovely nose, rich with burnished fruit, intense and perfumed, this smells like tar and rosewater, with hints of gunpowder, mint, and black cherry. Classic, a superb if subtle nose. Soft on entry with lovely richness and good depth, this is lively and beautifully fruited, if a touch lean. Still succulent and mineral, it’s a lovely wine, this is a bit past peak, but still totally enjoyable. In its prime this must have been a beauty! 89pts
1979 Ceretto Barolo Bricco Rocche Prapo
At decanting: dark, cocoa, coffee bean, touch of mint and mineral
Intense herbal notes, greet the nose, which opens to reveal a spicy, bright, and notably minerally base supporting, lovely, intense, wild strawberry fruit. In the mouth this is packed with fruit, and very well balanced with fine acid and tannin in harmony. Supple with fine follow through of berry fruit and light herbal notes and a dash of soil adding complexity. I would have expected a little more power here but this is really very well balanced and quite pretty. 89pts
1979 Ceretto Barolo Bricco Rocche Brunate
At decanting: fabulous roses, cigar butt, and roasted strawberries!
Very perfumed like the Rocche dei Manzoni, with lots of floral character. Lovely entry with a nice underlay of sweetness rounding out the rather bright, succulent, pretty strawberry notes on the palate. There’s real clarity here and nice lift through the moderately long finish. A bit simple but admirably pure and long, and still finishing with attractive tannic clout. 88pts
1979 F Pittatore Ponte Rocca Barolo Brunate
At decanting rich with black cherry, asphalt, dusty books and some roast veal, aromas and still quite powerful in the mouth.!
Deep and intense color. Really beautiful looking. Shy on the nose, with some spicy, mineral, accents and a gamey edge that smells like lamb. Very pretty aromatics build showing off a little mint, sassafras, sage, sandy soil tones and lovely meadow notes. Opulent in the mouth, if slightly medicinal with decent cherry, loganberry fruit flavors layered over a deep, dark leathery core. Remaining moderately tannic, lean and edgy in the mouth and through the moderately long finish, this is intact and quite enjoyable if slightly rustic in style. 88pts
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1979 Brovia Barolo Rocche
At decanting: Absurd amount of dregs, evolved, mineral, soil, dung, and leather on the nose with lurking black cherry and rose petals.
Shy on the nose, if a bit on the evolved and savory side of things. In the mouth this is, rich and intense with some prosciutto fat notes and flashes of minerality early on the palate followed by fresh, lean, and focused red cherry and strawberry fruit. Perhaps a bit on the simple side, and a touch short, but still this is delicious. 87pts
1979 Cordero di Montezemolo Barolo Monfalletto
At decanting: sweet almond, wild strawberry and roses
Tough, on the nose and smelling of charcoal, a bit burnt, and dirty. Smoky, almost a bit of plum on the nose. A touch loose in the mouth, and a little lean but the fruit is still here, all cherried and bright if a little simple. Apple acidity on the palate, then this fades leaving a bit of dirty barrel on the finish, Chunky and showing a touch of heat on the finale. A little on the clumsy side. 85pts
1979 Cantina Mascarello Barolo
At decanting: Sweet, spicy, and complex aromas of dried onion, savory spices, pollen, candlewax, a little incense, a little brothy
The nose doesn’t change much with double-decanting as this retains the faded aromas of fruit and flowers with the layered nuance of candle wax, incense and dried spice adding complexity and the brothiness revealing it’s advancing development. With a clear, lovely texture this drifts across the palate and while texturally still intact this has seen some less than ideal storage over the years and is lean on the palate and attenuated on the finish. Lean and bright, it still manages to retain attractive energy on the palate. 83pts
1979 Oddero Barolo
At decanting: Musty, sweet, and herbal, on the nose with leather, iron, and cigar ash flavors
Rich and quite mahogany smelling on the shrill nose, which shows a bit of a bit spicy, character with salty, seaweed, and nice licorice aromas. Bright with plenty of acid, on entry and lots of evolved fruit, flavors on the palate, which does dry out fairly quickly leaving little fruit left if retaining a nice, clear texture. There’s some fruit left on the finish but this is mostly old, slightly beefy fruit. Was a nice transparent wine once. 78pts
1979 Rocche dei Manzoni Barolo Riserva
At decanting: warm, Beefy and ketchup on the nose with a certain sweetness. Quite Burgundian in the mouth with forest floor and faint red fruit flavors.
Wow, man meets woman, lots of cigar box, ash and perfume on the nose makes this very interesting and attractive to smell. While very smooth and well layered texturally, this shows a real high acid streak and is a bit dried out, with some wood tannin still in evidence. At this pint in its life it’s pretty perfumed oak water. 76pts
1979 Roagna Barbaresco Crichet Paje
At decanting: very fresh, vegetal and tight, soil, dandelion green and raspberry
Herbal on the nose with aromas of root vegetables and oyster shells. This is incredibly attenuated with raw horseradish/black radish notes. On the palate this is herbal, even vegetal. There’s still some tannin here and even in spite of that you can tell this was well made but there’s no fruit and this is raw and a bit unpleasant. 75pts
Of course these two tastings taken together certainly illustrate that that was a false impressions, and also help to illuminate the fickle world old wine, particular from less than stellar vintages, tends to occupy. There are no great wines, only great bottles. I would tend to believe that applies to vintages as well, but when you have such disparate results from two tasting of wines that are so very similar in many ways you begin to question accepted beliefs.
There were only a few producers whose wines were represented in both tastings, and truth be told, the average level was indeed higher with the 1980s that I had accumulated, though this group was fairly strong as well. Still this was a fascinating peek back into the past, once again reminding us that the body of critical work we tend to rely upon as references for these vintages is incomplete at best, and just plain old faulty at worst.
1979 was considered to be a serviceable and sometimes quite good vintage upon release. Volumes were high, the highest of the decade, which certainly made producers happy but the quality was marked by rain and even some snow towards the very end of harvest. Some producers harvest before the rains, but the best wines came from those who harvested after the rains but before the snow. No matter when one harvested though the wines were marked by a cool season with high acids.
Those high acids threw people off during the wine’s adolescent years. Often appearing out of balance and as a result the wines felt thin and under fruited as they aged. Of course the wines were relatively leaner and with high acids, but they also had some hidden fruit that just needed significant time to emerge and add some flesh to palate. No one would say that these wines are still at peak, though the remain in many cases quite enjoyable. They have the acid of a cool vintage which has helped these wines remain fresh even at this age, and the hard tannins that nebbiolo tends to produces except in the finest vintages, but they also retain lovely aromatics and good complexity on the palate.
[PAGEBREAK]
As the world awakens to the beauty of barolo and barbaresco we are seeing the wines appreciating at an irrational rate. Wines from past vintages can still be values, but increasingly what I am seeing are wines that are expensive simply because they are old, and rare. I can’t say I would be in the market for many 1979s at this point. 1980 seems to be a better buy, reputation and my recent report on them notwithstanding. They seem to be outperforming their reputation, and my report will fly under the radar, but I loved those wines while this line-up was certainly spottier and historical I have had a fair handful of 1979s and am familiar with the style of vintage. If prices were equal I would still prefer the 1980s, and since they tend to sell at a discount to the 79s there is no contest here.
I am looking forward to my next nebbiolo horizontal tasting coming up next month. We’ll be taking a look at 1974s. Yet another difficult vintage, but one that was much more highly acclaimed in its youth before the wines shut down hard for two decades, causing many to lose hole in the wines. I have found that the 1974s perform very well in general, like 1979s with ripe fruit if that makes any sense. Today 1974 as a vintage has regained the respect of the Nebbiolo lovers community so they wines don’t come cheaply. They are also rare, in the 40 years since the vintage nearly all of them have been consumed leaving us scrounging for what crumbs we can find. But even with an incomplete and second tier group of wines lined up I am thrilled to be able to have the opportunity to do this once again.
Tasting old wines is an exercise in patience and disappointment, but also an invaluable learning experience. Without understanding what happens to these wines in vintages strong and weak you can not accurately assess our modern vintages. Look at 2005 and 2008, two vintages that have been considered among the weakest of the past decade. A look back at 1980 or 1979 gives me confidence in these vintages. They have what it takes to age into terrific, engaging, and delicious wines. Not at the level of the very best, but who needs very best all the time? You only recognize very best by checking all the boxes that fall beneath it. And sometime very good is just what you need.
[PAGEBREAK]
1979 Marcarini Barolo La Serra
At decanting: smoke, leather, cherry, limestone, and beef!
Celery seed and sweet beef bouillon greets the nose and while this is sweet and totally tertiary it is also savory and delicious reminding me of BBQ potato chips. Superb balance, in the mouth, along with lovely fruit, bright, sapid, and richly flavored with wild amarena cherry, and limestone lingering through the long finish while picking up some nice citrus/citrus peel notes and a hint of unripe strawberry on the finale. Sapid and bright with great length and beautiful faceted complexity, the only knock could be that the tannins are a touch angular. Seems pretty classic to me. 91pts
1979 Vietti Barolo Briacca
100% Rose clone
At decanting: almost no sediment, light seaweed, rose petal, medicinal, strawberry fondant
Medicinal on the nose with hints of celery seed, spicy, dried strawberry, crushed flowers,, and a big roasted veal base note. This is bright in the mouth with high acids supporting a rich core of fruit. Almost silky, on the palate with lots of mineral and spice notes accenting a core of very earthy and savory fruit. This is intense and deep, with a lovely succulent finish. Decidedly not fruit driven but complex and elegant. 91pts
1979 Brezza Barolo Sarmassa e Castellero
At decanting: sweet cherry/strawberry fruit, clay, bramble, lovely intensity
Showing a lovely nose, rich with burnished fruit, intense and perfumed, this smells like tar and rosewater, with hints of gunpowder, mint, and black cherry. Classic, a superb if subtle nose. Soft on entry with lovely richness and good depth, this is lively and beautifully fruited, if a touch lean. Still succulent and mineral, it’s a lovely wine, this is a bit past peak, but still totally enjoyable. In its prime this must have been a beauty! 89pts
1979 Ceretto Barolo Bricco Rocche Prapo
At decanting: dark, cocoa, coffee bean, touch of mint and mineral
Intense herbal notes, greet the nose, which opens to reveal a spicy, bright, and notably minerally base supporting, lovely, intense, wild strawberry fruit. In the mouth this is packed with fruit, and very well balanced with fine acid and tannin in harmony. Supple with fine follow through of berry fruit and light herbal notes and a dash of soil adding complexity. I would have expected a little more power here but this is really very well balanced and quite pretty. 89pts
1979 Ceretto Barolo Bricco Rocche Brunate
At decanting: fabulous roses, cigar butt, and roasted strawberries!
Very perfumed like the Rocche dei Manzoni, with lots of floral character. Lovely entry with a nice underlay of sweetness rounding out the rather bright, succulent, pretty strawberry notes on the palate. There’s real clarity here and nice lift through the moderately long finish. A bit simple but admirably pure and long, and still finishing with attractive tannic clout. 88pts
1979 F Pittatore Ponte Rocca Barolo Brunate
At decanting rich with black cherry, asphalt, dusty books and some roast veal, aromas and still quite powerful in the mouth.!
Deep and intense color. Really beautiful looking. Shy on the nose, with some spicy, mineral, accents and a gamey edge that smells like lamb. Very pretty aromatics build showing off a little mint, sassafras, sage, sandy soil tones and lovely meadow notes. Opulent in the mouth, if slightly medicinal with decent cherry, loganberry fruit flavors layered over a deep, dark leathery core. Remaining moderately tannic, lean and edgy in the mouth and through the moderately long finish, this is intact and quite enjoyable if slightly rustic in style. 88pts
[PAGEBREAK]
1979 Brovia Barolo Rocche
At decanting: Absurd amount of dregs, evolved, mineral, soil, dung, and leather on the nose with lurking black cherry and rose petals.
Shy on the nose, if a bit on the evolved and savory side of things. In the mouth this is, rich and intense with some prosciutto fat notes and flashes of minerality early on the palate followed by fresh, lean, and focused red cherry and strawberry fruit. Perhaps a bit on the simple side, and a touch short, but still this is delicious. 87pts
1979 Cordero di Montezemolo Barolo Monfalletto
At decanting: sweet almond, wild strawberry and roses
Tough, on the nose and smelling of charcoal, a bit burnt, and dirty. Smoky, almost a bit of plum on the nose. A touch loose in the mouth, and a little lean but the fruit is still here, all cherried and bright if a little simple. Apple acidity on the palate, then this fades leaving a bit of dirty barrel on the finish, Chunky and showing a touch of heat on the finale. A little on the clumsy side. 85pts
1979 Cantina Mascarello Barolo
At decanting: Sweet, spicy, and complex aromas of dried onion, savory spices, pollen, candlewax, a little incense, a little brothy
The nose doesn’t change much with double-decanting as this retains the faded aromas of fruit and flowers with the layered nuance of candle wax, incense and dried spice adding complexity and the brothiness revealing it’s advancing development. With a clear, lovely texture this drifts across the palate and while texturally still intact this has seen some less than ideal storage over the years and is lean on the palate and attenuated on the finish. Lean and bright, it still manages to retain attractive energy on the palate. 83pts
1979 Oddero Barolo
At decanting: Musty, sweet, and herbal, on the nose with leather, iron, and cigar ash flavors
Rich and quite mahogany smelling on the shrill nose, which shows a bit of a bit spicy, character with salty, seaweed, and nice licorice aromas. Bright with plenty of acid, on entry and lots of evolved fruit, flavors on the palate, which does dry out fairly quickly leaving little fruit left if retaining a nice, clear texture. There’s some fruit left on the finish but this is mostly old, slightly beefy fruit. Was a nice transparent wine once. 78pts
1979 Rocche dei Manzoni Barolo Riserva
At decanting: warm, Beefy and ketchup on the nose with a certain sweetness. Quite Burgundian in the mouth with forest floor and faint red fruit flavors.
Wow, man meets woman, lots of cigar box, ash and perfume on the nose makes this very interesting and attractive to smell. While very smooth and well layered texturally, this shows a real high acid streak and is a bit dried out, with some wood tannin still in evidence. At this pint in its life it’s pretty perfumed oak water. 76pts
1979 Roagna Barbaresco Crichet Paje
At decanting: very fresh, vegetal and tight, soil, dandelion green and raspberry
Herbal on the nose with aromas of root vegetables and oyster shells. This is incredibly attenuated with raw horseradish/black radish notes. On the palate this is herbal, even vegetal. There’s still some tannin here and even in spite of that you can tell this was well made but there’s no fruit and this is raw and a bit unpleasant. 75pts