Wine Advisor
Bruno Giacosa, Barolo Le Rocche del Falletto Riserva 2007
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2007 Barolo Riserva Falletto Vigna Le Rocche bursts onto the palate with masses of dark fruit. The Riserva is a decidedly dark, brooding wine in this vintage. Scorched earth, smoke, menthol, licorice and new leather flow with marvelous intensity all the way through to the powerful finish. Over time the classic Giacosa bouquet of dried rose petal emerges, rounding out this fabulous effort in grand style. The imposing tannins will require a measure of patience, but the 2007 Riserva is shaping up to be another magnificent, towering Barolo from Bruno Giacosa. Anticipated maturity: 2022-2042. My annual tasting with Bruno Giacosa encompassed all his 2008s and 2009s, plus the 2000 Baroli and Barbareschi, which will be covered in a subsequent article. Vintage 2008 and 2009 are both interesting, but don’t look to be as consistent across the board as 2007. Never one to say much, Giacosa is quite reserved and even severe with his own wines, with the exception of the occasional wine that crosses his lips and elicits a ‘this is good.’ A Leonardo Lo Cascio Selection, Winebow, Montvale, NJ; tel. (201) 445-0620
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2007 Barolo Riserva Le Rocche del Falletto bursts onto the palate with masses of dark fruit. The Riserva is a decidedly dark, brooding wine in this vintage. Scorched earth, smoke, menthol, licorice and new leather flow with marvelous intensity all the way through to the powerful finish. Over time the classic Giacosa bouquet of dried rose petal emerges, rounding out this fabulous effort in grand style. The imposing tannins will require a measure of patience, but the 2007 Riserva is shaping up to be another magnificent, towering Barolo from Bruno Giacosa.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Good bright full red. Tight, high-pitched aromas of raspberry, spices, smoke and dried flowers. Initially much less sweet and open than the Faletto classico but dramatically gained flesh with air while retaining superb precision. Very deep wine but dominated by its spine today. Tannins are very suave. Offers superb depth of texture but today the classico is more floral and high-pitched.
About the Producer
Bruno Giacosa, located in the south and south-west of Piemonte, has been performing well for three generations, thanks to the careful selection of high quality grapes and the emphasis on traditional winemaking techniques. The vineyard covers 44.7 acres (18 hectares) and is planted with Nebbiolo d'Alba, Barbera and Dolcetto varieties. The average age of the vines is 15 years and the planting density is between 4,500 and 5,000 vines per hectare, with an average yield of 4,800 litres per hectare. In terms of winemaking, the owner has a classic quote: "For us, the philosophy of traditionalism means making wines that are not only strongly local to the vine and the grape variety, but also maintain the various local terroirs. We have always made single-variety wines. Our winemaking techniques have been improved and we also make use of gentle pressing, crushing operations, advanced rotary systems and optimised cold and hot treatment techniques." For Garcosa, technology and tradition are not necessarily at odds with each other. In the winemaking process, the grapes are first fermented in steel containers and then transferred to wooden containers for ageing, which varies slightly depending on the type of wine. Finally, the wine is bottled without filtering. The main wines produced by the winery are the Barbaresco Garina, the Barbaresco Santo Stefano, the Barbaresco Asili, the Barbaresco Wabasha and the Barbaresco Asili. Barbaresco Rabaja, Barolo Falletto and Barolo Le Rocche del Falletto. Some of the more recent vintages are 2001, 2000, 1998, 1997, 1996, 1990, 1989, 1982 and 1978. These vintages are often relatively closed and uninteresting when first bottled, but after 10 years in the cellar, they all show an irresistible magic.
