Giacomo Conterno, Barolo Francia 1999

robert_parker92

Reviewed by: Daniel Thomases

Consumers in search of the epitome of classic Barolo will be well rewarded in the 1999 Barolo Cascina Francia, a vintage which the family is very happy with. Medium garnet (color is never particularly deep here), its spicy-resinous nose, warm, penetrating, and alcoholic, promises much pleasure, a commitment which the palate respects in its ample texture, superior continuity and drive, lovely kirsch and licorice flavors, and unusually supple tannins. Substantial and enveloping, it will easily evolve well for twenty years. Importer: Seth Allen, Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700

robert_parker94

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni

1999 Barolo Cascina Francia—Medium red. A classic in the making, the 1999 Cascina Francia offers a quintessentially pure expression of Nebbiolo in it aromas of roses, licorice and tar. It is powerful and potent on the palate, where endless layers of sweet fruit blossom with exceptional length. Though I expect it to be relatively accessible within a few years, it will also reward cellaring for several decades, and may ultimately be deserving of a higher score. A great effort. 94+/drink after 2009, 03/06 (US Importers: Polaner Selections, Mount Kisco, NY; The Rare Wine Co., Sonoma, CA)

robert_parker92

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni

1999 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia —This wine sees maceration of about 25 days, in a mixture of stainless steel and wood vats, with temperature controlled, and is then aged in large casks. Color is a light garnet. Incredibly clean and pure, this is textbook Barolo, with generous and persistent flavors of roses and licorice that go on and on. This alluring and irresistible Barolo is a wine for meditation. 92 points/drink 2005-2019

robert_parker94

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni

1999 Barolo Cascina Francia—Dark lively red. The exceptional and outrageously decadent 1999 exemplifies the very best qualities of traditional Barolo. A wine of great length and persistence, it offers a multidimensional nose of sweet fruit, minerals and tar and a dense, layered personality bursting with flavors of dark ripe fruit, tar, roses and mint. Of these first four wines, the 1999 is clearly in a league of its own. 94 points/drink after 2009, tasted 05/05 Conterno makes two Barolos both from the Cascina Francia vineyard, one of the great monopole sites in Piedmont. The vineyard was purchased by Giovanni Conterno in 1974 and measures six hectares. Cascina Francia is made in a traditional style, with natural yeasts and temperature-controlled fermentation and maceration lasting 3-4 weeks. The wines are aged in large Slavonian oak casks and are bottled in the summer of the fourth year following the harvest. In great vintages a special selection of the best fruit is made in the vineyard and that fruit becomes the Barolo Riserva Monfortino, perhaps the single most iconic wine in all of Piedmont. Monfortino is also made with natural yeasts, although fermentation/maceration time is longer, lasting 4-5 weeks, and is carried out without the aid of temperature control. Current vintages are aged seven years in cask, but past vintages have seen as much as 10 years of cask aging before being released. Monfortino is legendary for its extraordinary longevity, which is usually measured in decades.