Giacomo Conterno, Barolo Francia 2009

vinous95

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni

Conterno's 2009 Barolo Cascina Francia wraps around the palate with gorgeous depth. A wine of volume and breadth, the 2009 fleshes out beautifully on the palate with layers of harmonious, silky fruit. Sweet tobacco, mint, flowers, spices and the most beautiful pure fruit all flesh out on the voluptuous, inviting finish. All the elements are in place for the 2009 to develop into a superb Barolo, but readers will have to be patient as the wine was just bottled. I remember what happened the last time Conterno bottled a Cascina Francia, but no Monfortino. The vintage was 2007, and I deeply regretted not having purchased that wine.

vinous94

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni

The 2009 Barolo Cascina Francia is surprisingly open for a young Conterno Barolo. Super silky and finessed, the 2009 is ripe, juicy and beautifully balanced. At press time, Roberto Conterno had not decided if he was going to bottle the 2009 Monfortino, in which case the juice would be added to the Cascina Francia. In 2009, like 2003, the issue is less about the quality of the ‘Monfortino' cask, but rather the level of the Cascina Francia barrels. It won't be much of a surprise if Conterno decides to make just his Cascina Francia in 2009.

vinous94

Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer

Good bright medium red. Deep, expressive nose offers strawberry, camphor, marzipan and earthy minerality. Like liquid silk on entry, then very rich, ripe and sweet in the middle, offering complex notes of red berries, roasted herbs, leather and smoked meat. Finishes sappy and very long, with lush tannins and serious breadth. The tannins are more than supported by the wine's strong mid-palate material. This wine includes the fruit that would normally go into the Monfortino bottling.

vinous94

Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer

Bright, youthful red with a pale rim. Sexy nose combines liqueur-like cherry and strawberry with pungent smoky minerality. Lush, rich and seamless, offering excellent volume without undue weight. Classically dry but very ripe wine with the sheer thickness of cherry fruit to hide its acids and tongue-dusting tannins. Finishes broad, long and classic, with strong lingering fruit.

robert_parker96

Reviewed by: Monica Larner

Because Monfortino was not produced this vintage, the 2009 Barolo Cascina Francia benefits from the extra fruit that would have otherwise gone toward the world's most celebrated Barolo Riserva. I tasted the 2009 Barolo Cascina Francia in barrel two years ago and am delighted by its steady evolution. This is a wine of sophisticated intensity and persuasion. The bouquet peels back to reveal dark fruit, licorice, tar and dried rose. The vintage was warm, resulting in extra plumpness and roundness in terms of mouthfeel. The style is slightly more immediate, but this is a great aging wine nonetheless.

robert_parker96

Reviewed by: Monica Larner

The 2009 Barolo Cascina Francia is a stunning wine. Roberto did not make Monfortino in 2009, therefore that wine was declassified and added here. The results are truly spectacular. The wine shows the soft fullness that is characteristic of the vintage, backed by tight tannins that pull the wine together. Dark fruit, licorice, chopped herb, white truffle, tar and pressed rose form a united aromatic front. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2035. There is something almost ecclesiastical about a cellar visit to Giacomo Conterno at the foot of Monforte d’Alba. Enter his gates and you immediately cross an imaginary threshold into a spiritual and sobering world. The winery has the feeling of a vast cathedral with soaring ceilings and open spaces. Impeccable oak casks, each beautifully varnished, line the cellar perimeters like a succession of small family chapels. Roberto Conterno glides slowly and steadily across the tiled floor as if he were a priest lost in a contemplative moment of prayer. He carefully wipes the spigots clean of each stray drop with a white handkerchief he keeps at his side. The official tasting of his wine is performed with the ceremonial precision and religious intensity of a First Communion. And, just as when Mass has concluded, there’s a subtle sense of relief when you finally step back out into the sunlight. Importers: Polaner Selections, Mt. Kisco, NY; tel. (914) 244-0404; The Rare Wine Co., Sonoma, CA; tel. (707) 996-4484