Wine Advisor
Giovanni Corino, Barolo Arborina 2003
View analysis
Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2003 Barolo Arborina reveals great depth in its expansive sweet fruit, licorice, earthiness and menthol notes. It is made in a fairly accessible style, but offers limited complexity. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2015. The 2003s are the first finished Barolos I have tasted since brothers Renato and Giuliano divided their family’s holdings. Giuliano kept the old label and the family’s estate name that readers are already familiar with. It will be interesting to see what the Corinos are capable of doing now that they are on their own. For now it is too soon to draw any meaningful conclusions, especially when faced with a vintage that is as atypical as 2003. A Marc de Grazia Selection, various American importers, including Michael Skurnik, Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300, Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700, and Estate Wines, Ltd., San Rafael, CA; tel. (415) 492-9411
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2003 Barolo Arborina reveals an added dimension of complexity. It presents attractive flowers, spices, menthol, chocolate and red cherries with excellent length, expansiveness and inner sweetness. Despite its positive attributes, it comes across as somewhat tired and flat. Renato Corino is one of the most passionate producers I know. Always generous with his time and his wines, he embodies all of the qualities of La Morra’s finest artisanal growers. Corino’s new winery is perched atop the Arborina vineyard, just a stone’s throw from his neighbors Mauro Veglio and Elio Altare. These 2003 Barolos are the first Barolos Renato Corino has bottled under his own label. It is impossible to judge a producer from a single vintage, especially when it is as freakish as 2003, but as I note above, it will be interesting to see how the two Corino estates develop over the coming years. For now, these 2003 Barolos lack color, even for Nebbiolo, and don’t appear to be destined for long lives. A Marc de Grazia Selection, various American importers, including Michael Skurnik, Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300, Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700, and Estate Wines, Ltd., San Rafael, CA; tel. (415) 492-9411
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2003 Barolo Arborina reveals greater depth in its expansive sweet fruit, licorice, earthiness and menthol notes. It, too, is made in a fairly accessible style, but offers limited complexity.
About the Producer
Corino Giovanni di Corino Giuliano is an Italian wine producer located in the north-west of Piedmont in the Langhe. The estate specialises in the three classic Landhe red grape varieties, Nebbiolo, Barbera and Dolcetto, and was founded by the Corino family in 1952 when they moved to La Morra. Over the next few decades, the vineyard expanded to 15 hectares (37 acres). Initially, most of the grapes were produced for sale. In the mid-1980s, when Giuliano, Giovanni's son and today's business owner, was still young, he joined the company and the first hundred litres of Barolo were bottled. In 1987 an innovative path of winemaking began, maintaining the characteristic stamp of the region, with thinning in the vineyards for better quality, short fermentations at controlled temperatures and ageing in small French oak barrels. In the mid-1980s, the estate produced its first Barolo wines. In 2005, the brothers Giuliano and Renato Corino parted ways and divided the family business between themselves, with Giuliano managing the 8 hectares (20 acres) estate. The winery respects nature and uses no chemical pesticides and only natural fertilisers. Corino Giovanni di Corino Giuliano devotes approximately 5 hectares (12 acres) of the vineyard to the Nebbiolo grape variety, with the remaining 3 hectares (7 acres) planted equally with Barbera and Dolcetto. These vineyard plots are planted on clay-calcareous and clay soils. The estate produces around 50,000 bottles of wine per year, the majority of which are Barolo wines. Corino's portfolio includes three single vineyard 'cru' Barolo wines, as well as a selection of Barbera d'Alba, Dolcetto d'Alba, Langhe Nebbiolo and Langhe Rosso wines. As a rule, Corino ages its Barolo wines for approximately two years in old and new French oak barrels, followed by six months in steel barrels. These wines are aged in bottle for two years before release.
