Wine Advisor
Paolo Conterno, Barolo Ginestra Riserva 2006
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Conterno’s 2006 Barolo Riserva Ginestra shows the broad shoulders and pure structure of the vintage. Cinnamon, flowers, herbs and dark fruit flesh out as this powerful Barolo flows from the glass. The 2006 Riserva is deep and intense from start to finish. This is a classic and representative interpretation of Ginestra. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2026. A Marc de Grazia Selection, various American importers, including: de Grazia Imports; tel. (417) 732-4200; Skurnik Wines, Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300; Estate Wines Ltd., San Rafael, CA; tel. (415) 492-9411; Robert Houde Wines, Elk Grove Village, IL; tel. (847) 430-3887
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2006 Barolo Riserva Ginestra is impressive. It doesn't have the finesse of the 2008s I tasted, but the wine's depth and sheer personality are compelling just the same. The 2006 Riserva is a big, imposing wine that still needs time to come together. I can hardly wait to taste it from bottle. Anticipated maturity: 2016-2036. Proprietor Giorgio Conterno has a number of gorgeous wines in his cellar. Conterno's 2008s are among the more refined, polished Baroli I have tasted from him. The wines were fermented in steel and aged in 25 to 30-hectoliter French oak casks. A Marc de Grazia Selection, various American importers, including: de Grazia Imports; tel. (417) 732-4200; Michael Skurnik, Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300; Estate Wines Ltd., San Rafael, CA; tel. (415) 492-9411; Robert Houde Wines, Elk Grove Village, IL; tel. (847) 430-3887
Reviewed by: James Suckling
Wonderful aromas of dark fruits and bark with hints of black truffles. Full body, with super integrated tannins and beautiful fruit. This is very fine and impressive. Drinkable now but better in 2015.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Conterno's 2006 Barolo Riserva Ginestra shows the broad shoulders and pure structure of the vintage. Cinnamon, flowers, herbs and dark fruit flesh out as this powerful Barolo flows from the glass. The 2006 Riserva is deep and intense from start to finish. This is a classic and representative interpretation of Ginestra.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
(this was aged for five years in large casks): Good medium red. Musky, balsamic nose offers black cherry, currant, sandalwood, dried flowers, licorice and truffle. Sweet, dense and lush; seriously ripe and pliant. Red fruit and underbrush flavors are complemented by a saline element and some nutty oak. Wonderfully complex but still quite youthful, this velvety, seriously ripe wine finishes with suave tannins and superb energy and length. A beautiful example of this very strong vintage.
About the Producer
Paolo Conterno founded Casa della Ginestra in 1886, not long after the birth of Barolo as we know it. He was one of the very first growers in the Langhe to sell barrels of wine directly to consumers from the cellar, eschewing the well-established négociants of the time. He developed a loyal following of connoisseurs demanding his wines, and the independent estate has prospered over now five generations. Today Giorgio Conterno is at the helm of winery, which produces brilliant, classically styled expressions from the Ginestra cru, renown for wines with dark colors, brooding tannins and incredible aromatics—hallmarks of its dense, clay-heavy Helvetian soil and relatively high elevation. The estate’s style is rooted in tradition: extended macerations and long aging in large casks, with the resulting wines perfectly reflecting Ginestra’s excellence: laser pure perfumes, great balance, approachability and long potential for aging.
