maze, London May 12, 2014
Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Monfortino 1970-2006 from Magnum
Since 1970, Giacomo Conterno has bottled just eighteen vintages of their flagship Barolo Riserva Monfortino in magnum. We opened them all at this epic vertical tasting and dinner in London.
I have always been attracted to the historical context behind the world’s great wines. A few years ago, we began hosting a series of events designed to explore and better understand the rich cultural fabric that informs those wines. In 2011, we tasted every vintage of Masseto, which at the time was the most comprehensive vertical of that wine ever staged. Last year we organized a complete vertical of Solaia, the first time all 26 vintages had been tasted together. In both of those instances, the tastings yielded a wide range of insights that would have been impossible to gain otherwise.
A truly once-in-a-lifetime collection of 18 vintages of Monfortino in magnum
The term ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ is often overused, but it really does capture the essence of this tasting of every vintage of Monfortino bottled in magnum between 1970 and 2006, the first vertical of its kind ever held. I haven’t tasted eighteen vintages of Monfortino from magnum in aggregate during all of the years I have purchased, drunk and reviewed wine. I am pretty sure none of the attendees had either. It was a first for Roberto Conterno as well. Watch as Conterno discusses the historic context of the vertical in this video interview, shot just before the tasting. Interestingly, Conterno did not bottle Monfortino in magnum between 1971 and 1979. In the 1970s, magnums were filled by hand, which often led to slight bottle variation. Giovanni Conterno stopped bottling magnums after 1970 and started again only in 1982, when modern bottling equipment allowed for filling magnums on the line. Thus, two of the greatest Monfortinos of all time, the 1971 and 1978, were not bottled in magnum.
All of the wines for this tasting were acquired from a pristine private collection that has supplied my personal cellar for many years. With one exception, the 1996, all of the wines were gorgeous. A word (or two) of caution: The magnum format and impeccable provenance of these bottles are both significant factors in why the wines showed as well as they did. As always, I urge readers to be cautious when sourcing older vintages in the market today.
Head Sommelier Arnaud Bardary double decants the 1982 Monfortino
The wines were opened about four hours before dinner and double decanted, starting with the most structured vintages, which I expected might benefit from additional aeration. The wines were grouped in thematic rather than chronological flights, which gave us the opportunity to taste wines that share common attributes together. Each wine was served in its own glass, so attendees could follow the evolution of wines throughout the evening. I discuss some of the overarching themes of the tasting in this short video.
