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Prunotto

As this producer offers barbera and dolcetto from Alba and Asti, as well as both Barolo and Barbaresco, winemaker Gianluca Torrengo is an excellent source of information on the differences among recent vintages in the Piedmont. Torrengo is especially high on 1999. "This is a very traditionally styled vintage, with a normal October harvest, not early like in '97 and '98," he told me. "The wines are complex and aromatic, with lovely balance and structure - despite the fact that the crop was generally larger in Barolo than it was in '98 or '00. The 2000s are superripe, with strong dry extract and very sweet tannins. One can really feel the sun in these wines. The '98s also reflect a hot growing season, with lower acid levels than those of '99 or '01." Unlike some of his colleagues, Torrengo does not liken 2000 to 1997. "1997 is an easier style of wine, with less structure," he noted. "It was a drought year, and numerous wines show some dryness from the less-ripe skins." The 2001 vintage was also quite dry, producing small bunches and small grapes - a higher ratio of skin to juice. "But we were still able to do a good extraction, even if the wines spent about five days less on their skins than they did, for example, in 1996."

From Focus on Barolo and Barbaresco (Nov 2002) by Stephen Tanzer

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1998 Barolo Bussia

Release Price: $75

Color: Red

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