1998 Chardonnay Bussiador Langhe

"In general, the '97 Barolos are exaggerated wines," says Aldo Conterno. "Too many wines from our region are big but inelegant. They're easy to drink due to low acidity, but too many of them are jammy and over-mature. I know of wines with alcohol as high as 15.8%. We picked very early in '97 to try to avoid these excesses." Conterno is high on the '98 vintage, which, he says, displays the structure and elegance of '96 but has lower acidity. "The '98s are bigger than the '96s but may be even better, as one can see the elegance early." x000D x000D Today Conterno Barolos make use of a bit more wood during the fermentation, although Conterno does not consider this recent change as an abandonment of traditional methods. Previously the Barolos were fermented in stainless steel, then allowed two or three weeks of natural sedimentation before they went into large barrels. Now they are fermented in 25-hectoliter tinos the Cicala spends a week in a rotofermenter, then is racked off its skins into 50-hectoliter tanks, where it finishes its primary fermentation. And the Gran Bussia is vinified entirely in wood. "Wine used to be viewed as an aliment," Conterno explains. "But now people drink it for pleasure. And wood opens the wine; the wine is ready sooner. But we can say that using wood is also a more traditional approach than stainless steel, which we didn't have in the old days."