2006 Barolo Gavarini Chiniera

I was deeply impressed with the Barolos I tasted this year from Elio and Gianluca Grasso. This is an important vintage for the Grasso family, and readers will want to get their hands on these exceptionally pure, beautiful wines. In discussing their 2006s, many producers draw comparisons with their 1989s. This is one of the cases where such a comparison is quite accurate. Speaking of which, readers may want to take a look at my notes on Grasso's 1989s (and 1990s too) in my What About Now article on this site. Grasso farms three vineyards in Monforte; Ginestra, Gavarini and Rüncot, all of which have their own unique qualities. Harvest times can vary as much as 7-10 days from parcel to parcel. The Barolos are fermented using the traditional submerged cap method and see a full month of maceration on the skins. Malolactic fermentation is done in steel, and the wines are subsequently aged in cask. Despite all of their success, Elio, Marina, Gianluca and Francesca Grasso, along with their cellarmaster Enrico, remain some of the most unassuming, humble and classiest people readers will meet in Piedmont.

x000D Gianluca Grasso was marveling over the range of vintages between 2004 and 2008 when I stopped by to taste with him in September. "Vintages 2008 and 2006 are similar," he said. "Both are great and were made from grapes picked late, after a long vegetative cycle. In '08 we harvested until October 25. Both '08 and '06 brought classic weather and ripening conditions for Barolo nebbiolo, with a lot of hot temperatures. We could do long macerations. Two thousand four was also very good-I prefer it to 2005, a year in which we had summer rains. We picked 80% of our Barolo before the early October rain in '05 but I wouldn't say the fruit reached 100% phenolic ripeness." Grasso continues to use micro-oxygenation to make his dolcetto and Langhe nebbiolo more fruity and approachable. Beginning with the 2007 vintage, he has also added dry ice to this same fruit in the destemmer. This produces "micro holes" in the berries, which Grasso says releases an enzyme that ultimately gives the wines a fruitier, more floral and more elegant character. (Importers include Sussex Wine Merchants, Moorestown, NJ; Martin-Scott Wines, Ltd., Lake Success, NY; Langdon-Shiverick, Los Angeles, CA; and Oliver McCrum Wines, Oakland, CA)