Giacomo Conterno Arione Barolo 2018
- Decanter
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Spectator
Wine -
Dunnuck
Jeb
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Decanter
With young soils and steep hills, the importance of Arione is easily understood. The southern exposure helped the quality in this vintage and the wine shows a restrained red currant fruit aroma with graceful cinnamon, sweet violet and watermelon, allied to an anise, almost herbal, whiff. Full, refreshing and very elegant yet not without a firm structure, it features an extracted chalky finish. It will age quite well for a 2018.
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Wine Spectator
Perfumed and suave, this red boasts cherry, strawberry, sandalwood, floral and mint aromas and flavors. This one is all about finesse and harmony, with its precision and balance providing a sense of seamlessness—even at this youthful stage. The fruit, spice and savory elements linger on the aftertaste.
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Jeb Dunnuck
There is surprising depth for the vintage in the 2018 Barolo Arione, with licorice, black truffle, violet, and cherry lozenge. Medium to full-bodied, with fleshy cherry fruit, it is long and luxurious on the palate, with fine tannins and a velvety mouthfeel. A fantastic wine from Roberto Conterno, it is an outstanding wine to drink right now or over the coming 20 years.
These majestic wines descend from a colossal legacy, spanning three generations of Conternos: Giacomo, Giovanni, and Roberto—in each case, the torch passing from father to son. Both Giovanni, who forged a reputation as the greatest of all Barolo producers, and now his gifted son, Roberto, have continued the important work of patriarch Giacomo.
Roberto Conterno is quick to say that the wines he makes belong to his father and grandfather. Yet his era may prove to be the most exciting. After all, Roberto benefits from the wisdom of both Giacomo and Giovanni. And Roberto has shown that he shares not only their genius, but also their devotion to tradition and history.
Responsible for some of the most elegant and age-worthy wines in the world, Nebbiolo, named for the ubiquitous autumnal fog (called nebbia in Italian), is the star variety of northern Italy’s Piedmont region. Grown throughout the area, as well as in the neighboring Valle d’Aosta and Valtellina, it reaches its highest potential in the Piedmontese villages of Barolo, Barbaresco and Roero. Outside of Italy, growers are still very much in the experimentation stage but some success has been achieved in parts of California. Somm Secret—If you’re new to Nebbiolo, start with a charming, wallet-friendly, early-drinking Langhe Nebbiolo or Nebbiolo d'Alba.