Ceretto Zonchera is the wine that originally got me hooked on red wine and
particularly Barolo. Although I have found that the Zonchera isn't very
representative of Barolos in general, I'm fond of it mostly because it gives
a finished and well rounded impression.

NH State liquor stores put their supply of '96s on clearance for $28. I
drove around NH one day and collected a case and a half of them. I never
feel guilty about opening a bottle because I don't believe they could
benefit much from aging.


"Dale Williams" > wrote in message
...
> Wednesday was the 43rd anniversary of the first big event in my life,
Betsy had
> asked whether I would rather go out or have friends in. I opted for dinner
at
> home with friends, and she invited 9 (luckily one couple only stayed for
> appetizers and meeting our new pup, because we could have never gotten 12
> people in our tiny dining room).
>
> We started with:
> Proscuitto wrapped around figs and gorgonzola, drizzled with a balsamic
> reduction
> Smoked duck wrapped in lettuce
> Eggplant terrine (this was bought at store)
> Potatoes topped with sour cream and fish eggs (some with salmon roe,
others
> "wasabi caviar")
>
> The appetizer wine was the NV Laurent-Perrier Champagne. Definitely on the
> light end of the Champagne spectrum. Fine bead, nose has floral notes with
a
> kind of biscuit edge. Crisp, dry, very nice. B+/A-
>
> At one point ran out and opened the only other sparkler I had cold, the NV
> Zardetto Prosecco. Nowhere near the complexity and charm of the Champagne,
but
> hey, it's a 1/3 the price. Nice fruity bubbly. B
>
> After the one couple headed to back to school night, we crowded around the
> dinner table to see what Betsy had wrought. A fine dinner -beef in Barolo,
> garlic mashed potatoes, green beans with pancetta, and two separate
sautées of
> mushrooms- one with lobster, oyster & shimeji 'shrooms, the other with
> Chanterelles and white trumpets (I think there was some hen of the woods,
but
> don't remember in which).
>
> Betsy made a double recipe of the beef in Barolo, and used the only
Barolo I
> had that was cheap enough to sacrifice most of 2 bottles. But there was
about a
> cup leftover, and I tried the 1997 Villadoria Barolo. Maybe closer in
style to
> a Nebbiolo d'Alba than a Barolo, but a pleasant wine. Medium-body, earthy
nose
> with a touch of flowers. Dark cherry fruit, good acidity for a '97, a
lingering
> note of Piemonte tar. Not bad at all. B+
>
> As we actually started eating we passed a quartet of Italians:
>
> 2000 Seghesio Barbera d'Alba
> Ripe raspberry fruit with some balancing acidity (though not very acidic
by
> Barbera standards), little apparent oak, pleasant wine but without any
real
> stamp of individuality. B
>
> 1997 Ceretto Barolo Zonchera
> Seemingly close to maturity, good body and a fair dose of toasty oak. Nose
of
> roses and tar, good red fruit. A little short on the finish. B/B+
>
> 1995 Icardi Parej Barolo
> A producer I only really know from their Moscato d'Asti, I'm not sure
where I
> got this bottle. Initially a little disappointed - somewhat closed and
angular.
> But some additional airtime (at first pour it had been opened 3 hours, but
not
> decanted) let some real Barolo character shine through. There's a little
hint
> of new oak, but there's lots of truffle, tar, and violet aromas. Medium
> tannins, dark red fruit (raspberry and black cherry), a little spice note.
> Doesn't seem to me to be clearly New Wave or Traditional, but somewhere in
the
> middle. Tasty. A-
>
> 1996 Banfi Brunello
> Nobody talks much about the '96 Brunellos, but to me they offer some nice
wines
> for drinking early. This one is made in a modern style, rich red fruit
framed
> by some chocolaty oak flavors. It does have balancing acidity, and a good
long
> finish. B+
>
> We passed a cheese plate including Vermont Shepherds' Shepherd Wheel,
Fourme
> d'Ambert, Morbier, 4 yr old Gouda, plus two Italian sheepsmilk cheeses
that Joe
> Bongiorno brought. With those we had:
>
> 1990 Pierre Ponnelle "Les Mazoyeres" Charmes-Chambertin
> First pour seemed a little hot, with damp earth and candied red fruit. A
minor
> disappointment. But as we talked into the night some animal and meat notes
> emerged. The last glass had a silky texture, with a nice overlay of spice
and
> woodfloor on the red fruit. Not a profound GC, but pretty good. B+
>
> 1999 Pierre-Bise "L'Anclaie" Coteaux du Layon
> Sweet honeyed chenin fruit, layers of mineral over a peach and apricot
base.
> Very very good for the vintage. Not as acidic as some CdL (though there's
> plenty there to balance the sugar), I wouldn't try to age this one for
that
> long. A-
>
> My friend Joe entertained us with stories of his visits this summer to
Piemonte
> (Bartolo Mascarello being the highlight). None of my Italians this night
were
> solidly traditional, but that's because the traditional ones all needed
more
> time. But mostly pleasant wines, great friends, fantastic food, and
nothing
> corked- not a bad birthday.
>
> Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent
wine, B
> a good wine, C mediocre at best. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink
at a
> party where it was only choice.
> Dale
>
> Dale Williams
> Drop "damnspam" to reply