100-Point Wines

wines

The 1998 Trotanoy displays a deep garnet-purple color. Wow. Tons of gregarious fruit springs from the glass—crème de cassis, blackberry pie, blueberry compote and mincemeat with suggestions of cigar box, chargrilled meat, incense, earth and dried cherries plus a touch of dried flowers. Medium to full-bodied, it coats the palate with bags of rich, plush textured fruit, offering layer upon layer of exotic spice and savory flavors, finishing epically long and layered. This is mind-blowingly delicious!Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 99 RPLast tasted in June 2019, and almost two years later this remains an exceptional wine, showing no signs of flagging. A full array of cloves, black pepper, black cherry, truffles, opulent cigar box and creamy chocolate, and given definition and reined in by firm tannins and still fresh acidities. Needs decanting and easily has another 15 years ahead of it. (Drink between 2021-2038)Decanter | 97 DEC(95% merlot and 5% cabernet franc; 3.72 pH; IPT 71; 13.5% alcohol): Bright ruby-red with a hint of garnet at the rim. Knockout deep, nuanced nose of blackcurrant, red cherry, violets and truffle. Supple, broad and full in the mouth, with smoky blackberry, caramel and spicy pepper flavors. The finish is long and silky, with ultrasmooth tannins and a lingering mineral note. This impeccably balanced wine is utterly irresistible already. "An exceptional wine and one of the best examples of Trotanoy ever," according to Jean-Claude Berrouet. I couldn’t agree more.Vinous Media | 97 VMVery sweet, plummy fruit on the nose, with hints of milk chocolate and spices. Full-bodied, with chewy tannins and a big, juicy palate. A subtle wine that builds on the palate. It’s sort of like a weight-lifting ballerina. Give this big wine time. Really impressive.--’88/’98 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2008). Best after 2012.Wine Spectator | 97 WS(Château Trotanoy (Pomerol)) The 1998 vintage of Trotanoy is one of the legends in the making at this great estate, and all that is needed for this wine is an additional ten to twelve years of bottle age to allow the wine to fully blossom. This is an utterly classical vintage here, offering up a deep, pure and still youthful bouquet of red and black plums, black cherries, gravelly soil tones, cigar wrapper, incipient smokiness and a nice touch of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and utterly seamless, with a rock solid core of fruit, fine-grained tannins and outstanding focus and grip on the very, very long, nascently complex and captivating finish. This is clearly an old school vintage of Trotanoy that follows my “thirty year rule” for this property’s greatest wines, and is aging at an even more leisurely pace than I anticipated when I last drank a bottle in 2013 and is consequently, still many years away from truly blossoming. But, it will be utterly profound in the fullness of time. (Drink between 2030-2100).John Gilman | 96 JGNo written review provided | 94 W&S

The 2004 Barolo Riserva Le Rocche del Falletto is simply as profound as wine can be. Period. Strikingly layered, perfumed and sensual to the core, the 2004 has it all. Next to the straight Falletto, the Rocche is more refined but also quite a bit more backward as well. Mint, rose petal and melted road tar grace the exquisite finish. The level of intensity here is simply mind-blowing. At ten years of age, the 2004 Rocche is a youngster, but it is clearly a wine of divine inspiration. For readers who look at the numbers, the score is the only possible score.Vinous Media | 100 VMThe 2004 Barolo Riserva Falletto Vigna Le Rocche is off the charts. Sweet roses, menthol, tar, licorice and minerals come together in a sensual, elegant style that recalls Giacosa’s legendary 1989 Riserva Collina Rionda, a wine many observers (this one included) place at the top of the hierarchy of all-time legendary Barolos. Ripe, sensual, and utterly spellbinding, the 2004 Riserva Le Rocche del Falletto offers superb elegance and pedigree. At this stage the wine remains surprisingly accessible. Readers will want to taste the 2004 Rocche as soon as possible as it will almost certainly head for a long period of dormancy in the near future. This magical Barolo will likely merit a perfect score in the future. The 2004 Rocche is the last wine Giacosa and former longtime oenologist Dante Scaglione produced together from start to finish and it is an appropriate bookend to a wonderful partnership that yielded so many profound wines. Anticipated maturity: 2024-2044. Bruno Giacosa created quite a stir when he announced this spring that he would not bottle any of his 2006 Barolos and Barbarescos. While I wasn’t surprised he would pass on bottling a few wines – as early as spring 2007 Giacosa did not present the 2006 Barbaresco Santo Stefano and Barolo Croera in my annual barrel tastings – the decision to skip an entire vintage prompted a back and forth volley of polemics that is such an integral part of the Italian way of life. Clearly Giacosa had a difficult emotional relationship with these wines from the start, as they were made in the year he suffered a stroke and was absent from the winery for long periods of time. Perhaps Giacosa simply wanted to cancel the entire year from his memory. Or maybe it is a case where the vintage quality in Giacosa’s vineyards and later of the wines themselves in the cellar did not live up to his exacting standards. Given the emotional weight attached to this year I am not sure anyone – even Giacosa himself – will fully understand all of the circumstances behind the decision not to bottle the wines. After having tasted Giacosa’s 2006 Barolos and Barbarescos on numerous occasions I am convinced he has bottled lesser wines in the past. It is important to remember that virtually all of Piedmont’s top estates are essentially small, family-run wineries, and in that regard Giacosa is no exception. What seems pretty obvious at this point is that under normal circumstances without emotional duress, Giacosa and his team would have been better equipped to deal with the challenges of the harvest. Giacosa’s decision is more a reflection of the estate’s inability to deal with a difficult harvest (for understandable reasons) rather than a commentary on the intrinsic quality of the vintage itself. Giacosa may also have been prompted to skip an average year for his wines based on the exceptional juice he put into the bottle in the surrounding 2004, 2005 and 2007 vintages. Sadly, prices for the top bottles – the Red Label Barolo and Barbaresco Riservas in particular – continue to climb as collectors throughout the world recognize the quality of the wines. Still, at the risk of sounding out of touch with today’s economic environment, it is pretty clear that Giacosa’s finest wines remain relatively well-priced within the context of the world finest and most collectible wines. A recent bottle of the 1989 Barbaresco Riserva Santo Stefano stood shoulder to shoulder with the 1989 Haut-Brion and Rousseau’s 1990 Chambertin....in fact, it may have even surpassed those icons! A Leonardo Lo Cascio Selection, Winebow, Montvale, NJ; tel. (201) 445-0620Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 99+ RPI am enamored with the ripeness, spiciness and mushroom character in this wine. This is a big and powerful wine with incredibly chewy tannins and beefy fruit. Think of a house made of bricks. Wait until 2017 if you can keep your hands off of it.James Suckling | 97 JSThis requires aeration to coax out its fragrant floral, cherry and raspberry fruit aromas. Though supple, focused and elegant, it’s very firmly structured, with an underlying mineral streak and a long aftertaste of tobacco. Will be a beauty in about five years. Best from 2013 through 2032. 1,191 cases made, 101 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 96 WS