Bricco BaroneNebbiolo d'Alba
Dogliani, Piedmont, Italy
2003
14%
$15 -- Parker & Otis, Durham, NC
Color: Medium red, almost peachy at the edges
Nose: Like violets growing next to a car-painting facility
Body: Medium to heavy
Front: Cherry, tannic almost immediately; after it's been open awhile, a hint of spice at the front, and the fruit part moves to the middle
Middle: Leather, but no spice
Back: Fruity cardboard, but in a good way. When you were a child, chewing on cardboard, you wished it tasted like fruit, yes?
Burns clean?: Yes
Cap: Cork
This is a lovely wine. The structure is clear and elegant. It's fantastic with food (roasted chicken with lemon and garlic; sauteed spinach); the tannins are less dusty with the meal. It's also great with Aimee Mann or Dan Cohen playing in the background. Would you have thought these would go well with Italian? Perhaps not. But there it is. This sets a standard for wines at this price from Europe, as far as I'm concerned.
