Wine Store

Wine Spectator 90 - A densely structured red, evoking blackberry, plum, earth and black pepper aromas and flavors. Saturated with fruit yet remains lively and long on the finish. Drink now through 2025.

Vinous 88 - The 2020 Dolcetto d'Alba is fresh and vibrant, with lovely blue/purplish berry fruit, lavender and

licorice. In 2020, the Dolcetto is a bit lighter in body and less persistent than in most vintages because of rain prior to

harvest.

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Wine Spectator 87 - Bright cherry, earth and bitter almond mark this light-bodied red. It has a tea-like finish, with a light astringency

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Wine Spectator 89 - This red is fleshy, yet fluid, its black cherry, black currant and almond notes are persistent through the finish. It's balanced, with a light chalky feel in the end. Drink now.

CRU/JRM - Altare's wines are luxurious and utterly delicious.  There is an amazing smoothness and elegance that few makers achieve.

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Vinous 88 - The 2020 Langhe Nebbiolo Rosso di Rocca is another pretty entry-level offering from Albino Rocca. This aromatic, light-bodied Nebbiolo is a tasty every-day drinker. Sweet red cherry, blood orange and spice linger.

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Vinous 91 The 2015 Barbera d'Alba Gepin is terrific. Dark, rich and voluptuous, but with plenty of structure, the 2015 expresses all of the natural intensity of the year while retaining a very appealing sense of translucency. Succulent dark cherry, plum, spice, leather, mint and dried herbs add to the wine's forward, racy personality.

CRU/JRM  Aged one year in large oak casks.  Good depth on the nose - cherries and stone - quite expansive and plush on the palate with dense fruitiness and some minerality.  Excellent balance and fair density with good length.

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JRM - The 'Meritage" wine of the Langhe, combining the finest qualities of Nebbiolo, Barbera and Cabernet Sauvignon.  Complex, elegant and long with a sumptuous nose and great palate-feel. A unique and luxurious wine.

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Wine Advocate 91 - The 2011 Barolo Arborina delivers a tight and austere personality. The wine was slightly shut down upon release but has since gained in volume and depth. It shows sharp lines and great definition with plenty of dark fruit, cassis and dried cherry. The tannins are ripe and dry. Only 6,000 bottles were produced.

Vinous 91 - The 2011 Barolo Arborina is dark, fleshy and supple on the palate, with lovely overall presence. Wild flowers, spices, new leather and tobacco all add shades of nuance. The firm Arborina tannins kick in on the finish, giving wine an attractive burst of energy and persistence.

Wine Spectator 90 - A rich version, displaying sweet cherry, strawberry, licorice and spice flavors, this borders on chewy, with dense tannins gracing the finish. Best from 2018 through 2030.

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Vinous 92+ - Tobacco, sage, menthol, licorice, leather and dark-fleshed fruits are some of the signatures in the 2013 Barbaresco Ovello Vigna Loreto. Nuanced and expressive throughout, the Ovello is another striking wine from Albino Rocca.

Wine Spectator 92 - A broad, rich style, with dense tannins shoring up the sweet plum, cherry and berry flavors. The tannins are assertive and will need some time to resolve, but everything is in the right place. Best from 2020 through 2032. 216 cases made.

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Vinous 95 - The 2013 Barbaresco Ronchi is superb. Ample and large scaled, as wines from this clay-rich site often are, the Ronchi is firing on all cylinders today.

Layers of dark red stone fruit fill out the wine's ample frame effortlessly. Pine, menthol, anise, citrus peel and tobacco add attractive aromatic overtones, but it is the wine's balance that is most impressive today. Simply put, the Ronchi is a standout.

Wine Advocate 91 - The 2013 Barbaresco Ronchi shows richness and density that grounds this wine firmly to the palate. This is a lasting and enriched expression that offers the intensity and the natural length that characterizes this vintage. Dark cherries and spice segue to balsam herb and cola. This is an elegant and nicely articulated expression from the Ronchi cru.

Wine Spectator 91 - A tightly wound red, with firm, raspy tannins that make the future difficult to predict. With air, sweet cherry, licorice and spice flavors emerge. Fans out nicely on the lingering finish. Best from 2019 through 2032.

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Vinous 93 - The 2014 Barbaresco Fausoni is all grace. Aromatic and lifted, with striking inner perfume and sweetness, the 2014 Fausoni is a terrific example of the year. Sweet red cherry, red plum, rose petal and mint infuse this pliant, super-expressive Barbaresco. In many years, Fausoni can be a bit lean, but in 2014, the late-ripening season allow for the full ripeness of fruit and tannin. What a gorgeous wine this is.

Wine Advocate 91 - This Nebbiolo shows amber and garnet hues over a lean and delicate appearance. The 2014 Barbaresco Fausoni is broad and accessible in character. The bouquet really puts it all out there and holds nothing back. It delivers bright fruit, spice and white licorice. The fruit feels a degree riper and darker in this unusual vintage that ended with a blast of pre-harvest heat following a cool summer. The Fausoni vineyard is home to 45-year-old vines.

Wine Spectator 91 - Shades of spice augment the cherry and medicinal herb flavors in this savory red. A firm line of dusty tannins holds court on the finish despite the relatively open texture. Best from 2019 through 2033.

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Vinous 93 - The 2014 Barbaresco Cottà, often a big, bombastic wine, is unusually refined in this vintage. The deep center of fruit that has always defined this wine is present, but there is more freshness and less of the heaviness that often marks this wine. Hints of blood orange, mint and rosewater give the 2014 an exotic upper register. Shades of blue/purplish fruit, lavender, mint and savory herbs add the closing shades of nuance.

Wine Advocate 93 - The 2014 Barbaresco Cottà does not offer the acute high notes that you get with the other beautiful Barbarescos from Sottimano in this vintage. The intensity is broader and flatter, so to speak, but overall, the wine's intensity is just as bright and compelling as the others, albeit in a more subdued manner. Dark cherry and blackberry segue to spice, anise and cured leather. The wine feels soft and rich in texture as well. Some 10% of the wine is aged in new oak barrel.

Wine Spectator 93 - Pretty cherry, floral, mineral and tobacco flavors line this racy red. There is an underlying density to the structure and a lingering aftertaste of fruit, iron, underbrush and tobacco. Best from 2020 through 2033.

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Vinous 95 - The 2014 Barbaresco Pajoré is broad, ample and super-expressive. Dark cherry, spice, lavender, licorice and leather flesh out in a multi-dimensional, complex Barbaresco endowed with myriad shades of nuance. Here, too, the tannins are fully ripe, which allows all the purity of the fruit to come through loud and clear.

Wine Advocate 94 - The 2014 Barbaresco Pajorè is a lovely wine with a firm and convincing sense of inner intensity and elegance. Red cherries and cassis rise from the bouquet, which is delivered with almost musical pulses of brightness that keep time and tempo. The wine's concentration is dark ruby and luminous. Dried mint, anise and licorice appears on the silky finish. The 1.5-hectare Pajorè vineyard is located in Treiso. Vines are up to 70 years old.

Wine Spectator 92 - Fresh thyme, cherry, tobacco and mineral flavors are the hallmarks of this firm, linear red, which is shy aromatically, but there is a core of sweet fruit. Fine length and freshness. Best from 2020 through 2032.

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Wine Spectator 96 - Pretty cherry, strawberry and floral aromas and flavors define this elegant, supple red. Firmly structured and beautifully integrated, leaving a lingering aftertaste of iron, tobacco and underbrush. Best from 2022 through 2042.

Wine Advocate 92+ - Of the three single-vineyard expressions of Barbaresco from Albino Rocca tasted this year, the 2015 Barbaresco Ovello (with 2,500 bottles made) exhibits the most defined mineral note. The bouquet shows dark fruit, spice and medicinal herb. It also delivers a very pretty and defined note of crushed granite or pencil shaving. The Ovello is also distinguished by a sweet and more succulent mouthfeel. Of these three wines, including the Barbaresco Cottà and the Barbaresco Ronchi, this is my favorite.

Vinous 92+ - The 2015 Barbaresco Ovello Vigna Loreto is beautifully lifted in the glass. Even in this warm vintage, the Loreto retains the nerve and tension that are such signatures of this Barbaresco vineyard. Crushed flowers, dried herbs, mint and chalk are all nicely delineated in a precise, finely sculpted Barbaresco endowed with real character. Readers should plan on cellaring the 2015 for at least a few years before diving into bottles.

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Vinous 93+ - Here in its first release, 2015 Barbaresco Cottà, shows the natural breadth of this vineyard in Neive. There has a real sense of weight and gravitas that distinguishes the Cottà in this range. I would give the 2015 at least a few years in bottle to fully come together. This is certainly an auspicious debut. The Cottà could very well be a new star in the range.

Wine Advocate 91 - The 2015 Barbaresco Cottà displays a subdued but steady personality. The bouquet is stitched carefully together with dried berries followed by balsam herb, rosemary sprig and cherry cola. There is an oxidative or slightly evolved note, but it is well massaged into the black fruit and spice that sits at the core of this Barbaresco from Neive. The mouthfeel is elegant and bright. This is the inaugural vintage by Albino Rocca. Some 2,000 bottles were produced.

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Wine Spectator 94 - Pure, exhibiting rose, cherry and raspberry aromas. Elements of tobacco, eucalyptus, mineral and tar chime in on the palate. Elegant and long on the finish. Firms up and shows fine balance overall. Best from 2022 through 2037.

Vinous 92 - The 2016 Barbaresco Montersino is marked by distinct floral overtones, bright red berry fruit and gracious, mid-weight structure. Clean mineral notes add energy to a Barbaresco that stands out for its tense, crystalline personality.  Pine, mint, chalk and crushed rocks give the 2016 its distinctive aromatic upper register to balance things out. This is such a vivid and expressive wine.

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Wine Advocate 93 - Elio Altare gives me a bit of his winemaker's wisdom: "Wine is like a marriage—it needs to be consummated early." With that in mind, the 2015 Barolo is engineered for near- and medium-term drinking with lots of plump fruit that jumps right out. The wine is open and inviting. Dark fruit is followed by warm tones of tilled earth and cured tobacco. Grapes are harvested from different parcels in four vineyard passes. In 2015, the team had the time to wait for each parcel to mature properly because the harvest was relaxed and spread over more comfortable timing. This Barolo would match up nicely with a mild liver dish.

Wine Spectator 92 - A ripe style, boasting plum, black cherry and sun-kissed hay flavors, with a hint of vanilla. The lush fruit and texture is offset by dense tannins. All the components converge on the long finish. Best from 2021 through 2038.

Vinous 92 - The 2015 Barolo is an absolutely glorious wine. Sensual, silky and polished, the 2015 has so much to offer. Bright red berry fruit is nicely complemented by an array of floral and spiced notes that add nuance. Polished tannins add to the wine's considerable near-term appeal, but the straight Barolo also has a track record h ere of aging exceptionally well.Vineyard sites include Pernanno, Sarmassa, Rochettevino and Cerretta. Don't miss it.

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Vinous 96 - The highlight of the 2013s, the Barbaresco Currà is simply exceptional. Powerful and explosive, with striking aromatics, pulsating fruit and tons of pure energy, the Currà makes a strong case for itself as one of the finest wines ever made here. A host of sweet red cherry, kirsch, mint, raspberry and cedar meld into the long, persistent finish.

Wine Advovate 93 - The 2013 Barbaresco Currà offers a savory side that is seamlessly juxtaposed against a plump fruity side. Those two halves paint a pretty picture of this unusual and slightly cooler vintage. The wine shows power and a great sense of forward thrust or momentum that will serve it well as it ages in your cellar. The 1.5-hectare vineyard is planted to 65-year-old vines in the Neive subzone.

Wine Spectator 92 - A fresh, cherry-, mineral- and tar-flavored red whose great structure provides support. Elements of underbrush and earth come into play on the lingering finish. Best from 2020 through 2033.

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