Monchiero Barolo Montanello 1978

13.7% Imported by Adventures in Wine, CA

Montanello is a historic vineyard in Castiglione Falletto.

I really had low expectations given the photo. It looked like a Katrina wine or something. I would never have bought it had I seen the photo! The photo is a crack-up though. For barolo, you have "olo", for Montanello, you have "ello" and for Moncheiro, you have "nchiero"!!!!

I was always very interested in Monchiero and Montanello, some uncompromising, ultra-traditionalists that didn't get much press or attention. But I also saw lots of comments about flawed bottles. So while tempted, this is the only older Monchiero I have.

Their 1998 Roere was really nice and had years to go. I finally found out that Roere is in the Santa Maria district of La Morra. Not sure if they still make it.

This was a very nice wine, maybe even fabulous. Since I thought it would be oxidized, I only decanted 2 hours - it really needed more air and was really great by the last glass. A hint of oxidation when first opened but it went away. Savory, feminine, caramel, tobacco, sweet palate and aroma. Very smooth, very balanced. Gets more power and more masculine the longer it is open. I haven't had many Castiglione Falletto wines but this really reminds me of the ones I have had and speaks very clearly of the village. The level of winemaking is quite high here - no loose ends, nothing sticking out. This bottle could be compared very favorably against other top wines of this village. Haunted by it the next day. Classic barolo. Highly recommended.

Thanks
Fraser


Attachments
Monchiero Barolo 1978 Montanello.JPG