Double decant back into clean bottle after 1.5 hours of aeration in a decanter. Modest amount of coarse grained sediment.
Showed very well from initial opening. Somewhat reticent nose of florals and leather that opened very gradually over several hours.
Burgundian in style, elegant and quite translucent in color. Slight browning in color shows advanced age. Beautifully burnished tannins have mellowed and pleasingly complement the aged fruit. Faint touches of mint and sage. I very much enjoy tertiary development exhibited here. There is a very attractive inner sweetness to this wine's palate that manifests over the evening, especially with food.
Wimemaker Aldo Vacca has described Moccagatta as a female version of Rabaja. It is situated on a southeastern exposure, which is cooler since it does not receive as much western sunlight late in the day. A higher degree of limestone content in the soils provides structure and age-ability.
I opened this bottle to check on the condition of a batch of the nine cru's from 1996 and 1997 that I recently assembled from a reliable source. While the label on this bottle was not in pristine condition, the provenance appears to be acceptable.
I will be opening the rest of these in June with my wine group for a comparative tasting of various Produttori del Barbaresco cru's.
One of the dishes at dinner was a surprisingly unique complement to the wine: charred Broccoli in a Romesco sauce garnished with a fried egg (perfectly cooked runny yolk) and Manchego cheese. Romesco is a nut and red pepper based sauce that originated in Tarragona, Catalonia in northeastern Spain. The dish was served in a small cast iron skillet.....wonderfully executed and delightful.
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