1997 Silvio Grasso Barolo Ciabot Manzoni and 2007 Guiseppe Cortese Barbaresco Rabaja

What a difference a decade makes.  My first take on Silvio Grasso wines, the '97 Ciabot Manzoni is a modern style Barolo.  Served at dinner an hour after decant, this is a big wine with lots of sweet tannins framing dark cherry fruit.... quite dark in color with slight amber robe.  Great Nebbiolo profile of tar, roses and cedar with delicious sous bois ... Drinking well now, this wine has many years of life ahead ... 
Contrast to the '07 Cortese Rabaja, which was also decanted.  This wine seems a bit more closed since the previous bottle tasted earlier this year.  Nose is noticeably more reticent.  Attractive black fruit is tight at the moment not giving much even after a couple of hours in the decanter.  Noble Rabaja lineage is present, but really won't be hitting its stride for another ten years....