Notes from a tasting with Mauro Mascarello in the end of August-04. Here are the short notes.

Dolcetto d'Alba Bricco 2000
Deep red colour. Fruity nose. Hints of cherries with a touch of roses, almonds and anise. Full-bodied and well-balanced dolcetto in the mouth with good acidic structure and some tannins in the back. Very fine dolcetto.

Barbera d'Alba Codena 2001
Dark red colour. The somewhat closed nose shows dark berries and a slight hints of floral notes. Powerful and concentrated barbera in it's young phase. Fruity and quite closed. Good acids and a touch of bitterness in the finish. Not that impressive now, probably much better with some more time.

Langhe Freisa Toetto 2001
Colour slightly lighter than the Barbera. More floral nose with some elegance. Restrained fruitiness. Medium bodied in the mouth. A more tart and acidic palate with less obvious fruit-concentration. Some nice floral elements. Lightly tannic end. Very fine nose, a bit disappointing in the mouth.

Langhe Nebbiolo 2001
Grapes from Santo Stefano di Perno and Castiglione Falletto. Brick colour. Nose has autumn leaves and tobacco. Medium bodied and concentration. Round and mild nebbiolo in the mouth. Traditionally made. Good acids. Just a touch of tannins in the back. Easy-going nebbiolo.

Barolo Monprivato 1999
Light brick colour. Closed nose, shows some Autumn leaves and tar. With air more and more tar. Something good is hiding underneath, but it never shows this evening. Full-bodied, structured and tannic wine in the mouth. Closed fruit. Seems cool fruited and with good acids. Highly traditional. Must be aged. Almost not drinkable today. Will be great and even better than the 98.

Barolo Monprivato 1998
Colour same as the 99. Nose much more open. Shows tar, a touch of cherries and much high notes of floral fruit. Full-bodied, but less structured than the 99. Shows fine perfume and fruit. Great Barolo, one to drink while you wait for the 99. Try again in 3-4 more years.

Barolo Monprivato Riserva ca d'Maurissio 1997
The rare and expensive riserva. Deep brick colour. Much darker than the Monprivato "normale". More intence nose, showing more fruit, probably from the vintage, but no overripe aromas. The depth is also greater than the "normale" with complex floral notes and some tar, anise and tobacco. Powerful in the wine and more concentration. More fruit-flavours, but the depth is great with complex hints of tar, anise and roses. Tannic end. A very good Barolo from the 97-vintage. Shows more obvious fruit, but balancing very nicely and coming down as a Barolo with concentration and depth instead of overripeness. WOTN. Give it 5-10 more years.

Barolo Monprivato 1990
Light brown-red colour. Nice nose of tar and old sweet fruit. Full-bodied and concentrated in the mouth. Much sweetness in the fruit. A bit warm style, but traditional flavours of tar and old wood. Medium acids and still tannic end. Great Barolo, but I did expect a little more from this. Perhaps aired to short? Give it another 5 years. IMO the Monprivato 99 will be better than this vintage.

Barolo Monprivato 1980
Mauro wanted to bring a mediocre older vintage to show that the Monprivato can age very well. This wine had a light browning colour. Complex tarry nose with hints of old wood and tobacco. Medium bodie and concentrated in the mouth. Mature wine that shows nice hints of tar, old wood-closet and dust. Some anise in the finish. Good acids and still a correct little tannic end. Very fine and mature. Not the most concentrated wine but no signs of breaking up.