Vintage wines
Year | Rating | Drinkability | Style |
---|---|---|---|
2010 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | Copious yields, so green-harvesting essential. Excellent quality and staying power. |
2009 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | A very hot summer and an early harvest gave rich, opulent and hedonistic wines |
2008 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | Another 2008 vintage saved by an Indian summer. Expect intense flavours but a more elegant structure than last year. Low yielding harvest. |
2007 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | Lengthy ripening season produced well-structured, aromatic wines with plentiful butripe, velvety tannins. |
2006 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | For growers who worked judiciously in the vineyards, the vintage is expected to show a classic, good structure, nice restraint on the fruit but a certain element of power as well. |
2005 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | Climate conditions have been erratic with many producers saying it’s been a tough and difficult vintage. |
2004 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | Well balanced wines with ripe fruit. |
2003 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | Deep, bold reds with high levels of alcohol and in the best cases balanced with ripe fruit. |
2002 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | An average year, the best of which will be a relatively elegant style of Barolo. |
2001 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | Lovely, ripe with good concentration and with excellent aging potential—chewy, concentrated, and phenolic. |
2000 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | Quality is good to very good in all the major Barolo areas. |
1999 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | A decent vintage with a good late ripening season, quality depends on the individual grower. |
1998 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | The third great vintage in a row. |
1997 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | An outstanding vintage which produced superbly ripe wines for mid-term ageing. |
1996 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A troublesome vintage, though the top growers still managed to produce some excellent wines. |
1995 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | An over-hyped vintage at the time, the wines now seem lacking in fruit. |
1994 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | Prolonged rain caused serious problems although a few producers still made good wines. |
1993 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A variable vintage of irregular quality. Some good Barolo. |
1992 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | Cold and wet weather at harvest time produced thin, light wines. |
1991 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A better vintage than first thought, but not up to the standard of the previous three. |
1990 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | keep | A superb vintage all round with Barolo and set for a long life. |
1989 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | An excellent vintage, free of the rains which plagued the rest of Italy. |
1988 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | October rains were a problem but the wines from this vintage finally turned out well. |
1987 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | Uneven quality overall. |
1986 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | Serious hail problems in many Barolo communes. Some good wines were still made. |
1985 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A superb vintage with rich, perfumed wines destined for long ageing. |
1984 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A sub-standard Piedmont vintage. |
1983 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A weak vintage producing lightweight, early-maturing wines. |
1982 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A tremendous vintage for big, rich and fruity Barolo. |
1981 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | An unexceptional year of only average quality. |
1980 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A sound, rather than exciting, vintage. |
1979 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A good year of above average quality. |
1978 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | An excellent vintage which produced well-structured, long-lived wines. |
1977 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | Wines were adequate at best. |
1976 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | An unremarkable vintage producing few wines suitable for long-term ageing. |
1975 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A vintage now best forgotten. |
1974 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A good vintage after two disappointing years. |
1973 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | An indifferent year with few wines of note. |
1972 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | A uniformly dreadful vintage. |
1971 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | drink now | The second great year in a row, with very fine Barolo. |