Riserva Bramaterra Nebbiolo Blend

One of the good bottles, and a beautiful reminder of why old Alto Piemonte is magic. Gorgeous mature nose of moss, seaweed, red roses, desiccated cherry, loam, chestnut, dried leaves and bark, with that old Nebbiolo road-tar thing hovering underneath. Palate still has real charge and life, with surprisingly youthful fruit, juicy cherry on the finish, and big 1989 structure, but the tannins are integrated and carrying the wine beautifully. Not refined like great Barolo or Barbaresco, but soulful, wild, alive, and deeply compelling. With air, the wine is getting more integrated and more beautiful. The nose has moved into that old Nebbiolo caramelized/seared register, with the desiccated cherry, roses, loam, moss, bark and chestnut now feeling deeper and more fused. The palate is gaining finesse, but this is not polished or refined in a Barolo/Barbaresco way. It is old Alto Piemonte: high-acid 1989 structure, big but integrated tannins, gorgeous fruit, and that wild, soulful mountain Nebbiolo charge still running through it. Still 9.4, maybe nudging higher if it keeps knitting together.

Last of my bottles & a bit sad to see it go- these were soulful wines, demanding not just in managing & extracting their corks but in leaning in to taste what they have to say. After a double decant & cheesecloth/strainer, tasted over 2 days, using a half bottle for day 2. What I loved was the wholeness & evocativeness of the wine, with all the parts having melded; fairly closed on nose but by day 2 old forest floor, rose hips, & black tea leaves; on palate all that & rose petals, dried cherries. The drinking window is closing as previous Delectable users have noted, but what a cool sunset.

My 2nd bottle of the 2003 and wow this is a stunner. Warmer vintages in cooler wine regions is where it’s at. Glorious nose of mid season cherry, sour cherry and more! Smoke, tar, tobacco, cigar box. Unreal minerality and a distinctive earthiness. Just gorgeous. So expansive and detailed. Palate is so so juicy and fresh with unreal acidity that buffets the incomprehensible juicy cherry and meaty fruit. Getting Gevrey vibes here. Amazing purity and freshness and just super clean. Opulent with so much energy and depth. Really covers the inner mouth with so much sexy fruit. The sexiest one yet but still has the house style. I’ve never had a wine where a warm vintage has elevated it this much. Genius and stunning. Nose starts with some oolong tea now after air. Palate has mid season juicy cherries that are in such abundance. It’s so well made, so balanced and just off the charts pure with velvety and sweet tannins and just such insane fruit capture.

1990 | Red Blend
(60% Nebbiolo / 20% Croatina / 10% Vespolina / 10% Uva Rara)
Tenuta Monolo (Umberto Gilodi); Riserva Piedmont; Bramaterra, Italy
(88-90; Drink 2010-2020)

1989 | Red Blend
(60% Nebbiolo / 20% Croatina / 10% Vespolina / 10% Uva Rara)
Tenuta Monolo (Umberto Gilodi); Riserva Piedmont; Bramaterra, Italy
(90-92; Drink 2014-2024)

2002 | Red Blend
(60% Nebbiolo / 20% Croatina/ 10% Vespolina / 10% Uva Rara)
Tenuta Monolo (Umberto Gilodi); Riserva Piedmont; Bramaterra, Italy
(91-93; Drink 2020-2030)

2000 | Red Blend
(60% Nebbiolo / 20% Croatina/ 10% Vespolina / 10% Uva Rara)
Tenuta Monolo (Umberto Gilodi); Riserva Piedmont; Bramaterra, Italy
(91-93; Drink 2020-2028)

Far better than prior bottles of 2000 a year or so ago, I'm now convinced those earlier bottles were flawed in some fashion.

Just perfect. No formal notes.

Very good but showing very young. Tobacco, red cherries, spice and so complex but also showing young. Juicy and clean. Tannins are sandy. Needs air.

Glorious nose of fresh woodshop shavings, dried cherry and dried roses plus smoke and wet earth. Also tree bark. The full mature nebbiolo symphony in effect. Cigar, tobacco, and so much more. This is singing. Some fresh mid season cherries are emerging with some coaxing. Gorgeous loamy minerality. What a nose. 9.5 nose for now. Juicy palate with high acidity and. blend of early season and sour cherries. Stunning purity and finesse. This is so so classy. Now with air the nose is getting layered and more complex. Tbis is a 9.6 now. Wow this is amazing. The finesse is top notch and the fruit is youthening up as it airs. Benjamin Button wine! Velvety tannins and sweet and sour cherry fruit. Complexity explosion on the finish. Simply stunning. After 24 hours the nose is riper but also has complex tertiary aromas that are very floral and loamy. Really so clear and vivid. So juicy and clean and wonderful finesse and unreal fruit. Maybe the best fruit out of all of these vintages. 9.5 to 9.6 overnight.