critic reviews
The 2011 Barolo from Bartolo Mascarello is blessed with a divine bouquet, surfeit with red cherries, crushed strawberry, decaying autumn leaves and rose petal, and later a hint of roasted chestnut and Montecristo. The palate is fresh, poised, not deep but harmonious and satin-like in texture. Elegant on the finish, not profound but so, so drinkable and delicious. Tasted at the Vinous off-line dinner at La Trompette.
The 2011 Barolo is a very expressive wine with more determination and muscle than you usually get in the wines of Bartolo Mascarello. The bouquet opens to plush flavors of red fruit and cherry with grilled herb, tobacco and mineral delineation. Its structure is yielding and round and the finish is ripe with soft fruit flavors. Make no mistake, it doles out complexity and an ethereal sense of balsam herb, cola and licorice that is the hallmark of this historic estate with a tiny garage winery in the town of Barolo. The alcohol reading here is 14.5% compared to 14% in the 2010 vintage.