Barolo

[Regina Rieger]

I am preparing a meal calling for a "nice Barolo" - I could not find this in our local market - what is a Barolo wine and what would be an appropriate substitute?

[Innkeeper]

Hi RR, and welcome to the Wine Board. Barolo is one of a handful of wines in the whole world that mandates a considerable amount of aging. Fully aged out ones are extremely expensive. It is made from the nebbiolo grape. It is not always made into a big or heavy wine. Ask your retailer if he has an approachable nebbiolo. If this fails ask for a Dolcetto d'Alba.

[stevebody]

Reg,

For a "nice" Barolo - as opposed to a staggering, profound Barolo like a Giacomo Conterno or Bruno Giacosa whish will set you back a minimum of a C-note - try a Manzone or a Fratelli Ravello. Both should come in at or around $40 and both are made in a more "international" style, i.e. approachable sooner than a huge, tannic one like the two mentioned. Nebbiolo, the grape that makes Barolo, is capable of amazing warmth and richness, WHEN AGED PROPERLY, or when made by destemming the grapes and slightly oxidizing the wine, which the more traditional producers regard (with justification, IMHO) as something of a crime. There is also a Seghesio single-vineyard called "La Villa" floating around out there that is one of the most dazzling things I've ever drunk and can be appreciated right now. Look for any of those three and expect to shell out some fair $$$. Warning: A "nice" Barolo - unlike the "nice" Chianti referred to by Hannibal Lechter in "Silence of the Lambs" - is "nice" in a way that Hannibal did not intend. He meant it, I think, as a faintly mocking remark about the census taker only being worth a "Nice" Chianti. A "nice" Barolo may still be a pretty challenging wine; not as immediately friendly and eager to please as a Chianti. Decant it well in advance of the meal and plan to finish it off. Nebbiolo is not the same animal as the Sangiovese that makes up Chianti. It can bite back!