I have just returned from a 10-day trip to the Langhe in Piemonte where I was able to taste soon-to-be released bottlings of three wine types produced entirely from the Nebbiolo grape: Roero Rosso (the new bottlings from 2008), Barbaresco (2008) and Barolo (2007). This was the Nebbiolo Prima event in Alba, organized for several dozen journalists (as well as some retailers) from around the world. I wrote about 2008 Barbaresco last time out – in this post, I will deal with 2007 Barolo.

First and foremost, this is a very good to excellent vintage, but not one I think can be defined as great. 2007 was a warm year to be sure and the wines have impressive ripeness and very good acidity. The wines are balanced and in some cases, quite approachable now, a trait not seen in the 2006 Barolos. However, that year’s Barolos displayed much deeper concentration along with more firm tannins; the 2006 Barolos are wines for 10-15 years down the road, with many of them peaking in 20-30 years. While there are a few bottlings of 2007 Barolo that will drink well at 25 years of age (such as Pio Cesare “Ornato” and the Renato Ratti “Rocche”), I believe most of these wines will peak at 15-20 years of age, which is for the most part, a typical timeframe for a very good Barolo vintage.

So while 2007 is not a great vintage, it is most certainly an appealing one. Several producers told me that they expect these wines to sell very well, as they have suchforward fruit as well as round, elegant tannins. This is the thing to remember about the quality and characteristic of this vintage; unlike 2006 which needs time, these wines can be enjoyed in the near term. This is important, as there are many wine drinkers who are curious about Barolo, especially this particular vintage, which will no doubt receive very good press. 2006 may be a more classic Piemontese vintage (and one I think is outstanding), but for many wine lovers who do not drink Barolo on a regular basis – or for those interested in discovering Barolo for the first time – 2007 is a vintage that will offer ample pleasure.

As for the individual communes themselves, Verduno performed brilliantly. This is not one of the larger communes of the Barolo zone, but the quality of wines from this small area was remarkably high. There were five wines in the tasting from Verduno and I awarded three of them a 4-star (excellent) rating with one wine receiving three stars (very good) and one wine – the Fratelli Alessandria “Monvigliero”- receiving my top rating of five stars – outstanding. This wine has lovely perfumes – my notes refer to orange pekoe tea, strawberry jam and cedar – and there is beautiful depth of fruit with ideal sturcture. This is a wine that should be at its peak in 20 years – or perhaps longer. The wines from Verduno are not the most powerful of the Barolos, but they are among the most seductive. The producers here, such as Burlotto and Castello di Verduno have been performing at a high level for years, so it’s nice to see their success in 2007.

The commune of La Morra is home to a higher percentage of Barolo vineyards than any other, so naturally there were many bottlings offered at this event. To no surprise, the wines of Renato Ratti were among the very best, especially the“Conca” and “Rocche” bottlings. Both wines offer marvelous aromas of red cherry, orange peel and plum with nicely integrated wood notes backed by an impressive mid-palate. These wines are almost as deeply concentrated as their 2006 counterparts – not quite, but almost – and offer beautiful acidity. These are built for the long haul – I marked down “25 years plus” for the Conca and “30 years” for the Rocche. Pietro Ratti has done a marvelous job following in his father’s footsteps and has been producing some of the finest and most consistent Barolos of the past decade; these bottlings from 2007 are further evidence.