What do you take to drink with a couple who have tried the
best of most wines. More of the same of
course! The Ekim Couple don’t give much
away and are very inscrutable, so you just take your chances, and hope what you
bring pleases them. If it comes to the
worst scenario, you just enjoy it!
So it was with a noble Nebbiolo. You couldn’t ask for better credentials than
a 2008 Aldo Conterno Barolo Bussia ‘Colonello’. Top producer with all the class you could
ever wish, and the ‘Colonello’ style one of fragrance and finesse. The vintage good and hopefully becoming
accessible. Upon opening, very dark
coloured, near black garnet-red. Then on
nose and palate an incredibly refined, but concentrated core of black fruits
seamlessly infused with minerals and complexed by a savoury note. Absolutely no funkiness. Funkiness would be crass. Not exactly exotic, by brooding with it. Not really fragrant and perfumed. None of the dried roses yet. Maybe a hint of tar, but that’s too
earthy. Just sheer nobility. Immense extraction, but also incredible elegance. The tannins so silky, but with a sense of
near-overpowering density. The so-called
better years will have more depth and concentration, with more layers and even
more backward. What was remarkable was that
it was so drinkable, though it said that another decade of aging was
preferable. NAC said the same in not so
many words, and SWMBO just nodded, acknowledging something special here. I think I could detect a smile on the faces
of the Ekim Couple.
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