Description
Vintage quality: Legendary
Current condition: Ready to drink, will keep
Although the growing season definitely threw up its fair share of challenges and producers had to meticulously harvest, the resulting wines were stunning. Both Barolo and Barbaresco were tannic and powerfully structured with a depth of flavor that stretched from dense fruit to more savory notes. Many of these wines had the refined tannins needed for serious long-term aging.
Overall, the 2006 Piedmont vintage was superb and produced some outstanding wines capable of cellaring for a very long time. There should be a wide range of reds drinking wonderfully now and the best are likely to continue to age for quite some time in the cellar.
Winery Overview
There are few greater expressions of the magnificent and ethereal Nebbiolo grape than those produced at Gigi Rosso. It is perhaps Italy’s most significant contribution to the fine wine world. At its best, this grape offers a haunting, incomparable perfume of roses, tar, and violets, with a structure that allows it to age for many decades.
As is so often the case in the wine business, Gigi Rosso came into being simply because of one man’s dream. In the early 1970s, Gigi Rosso decided to dedicate his life to making exceptional wines in the Piedmont region of northwest Italy and founded a modern winery in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of the Barolo region. His vines were planted in the best terroirs in Barolo, nestled in a cluster of fog-prone hills (nebbia means fog in Italian) around the village of the same name. His first vintages were an enormous success, loved by connoisseurs and critics alike – the renown of Gigi Rosso’s sublime, elegant Barolo and later Barbaresco spread across the world like wildfire.
Today, Gigi Rosso continues to act as a passionate ambassador for the noble Nebbiolo grape, joined by his two sons, Maurizio and Claudio Rosso. Maurizio handles the winemaking at Gigi Rosso, while Claudio has worked tirelessly for three years as the (Honorary) President of the Langhe and Roero Consorzio, representing hundreds of regional producers.
At the heart of it all, the wines reign supreme for this family—an actual labor of love deeply rooted in the illustrious Langhe region. Their passion and expertise culminate in the Arione single-vineyard Barolo, a wine that stands out as one of Italy’s most exquisite. Infused with a kaleidoscope of flavors including cinnamon, exotic spices, crisp green pepper, anise, and delicate violets, it is a wine crafted not only to enchant the connoisseurs but also to captivate those yet to discover the joy of Italian viticulture. Simply magnificent!
